10th annual Semoball Awards on deck for Friday night

The best of the best in Southeast Missouri high school sports will gather for one of the biggest nights of the year Friday night at the 10th annual Semoball Awards.

For those not familiar with the event, the Semoball Awards is a first-class, red carpet affair where the top 200-plus athletes across 56 high schools in the region are recognized for their accomplishments on the field and court as well as in the classroom.

There are 21 individual sport award categories along with top awards, including: comeback player of the year, the sportsmanship award, coach of the year, Lifetime Achievement Award, The Bank of Missouri male and female scholar athletes of the year and the SoutheastHEALTH male and female athletes of the year.

The show, inspired by the ESPYs, is an award-winning event with high level video, lights and musical elements. And there's a meaningful keynote message from a professional athlete or entertainer. Previous speakers include: two-time ESPY Award winner and quadruple amputee Kyle Maynard; Olympic softball gold medalist Jennie Finch; Super Bowl champion and TV analyst Mark Schlereth; World Series MVP David Eckstein; WNBA star and model Lisa Leslie; broadcaster Rick Horton; former MLB pitcher Andrew Miller; and comedian Mike Goodwin.

This year, Dan Meers will give the keynote address. Meers, known as the mascot KC Wolf for the Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs, has a remarkable story of surviving a stunt-gone-wrong. His message of hard work, perseverance and faith is gripping. If you come for nothing else, Meers' talk is worth the price of admission.

The night also includes pre-event red carpet festivities, a live radio show and heavy hor d'oeuvres.

Tickets are available online at semoball.com/awards.

Special thanks to presenting sponsor SoutheastHEALTH and title sponsors: The Bank of Missouri (Official Bank Sponsor), SEMO ESPN Radio, the St. Louis Cardinals, rustmedia and your local newspaper.

We hope you'll join us Friday evening for one of the marquee events of the year in Southeast Missouri.