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The best and most inspiring athletes from around the Emerald Coast gathered together at Northwest Florida State College’s Raider Arena with the members of the All Sports Association to celebrate their successes from last year.
The group heard from Former Head Football Coach Urban Meyer.
Professional athletes like Rece Hinds of the Cinncinati Reds highlighted the event – as did Niceville’s Max Diehl (Lacrosse), Sophie Broutin (Volleyball), and Lilly Chouinard (Kennesaw State, Pole Vault) attended the event.
Hear from the winners of this year’s awards below:
Nick Dawkins (Penn State) | Danny Wuerffel Award
Rece Hinds (Cinncinati Reds) | Professional Award Winner
Michael Embry | Special Olympics Award Athlete
Lilly Chouinard (Kennessaw State University) | Female Collegiate Award Winner
Jaden Voisin (University of South Alabama) | Male Collegiate Award Winner
Sophia Broutin (Niceville High School) | Female Scholastic Award Winner
Max Deihl (Niceville High School) | Male Scholasitc Award Winner
Cameron Farrah | Amateur Award Winner
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Michael Embry, the All Sports Association’s 2025 Special Olympics Athlete of the Year, talks about the most important qualities in any athlete. He says the most important qualities for an athlete to possess are courage and strength.
In this conversation, Lilly shares her journey into pole vaulting, discussing the thrill and challenges of the sport. She reflects on the life lessons learned through her athletic experience, particularly the importance of persistence and technical skill. As she looks towards her future, Lily expresses her aspirations in medical sales while also touching on her interest in sports journalism. The discussion also explores the current state of track and field, including the need for better facilities to attract casual fans and the dynamics of college track teams.
“Niceville specifically, they call it the University of Niceville for a reason,” Chouinard said, “When I was there, I think it’s still the same, but we had 11 coaches on the staff, which is unreal. Like I’m in college and we have four. So 11, you had a coach for every single event and every single jump event had a coach and they were all incredible. And they just pour their heart and soul into that sport. Like the head coach of that program is like my second dad. Like he truly, he wants the best for every single one of his athletes.”
Taylor Haugen Trophy Winner for 2025, Emery Haugen, talks to Mid Bay News about what she wants to do after high school – help people.
“I really love pharmacy because it’s one of those things that I will be able to have an impact on people, not directly, you know, not face to face every day, but just one of those behind the scenes. Medicine is mandatory,” Hagan said, “Everyone goes through a time where they need medicine, so I see it as a way to be able to give back to my community and serve them.”
Mid Bay News talks with Niceville High School’s Max Diehl about receiving the Male Scholastic award from the All Sports Association. His skills as an attackman on the Niceville lacrosse team has paired with his academic prowess to earn him a spot at the University of Florida and the Coast Guard Academy. He is waiting to hear back from the Naval and Air Force Academies.
“Personally, I think having a team surrounding you and them always wanting the best for you, like that nobody’s hating on the team. Everybody wants the best for each other and having a team that will always put you first and helping other teams,” Diehl told Mid Bay News, “That’s helped me a lot, especially in dark times when maybe I’m having a bad game or a rough day. I go out to practice and all my teammates are uplifting and happy and just in general helping me every day and every day of my life.”
In this conversation, All Sports Association Amateur Athlete of the Year Cam Farrah shares her passion for sailing, discussing her experiences traveling the world for competitions, the thrill of racing, and the accessibility of the sport for all ages. She emphasizes the importance of overcoming challenges, such as seasickness, and encourages others to try sailing, highlighting that it’s never too late to learn. Kim also looks forward to upcoming sailing events and reflects on the strong sailing culture in places like New Zealand.
“The best place to sail is here out of Fort Walton Yacht Club. No matter where I go, it’s my most favorite place in the world. Second favorite is Lake Garda in Italy. It’s absolutely beautiful. It’s like sailing in a movie. Where is it? Lake Garda. It’s in Italy, so it’s like a big lake that’s…
surrounded by cliffs like it’s unbelievable huge mountains tiny lake in the center and just full of sailboats it’s beautiful. What’s that wind? So there’s two very consistent winds there’s a palaire and an aura wind that comes in so it’s nuking in the morning it totally dies you go get a cappuccino and then it comes ripping back in in the afternoon so it’s beautiful.”
In her conversation with Mid Bay News, Sophie Broughton shared her experiences as a high school senior balancing academics and athletics, particularly her journey in volleyball. She discusses her introduction to the sport, the importance of teamwork, and how her athletic career has influenced her academic pursuits. Sophie also reflected on her future aspirations and the colleges she is considering for her next steps.
“I think starting with volleyball a lot of things I’ve definitely can transfer into academics. I’ve learned a lot about teamwork. think I really liked being in a sport that was teamwork team oriented because I think it it really helps you working with a team because I mean with volleyball like if you don’t have your setter if you don’t have your passers if you don’t have the other hitters you you can’t get anywhere and so we were able to make it pretty far this year and we had a really great coach, but we also were able to really work together and
I think definitely the teamwork really helped kind of transfer into the classroom too, like knowing that you you can’t, to get places to kind of get where I wanted to go you need to kind of work as a team.”
