Ten Wyoming senior athletes have been selected as finalists for the Milward Simpson Athlete of the Year Award.

The two winners of the award will be announced on Saturday, June 21, during the Wyoming Sports Hall of Fame Banquet in Casper.

The five finalists for the boys award are Cody Emrick of Sundance High School; Erik Heiss of Kelly Walsh High School; Skyler Hoopes of Lusk High School; Rob Johnson of Tongue River High School; and Stephen Michel of Laramie High School.

The five girls' finalists are Chelsey Lybeck of Cheyenne Central High School; Jordan Merback of Kelly Walsh High School; Maggie Ochsner of Lingle-Fort Laramie High School; Kristen Scheffler of Lovell High School; and Kelsey Scott of Douglas High School.

The Milward Simpson Athlete of the Year Award is considered by many to be the most prestigious honor bestowed upon a Wyoming high school athlete. This will be the 33rd year for the award, which is named in honor of the late Milward Simpson, a former Wyoming governor and United States Senator from Cody.

Simpson served as the team captain for the University of Wyoming football, basketball, and baseball teams and earned varsity letters in each sport from 1917-1921. He turned down a professional baseball contract to attend Harvard Law School. Simpson served as the Governor of Wyoming from 1954-58, and later as a United States Senator, 1962-67.

Last year's athletes of the year were Brendan Ames and Hillary Carlson, both of Cheyenne Central High School. Other former winners include NFL players Brady Poppinga and Brett Keisel, former Major Leaguer Mike Lansing, and Olympians John Godina, Jesseca Cross and Lance Deal.

Milward Simpson Award 2008
Girls finalists
Chelsey Lybeck, Cheyenne Central High School
Lybeck won nine letters and five all-state awards in five sports. In basketball, she was a two-time all-state selection and was the captain of her team for three of her four years. Central won two state championships in her four years. She was named her conference's co-player of the year and was the 4A state player of the year as a senior. She was chosen to play in the Wyoming-Montana and Wyoming-South Dakota all-star basketball series and was a McDonald's all-America nominee. She also ran track for four years and was an all-state recipient as a junior and a senior. She also participated in volleyball, golf and cross country. Chelsey is the daughter of Jayna and Chad Lybeck.

Jordan Merback, Kelly Walsh High School
Merback won seven letters and seven all-state awards in indoor and outdoor track. Combined, she won 10 individual state championships in track and field. In outdoor track, she won the 4A 100 hurdles three times and also won the triple jump twice, and was also the 300 hurdles champ as a senior. In indoor track, she won the triple jump three times and the 55 hurdles once. She also played hockey as a freshman and sophomore, playing at the AAA level with the Colorado Select team, and was the first girl from Wyoming to be selected to the National Olympic development camp. She'll attend Stanford on a track scholarship. Jordan is the daughter of Janet and Mike Merback.

Maggie Ochsner, Lingle High School
Ochsner won 11 letters, six-all conference and six all-state awards in four sports. In track, she was a 14-time state champion and holds class records for the 200, the 100 hurdles and the 300 hurdles for both Class 1A and Class 2A. She helped Lingle win four state championships in her four years. She also participated in indoor track for Cheyenne Central and won three events while setting state records in the 55-meter dash and the 55-meter hurdles. She will run track at Weber State. In volleyball, she earned four letters and two all-conference selections. She also played basketball two years and started on Lingle's 2006 1A state championship team. Maggie is the daughter of Lisa and Jacob Ochsner.

Kristen Scheffler, Lovell High School
Scheffler won eight letters, five all-conference and five all-state awards in volleyball and basketball. In basketball, she was a three-time all-conference and all-state pick, scoring 1,591 points in her career. She was the 2A player of the year as a junior, the Gatorade player of the year as a senior and was nominated for the McDonalds All-America team. She has signed to play basketball at UW. In volleyball, she was a four-year letterwinner, two-time all-conference and all-state player as an outside hitter. She was the team captain for both sports two years in a row. She is a Wyoming-Montana and Wyoming-South Dakota all-star basketball selection. Kristen is the daughter of Lori and Dave Scheffler.

Kelsey Scott, Douglas High School
Scott won seven varsity letters, four all-conference and four all-state awards in basketball and track. In basketball, she was all-conference and all-state for three years in a row and earned four letters. She helped lead Douglas to a state 3A championship as a freshman and was also chosen to play in the Wyoming all-star basketball series this summer. In track, she won three letters and was all-state as a senior, winning the Class 3A shot put title. She is also a three-time National High School Finals Rodeo qualifier and is a three-time state Reserve Champion in breakaway roping. She will play basketball and rodeo for Chadron State. Kelsey is the daughter of Katie and Troy Scott.

Boys finalists
Cody Emrick, Sundance High School
Emrick won 12 letters, 10 all-conference and eight all-state awards in three sports. In track, he was a four-time all-state performer and was a three-time 2A champion in the 800. He also won the 1600 twice and set 2A class records in both the 400 and 800 as a senior, helping Sundance win two team titles. He was a three-time all-conference and two-time all-state pick in football and led the state in receiving yards twice. In basketball, he was a three-time all-conference and two-time all-state pick and broke the school record for points in a season. He's a Shrine Bowl and all-star basketball series pick and will play basketball at Central Wyoming. Cody is the son of Helen Tenke and Mark Emrick.

Erik Heiss, Kelly Walsh High School
Heiss won nine letters, five all-conference and five all-state awards in four sports. In football, he won three letters and was an all-conference, all-state and Casper Star-Tribune Super 25 pick as both a junior and a senior. He led his team in rushing twice and was the 5A offensive player of the year as a junior. He is a Shrine Bowl selection and will play football at Carroll College. In swimming, he was the state 4A champion in the 50 and 100 freestyle and also set two school records as a senior. He was a four-time conference champion. In soccer, he was a first-team all-state selection as a senior and also made all-conference. He also lettered in basketball twice. Erik is the son of Bill and Susan Heiss.

Skyler Hoopes, Lusk High School
Hoopes won 12 letters, seven all-conference and six-all state awards in three sports. In wrestling, he was a two-time state champion at Class 2A 152 pounds and was the state runner-up in 2006. He was all-conference and all-state three times and was a two-time regional champion. In track, he was a two-time Class 2A champion and three-time regional champion in the pole vault. He set the school record in the event at 14 feet, 2 inches. In football, he was an all-state pick as a senior and was second in the state, regardless of classification, in rushing yards per game (152), and was the SEWAC player of the year. He is a Shrine Bowl selection. Skyler is the son of Kelly and Gary Hoopes.

Rob Johnson, Tongue River High School
Johnson won eight letters, seven all-conference and six all-state awards in football and basketball. In basketball, he was a four-year all-conference and three-year all-state player. He was twice the conference player of the year and was named the Sheridan County player of the year as a senior. In football, he was a three-time all-conference and all-state pick and started at quarterback for four years. He was a Casper Star-Tribune Super 25 first-team player as a junior, a Shrine Bowl selection and a National Football Foundation honoree. He'll play basketball at Black Hills State. He is also his class valedictorian and state president of the Wyoming FCCLA. Rob is the son of Dixie and Mick Johnson.

Stephen Michel, Laramie High School
Michel won eight letters and six all-state awards in three sports. His forte was track. In outdoor track, he won five state championships, including four his senior year (100, 200, long jump, triple jump). He set overall state meet records in the 100, 200 and triple jump as a senior and also won the triple jump as a junior. In indoor track, he won six state championships and swept the 55, 200, triple jump and long jump as a senior; he won the triple jump and 200 as a junior. He also had six combined state runner-up finishes in the indoor and outdoor seasons. He will participate in track at UW. He also lettered in football and played basketball. Stephen is the son of Suzanne and Richard Michel.

Posted by patrick.schmiedt@trib.com