Owen Dawson, a senior, became one of the Press Democrat’s 2026 All-Star high school athletes of the year. This puts him as the third consecutive Analy Track and Field athlete to win the award, following Owen Foley in 2024 and Cormac Gaylord in 2025.

The Press Democrat selects eight seniors annually for their athletic achievements, dividing their awards based on school size and gender. Each category—one for athletics and one for excellence in both athletics and academics—has only one boys “large school” slot, so winning this lone award placed Dawson as the top-ranked scholar-athlete among all large school sports programs in the North Bay.

Dawson being the third Analy Track and Field athlete to earn this award in a row is an even more impressive achievement, reflecting on the success of the Analy T&F program over the years. He wrote over email of his friendship with Gaylord and Foley, saying, “I would look up to both of them as models of success.” He explained how watching Gaylord complete online math classes to get ahead of the school curriculum inspired him to do the same and strive for academic achievement along with his running. Foley taught him the value of true focus and dedication. “They were perfect examples of what I hoped to be like when I got older—and I’m forever grateful for the valuable lessons they taught me,” he said.

Press Democrat sports reporter Gus Morris often wrote about Dawson, Gaylord, and Foley. “Getting to cover these three incredible athletes has been one of the highlights of my tenure at the Press Democrat,” Morris  wrote over email. “Not only are they unbelievably bright students and talented athletes, they’re also all upstanding individuals. They’re as deserving a group as any for this kind of recognition.”