It would be hard to find a more versatile athlete at Mountain View High than Kate Stone. The senior plays multiple positions in soccer and competes in short- and long-distance races as a runner for the Spartans.
Stone is just as versatile in the classroom, earning an A in every subject since freshman year.
That combination has led to Stone being named the 2023 Central Coast Section Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year. She received the award at a luncheon last week at The Plex sports complex in San Jose, where her parents and principal were among the attendees.
Stone said she was “super excited” to learn that she had won the award. The Mountain View resident received the news last month during class from Jeff Panos, her school soccer coach and AP Chemistry teacher.
“That was just crazy,” said Stone, who received a round of applause from her classmates. “I was so surprised.”
She added that winning the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award a few weeks earlier also came as a shock. Doing so put Stone in contention for the CCS honor, which comes with a $1,500 scholarship. The CCS Scholarship Committee reviewed the applications of each league winner to determine this year’s recipient.
Stone said the application process involved writing a personal statement, providing information about her classwork and extracurriculars, and submitting letters of recommendation (contributed by principal Kip Glazer, along with nominators Panos and athletic director Tim Lugo).
“I felt it was worth a shot – go for it and see what happens,” Stone said. “I felt it would be something I would be honored to represent.”
Panos said the committee couldn’t have made a better choice than Stone, who served as team captain of the girls soccer team the past two seasons and is among the top students in his AP Chemistry class.
“There is no one more deserving than Kate to receive such a prestigious award,” he said. “Her work ethic, maturity and ability to relate to others is incredible. She is wise beyond her years. Most of all, though, she enjoys the community and pouring her heart into her endeavors because of the people she meets and gets to know along the way.”
Stone takes pride in doing her best, which has served her well in athletics and academics.
“Working hard at whatever I do is one of my huge values,” she said. “I give it my all in the classroom and on the field.”
Along with qualifying for the SCVAL El Camino Division track and field finals this spring, Stone earned all-league honors as a cross-country runner last fall. In between, she was an integral part of the soccer team that won the SCVAL De Anza Division title last winter. Stone played anywhere from right back to right forward for the Spartans.
Her scholastic achievements are just as impressive. Stone has a 4.66 GPA, is an AP Scholar with Distinction, a National Merit Commended Scholar and serves as National Honor Society vice president.
Stone is bound for Johns Hopkins University, where she plans to enroll as a pre-med student and play soccer next fall.
“It may be weird to say, but I really enjoy school,” the aspiring physician said. “I like to challenge myself and learn.”
Stone expects college soccer to be challenging as well and is preparing herself by playing club soccer for MVLA, which she joined in sixth grade. Stone said she’s “kind of known as a utility player” on her club team and surmised she will be an outside back at Johns Hopkins.
