Hall’s Kizer Award is a family affair

PLYMOUTH – For Plymouth High School’s boys’ Kizer Award winner, sports is a family affair.

The son of Alan and Kathy Hall, Trey Hall had a wealth of competition under his own roof along with a wealth of cousins willing to “push” him to be his best.

Brothers Travis Lee and Matt Hopkins did their best to encourage their little brother to compete at a high level. When they got tired a wealth of other family members were there to set an example.

“We come from a sports family,” said Trey. “My cousin (Benji Nixon) won the same award and we have that same kind of work ethic.”

The competitive nature of everyday life around a family of athletes helped shape Trey from a young age.

“I’m the youngest one and having cousins five, six years older than me, older brothers, makes you try your hardest,” said Hall. “No matter what the competition is you are going to try your hardest. You know you aren’t going to win but you try anyway.”

Surely his siblings didn’t cheat if he did have a chance to win? Did they?

“Yes. Most definitely,” he said with a smile, “Change the rules. Anything.”

“I think it made me tougher. It taught me to work hard and try to find a way to win.”

A member of the baseball, basketball, and cross country teams at Plymouth, Hall qualified for the semi-state in cross country for four straight years.

At Lincoln Jr. High Trey gave a little bit of a preview of his Kizer Award, winning Lincoln’s equivalent to the Kizer, the Beabout Award as an eighth grader. This year the Plymouth senior also walked away with the Plymouth Athletic Booster Club Scholar Athlete of the Month scholarship as well as the Booster Club Athlete of the Year. He won the Marion Crowley Scholarship, Crystal Metzger Scholarship, and Mary Ellen Winquist Franklin and Joe Franklin scholarship to go with the Kizer Award.

“Growing up baseball was the first thing I got into,”Then basketball. Watching my brother (Matt Hopkins) run his high school years I got into cross country when I got to Lincoln (Jr. High).”

So why didn’t cross country get a higher mark?

“I get asked that a lot. I actually don’t enjoy it,” said Trey with a laugh. “The main reason I kept running was basically the competition between me and (brother) Matt. Trying to beat his records, trying to beat his course times, everything that he did.”

Matt had a front-row seat for most of his brother’s running accomplishments as a Plymouth assistant coach.

“He was on the staff until (daughter Melea) got in the way,” said Trey with a smile. “He didn’t want to split time with his daughter.”

So what was the favorite sport?

“Growing up I think it was baseball but as I got older it became basketball,” he said. “Coach (Joel) Grindle coming in junior year and changing the atmosphere and environment made me love it a little more.”

Multi-sport athletes battle with time management on many levels. In addition to the constant pressure to be at numerous workouts all year long, grades and community service for Trey took their fair share of time as well.

“Handling different sports at different times was a challenge,” he said. “If it was basketball season and there is a baseball workout most coaches understand that it is a hard grueling season. Most of the time I’d do a little work on my own at home during the summer for each sport but in season I just stuck with that same sport.”

Year round training can be a grind.

“It got to be. At times I needed a break but I just pushed through it,” said Trey. “I knew that other teammates were going through the same thing, players on other teams were doing the same thing and I knew that if I just stuck with it I would get better.”

He had another push from another family member.

“When Benji got it it pushed me forward to get the same award and being another family member to get it,” said Hall. “I saw all the requirements and the hard work he did to get it and I wanted to do the same thing. I was happy and I knew that the hard work paid off.”

With two Kizer winners in the same family, Trey wouldn’t mind another challenge. Head-to-head competition between the two.

“I think we should but he hasn’t challenged me yet,” said Trey. “I think we should do a one-on-one in every sport.”

Athletics isn’t the only thing that is important to Hall. Being a positive part of the community is just as big.

“Student government was where I started. That was my main other activity,” said Trey. “From there I got into Key Club and other service clubs to help out the community. I was in BPA (Business Professionals of America) and FTA (Future Teachers of America). It was important to build my own community that would be there to help me if I needed but it also showed me the pathways I could take in the future. It led me to where I want to be.”

Hall gave back to the sports programs that helped shape him as well, being a volunteer coach for PHS basketball coach Joel Grindle’s youth program and as a peer tutor for special needs students, organizing the recent Rockin’ Rockies 2: Field Day of Champions.

Hall will head to Holy Cross in the fall to study sports management, hoping to continue his connection to sports.

“I’ve been in sports my whole life and I really don’t want to get away from it,” he said.
His advice to those who would follow is simple.

“I wish I had had more determination to become better in a particular sport,” he said. “I would say you have to work as hard as you can. See what comes out of it. Help anyone in need.”