Ozzie Smith to speak at Semoball Awards banquet

Semoball.com announced Monday that former St. Louis Cardinals shortstop and Hall of Famer Ozzie Smith will be the keynote speaker for the inaugural Semoball Awards in June.

The Semoball Awards will be held June 21 at the Show Me Center in Cape Girardeau. About 200 elite athletes representing the 58 high schools in the semoball.com coverage area will be recognized for success on the playing field and in the classroom. The event is a partnership between five daily newspapers in Southeast Missouri (Southeast Missourian, The Daily Statesman, Daily Dunklin Democrat, Daily American Republic and Standard Democrat), SEMO ESPN Radio and Rustmedia.

A limited number of VIP tickets went on sale Monday morning at semoball.com/awards. VIP tickets include a ticket to the banquet and admission to a pre-event reception that includes a photo opportunity with Ozzie Smith. General admission tickets and tickets for guests of finalists will go on sale at a later date.

"We're thrilled to announce Ozzie Smith will serve as the speaker for the Semoball Awards banquet in June," said Lucas Presson, assistant managing editor for the Southeast Missourian and event organizer. "For those of us who grew up watching Ozzie, we remember the diving plays and iconic back flip. Even now when we ask high school athletes about their favorite professional athlete, Ozzie's name is mentioned."

Smith played 19 seasons in Major League Baseball, the bulk of his career with the Cardinals. His defensive excellence resulted in 13 consecutive Rawlings Gold Glove Awards. He collected 2,460 hits in his career, and for 10 consecutive seasons he started at shortstop in the Major League Baseball All-Star Game.

Ozzie Smith. (Submitted photo)

Smith was inducted into the baseball Hall of Fame in 2002.

For his work outside of baseball, Smith received the "Walter Payton Sweetness Award" in 2001, the Roberto Clemente Award in 1995 and the Branch Rickey Award in 1994, among others.

The father of three children, Smith lives in St. Louis and has been involved in several charities. He is president of the Gateway PGA Foundation that benefits inner-city youth through mentoring and golf programs and is the education ambassador for the Hall of Fame.

"I remember speaking about Ozzie with a couple members of Oran's state championship baseball team last spring," said Rachel Crader, the editor of semoball.com at the Southeast Missourian sports section. "The Eagles' standout pitcher Seth Ressel listed Ozzie as his favorite baseball player, prompting all of us in the room to start talking about his heroics with the Cardinals.

"It makes me so happy and proud to know that hundreds of high school athletes like Ressel will now get to hear Ozzie speak directly to them at the Semoball Awards. He's delivered a lot of great speeches in his life, including at his Hall of Fame induction, so I can't wait to hear his message in June."

The Semoball Awards is presented by SoutheastHEALTH and sponsored by First Midwest Bank, Harry Blackwell auto dealerships, Technomad and other leading businesses.

Jim Limbaugh, executive vice president at SoutheastHEALTH, said in a statement that SoutheastHEALTH is proud to support this event.

"We're excited to partner with the Rust Communications family of newspapers to recognize the best of the best in Southeast Missouri's young men and women as they excel in their sport, in the classroom and as good citizens," Limbaugh said. "This partnership fits well with our presence as a regional healthcare system and our commitment to taking an active role in communities we serve."

Finalists in 19 sports categories are named after each season. Player of the year award recipients for each sport and the top six awards, including male and female athlete of the year, academic athlete of the year, best sportsmanship, comeback athlete of the year and coach of the year, will be presented at the banquet in June.

"We're thrilled to recognize the efforts of about 200 athletes across the area at the Semoball Awards in June," said Jon K. Rust, publisher of the Southeast Missourian. "The event should leave all attending inspired and proud. Ozzie Smith is someone sports fans will be excited to hear."

Also to be recognized at the banquet is the school that wins the best fans in Southeast Missouri contest. More than 10,000 votes have been cast so far, and fans can vote online at semoball.com/awards.

Sponsorships are available to businesses and organizations that wish to support the event. For more information, call Lucas Presson at 573-388-3649 or email lpresson@semissourian.com.

Listen to the Sports Huddle at 9 a.m. weekdays on SEMO ESPN, 92.9 FM and 1220 and 1470 AM, for commentary after each finalists announcement.

To learn more, visit semoball.com/awards and listen to SEMO ESPN.