A special moment

I’m not sure why I was so nervous pulling up to Aurora’s beautiful new football turf last week. 
The moment had to be not only a special one, but perfect, too. Just like all the moments the duo has provided all of us in the past. 
Aurora’s Jameson Herzberg and Cassidy Knust were chosen by the Aurora News-Register as the paper’s first-ever male and female athletes of the year. 
It’s an idea I’ve tossed around for a couple years now, but never quite put all my resources behind it until 2020 because, well, why not? No better time than the present. 
The look on their faces when presented with a nice canvas print of themselves in an Aurora uniform and the distinction of athlete of the year made the whole moment worth it. 
Jamo and Cassidy are great representations of Aurora and there’s plenty that can vouch for that. 
But what makes them so special athletically?
Most who have seen them perform have seen what they can do, but it goes much deeper than that. 
When talking to Cassidy’s coaches, the thing that came up multiple times was her desire to ask, why?
Both Aurora volleyball coach Lois Hixson and basketball coach Kelly Boshart saw Cassidy as a coach on the floor for the Lady Huskies and noted that her curiosity as a player is something rare to find within the great athletes. 
“What I like about Cassidy is she will do what I need her to, but she also asks questions, and I love that dialogue with her,” Hixson explained. 
“She is great at asking questions,” Boshart noted. “She really wants to know what she is doing so she can be the best at doing that.”
Aurora track coach Gordon Wilson noted what a joy it was to see Cassidy compete at such a high level and her desire to improve on herself. 
“She knows where her roots are and what she has to do to get where she wants to go,” Wilson said. “She is one of her hardest critics. She can make her own adjustments on the fly.”
One of the best Cassidy stories comes from her 2019 state track schedule. She won two medals within the first hour of the event. Knust ran a leg on the Aurora 3200 relay team that finished second in a time of 10:12.2 as well as tied for third with a PR in the pole vault at 10-06, which was a PR at the time. 
However, some clock issues during the 3200 relay caused the race to have sort of a delay. Knust was hustled over to the pole vault pit, cleared the mark literally as her relay race began. 
She was quickly escorted by officials back to the racing area just in time for her leg of the race. 
I get wore out just thinking about it. 
But, all in a day’s work for Cassidy. 
“I made a ton of memories and it’s been a joy competing with my teammates and coaches,” Knust said. “I’ll remember high school sports forever.”
There was the Waverly game this past winter where Cassidy made 15 of 15 free throws, including a number of clutch foul shots in the final minutes and overtime to carry her team to a win. 
I can’t make two in a row on a consistent basis. I may need an hour to make 15. She’s been a great free throw shooter for her entire high school career, never fazed or rattled by anyone or anything. 
That showed in volleyball, too, where Cassidy honestly could have played any of the six positions on the floor. 
She was always in the position to make the play and never shied away from the big moment. 
“It’s crazy to think about what we’ve done and how it’s all over now,” Knust said. “I wouldn’t change anything. I am glad I got to compete with the girls I did and be coached by the coaches I did. This high school experience has been nothing but the best and I can’t think of any other way to go out.”
You talk about someone who lived for the big moment, there’s a perfect description of Jamo. 
Even if he were to struggle in the fourth quarter, missing a couple shots here or there, it never took away from his confidence. Game on the line, he had no problem putting the game on his shoulders, for better or worse. 
“He wants that shot,” Aurora football coach Kyle Peterson said. “He has the confidence to make that play. He knows he can make the catch on third and 15.”
In eight consecutive games on the football field in 2020, Jamo had at least one interception, setting a new school record in the process. 
Jamo was always one to feed off the energy of the crowd, for better or worse. It didn’t matter if it was his home fans or deep in the trenches of GINW or McCook, Jamo wanted and fed off the pressure. 
He has been around sports his whole life. He has a understanding of spacial awareness. He knows how to get open or where the route breaks. It comes through in all three sports. 
But man, what a soccer player Jamo was. I’m not sure if he ever really got the recognition he deserved with Aurora being such a new soccer program, but he was certainly one of the state’s best players. 
Again, it was his ability to find the ball in the right space and finishing as part of his success in the game. 
“He puts it all together. He works hard in the offseason, he has pure athleticism and has an understanding for the game he’s playing,” Farris said. “His communication with his teammates is great and has the ability to make those around him better.”
Jamo is a huge reason the game of soccer has taken off the way it has in this community and hopefully, with the blood, sweat and tears he put into the game, it will continue to flourish well after he wore the uniform for the last time. 
“Athletics at Aurora was my favorite part of high school, for sure,” Herzberg said. “I’ll never forget being a Husky and wearing that for three sports.”
There have been plenty of moments where Cassidy and Jamo have made me hold my breath over the past four seasons. 
A special congrats to our first-ever athletes of the year. 
RICHARD RHODEN can be reached at sports@hamilton.net.