CHICAGO -- Kenzie Williams of Kalispell Glacier is the 2020-21 Gatorade Montana girls soccer player of the year, Gatorade announced Tuesday.
Williams, a 5-foot-6 senior defender, helped the Wolfpack to a 14-4 record and the Class AA state championship last fall. She tallied two goals and three assists during the season, including the lone assist in Glacier's 1-0 win over Helena High in the state championship match.
“Kenzie Williams, almost single-handedly, was responsible for saving the (state championship) win for Glacier,” Helena High coach Mike Meloy said in a media release. “She was all over the backline and her clears were always past midfield. We’d gather the ball and take it back to our attacking third and she’d spoil it again. She was a phenomenal leader.”
Williams was the Western AA player of the year, is a three-time first-team all-state selection, and was named 2020 All-Northwest Region by the United Soccer Coaches. Williams is the second player from Glacier to win the Gatorade award, joining her older sister Cadie, who earned the 2017-18 honor.
Billings Skyview's Jordan Roe and Halle Labert won the 2018-19 and 2019-20 awards, respectively.
Kenzie Williams is a member of Glacier's Wolfpack Leadership Club, according to the Gatorade release, and has volunteered as a peer mentor and youth soccer and basketball coach. She has maintained a 4.0 grade-point average and will attend the University of Montana in the fall.
Through Gatorade’s cause marketing platform “Play it Forward,” Williams has the opportunity to award a $1,000 grant to a local or national youth sports organization of her choosing. Williams is also eligible to submit a 30-second video explaining why the organization she chose is deserving of one of 12 $10,000 spotlight grants, which will be announced throughout the year.
