Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman/Mat-Su Seahawkers Student-Athlete of the Year: Madeline Ko

PALMER — Madeline Ko’s senior year at Palmer High School is going to be pretty hard to top.

Ko played in a region volleyball title game; earned first-place honors at the state art competition; won two state titles and broke a world record at the Native Youth Olympics state meet; scored region and state titles in track and field; and was the valedictorian of Palmer High’s class of 2017.

Ko now has another honor to add to her list of accolades. Ko has been named a Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman/Mat-Su Seahawkers Student-Athlete of the Year.

“She’s just phenomenal,” Palmer High School principal Paul Reid said of Ko. “An amazing, talented kid. Very well-rounded.”

Ko spent just her senior season at Palmer High, but Reid said she quickly became a top student and athlete at PHS, and excelled in many areas.

“The kid came into the school and in one year made an impact with her presence,” Reid said.

Among the area Ko excelled, Reid said, was within the school’s International Baccalaureate art program. Ko garnered first-place honors for her piece, “No Looking Up,” in the communication art and graphic design division. Reid said Ko is set to attend the Rhode Island School of Design.

“It’s easy to see why she got into the school she did,” Reid said.

Ko boasted a 4.24 grade point average, while enrolled in a number of advanced placement and International Baccalaureate courses. The list includes AP statistics, AP studio art, AP literature and AP US history; and IB philosophy, IB senior English, IB visual arts and IB biology.

As an athlete, Ko capped her prep career with a state championship in the 4A girls’ triple jump.

“To be a valedictorian and a state champion, that’s not something a lot of kids do,” Kahla Kallam, a track and field coach at Palmer High, said. “That’s the first thing (that stands out).”

Ko used a personal record of 36 feet, 8 ¾ inches to win the event, and earn her first career state title.

As gifted as an athlete Ko is, Kallam said she’s also impressed with Ko’s sportsmanship and humility.

“When she won (her state title), the first thing she wanted to do was go over and talk to the girl she just beat. She wanted to congratulate her to. She’s a really humble kid,” Kallam said.

Ko was also second in the 4A girls’ long jump. She also won both the long jump and the triple jump at the Region III Championships.

Earlier in the year, Ko added to her historic Native Youth Olympics resume. She earned a pair of state titles at the state games in Anchorage, winning both of the two foot high kick and scissor broad jump. She broke her own world record in the scissor broad jump, with a mark of 30-1. Ko also earned the sportsmanship award.

“She’s a super talented individual in a lot of different things,” Palmer High activities director Dale Ewart said. “Everything she did, she did very well.”

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.