Every year, my job allows me to see endless hours of competition from the best seats in the house. I see area athletes putting it all on the line with passion and school spirit serving as their fuel.

It’s a great gig and I still retain my joy in covering high school and college athletes as I swim through my second decade in the world of sports journalism.

In the spirit of Christmas, I’m going to hand out my awards for the top five most memorable moments that I witnessed over the past year in sports.

1. The catch

I’m sure by now, everyone has seen Gabe Hagen’s acrobatic catch in Blooming Prairie’s 41-15 win over BOLD in the Prep Bowl. The play made Sportscenter and it drew wows from the U.S. Bank Stadium crowd when visions of Hagen pulling the ball in with one arm popped up on the jumbotron.

It was a signature play for a signature BP team that finally walked into the championship after a decade of knocking loudly on the door.

2. Blocking out the Raiders

Coaches always try to do everything they can to prepare athletes for big moments, but sometimes instinct takes over and an athlete simply makes a big play.

Austin’s Teyghan Hovland did just that when he sprinted out to the baseline and blocked a game-tying three-point attempt by Northfield’s Mason Zick to preserve Austin’s 57-54 win over Northfield in the Section 1AAA title game.

3. Fall before the rise

It’s an old adage in sports, that it’s not how many times you fall, but how many times you get up.

Grand Meadow’s Riley Queensland has only fallen once in her high school track and field career, but it came down the stretch of the 4 x 200-meter relay preliminaries in the Minnesota Class A State Track and Field meet.

Queensland’s legs had given out as she approached the finish line and the fall drew some blood on her knees, but the next day she bounced back as the GMLOKS 4 x 200-meter team, which also included Isabelle Olson, Annika Reiland and Kassidy Kirtz, won its second straight title.

4. Touch em all

The Packers had to wait 29 years to get back to the state baseball tournament, but Hunter Guyette only had to wait about four seconds to watch his two-run homer sail over the left field fence to propel Austin to a 7-3 win over Albert Lea in the Section 1AAA title game.

Guyette had dedicated his season to his late uncle Steve Aberg and he was fighting off tears as the Packers celebrated their state berth.

5. Obang’s swan song

Consolation games in the state tournament are the ultimate wild card. With teams coming off a crushing loss and high school careers closing out, you never know what you’re going to get.

Austin’s Medi Obang made sure he would never forget his consolation performance when the Packers beat Princeton 88-76 for third place in the Minnesota Class AAA State Boys Basketball Tournament last year.

Obang pumped in 38 points in 34 minutes — giving him 1,001 career points in just two years of varsity basketball.