The Tewaaraton Award Foundation is honored to present the First Annual Outstanding Native High School Players Award to Justin Gill of the Oglala Sioux and Seneca Nation and Lindsey Steeprock of the Haudenosaunee Mohawk Nation.
    These two lacrosse players have displayed excellence both on and off the field, and embody the Native tradition of the sport, through courage, leadership and overall ability.  Justin and Lindsey were selected by a committee, which evaluated coaches recommendations and a personal statement submitted by the players explaining what lacrosse means to them as a Native player.
    Additionally, the nominees had to prove Tribal heritage and be in good academic standing at a secondary school.  Not only did Justin and Lindsey meet these qualifications, but they surpassed them. 
    Justin serves as the president of the senior class at Gowanda Central High School, president of the Senior High Band, president of the Native American Youth Organization and president of the Gowanda Lacrosse Club.  Additionally, he is a high honors student who has exhibited leadership and strength both on and off the field.

  Justin hails from a long tradition of excellence in lacrosse: his father, Jeff Gill, is one of the most heralded lacrosse players in all of the United States and Canada, his uncle, Glen Lay played professionally for the Buffalo Bandits, and his grandfather, Edgar Lay, was considered one of the most skilled goalies of his day.

   Next year, Justin plans to attend Herkimer College to play lacrosse.

   Lindsey Steeprock plays on four different lacrosse teams throughout the year, jumping headfirst into the sport as a seventh grader participating on the varsity squad for the Seneca School Girls Club Team. Additionally, Lindsey competes internationally with her U-19 team, First Nations against teams such as Japan and Australia.
    Lindsey, like Justin, comes from a strong Native background of lacrosse history: her great-grandfather was inducted into the Ontario Lacrosse Hall of Fame, two of her cousins play for the Buffalo Bandits in the NLL, and her brother was nominated for the Tewaaraton Trophy when he attended Rutgers University.
    Lindsey hopes to play Division I lacrosse in the near future, and has just taken the first step by earning a spot in the Silver Creek Chapter of the National Honors Society.