Area athletes popular picks at sports awards.

Byline: STEVE MIMS The Register-Guard

BEAVERTON - For Jordan Kent, it was the final accolade of a record-setting prep career.

For Marla Runyan, it was an honor to recognize her immediate impact as a marathon runner.

The two Eugene track stars were among the winners at the Oregon Sports Awards on Sunday evening at the Nike campus.

Kent received his second straight Johnny Carpenter male prep athlete of the year award after winning four events in the state track and field meet for Churchill. Runyan received the Harry Glickman female pro athlete of the year honor after placing fourth in the New York City Marathon.

Former Oregon basketball player Fred Jones won the Bill Hayward male amateur athlete of the year award, and the Ducks shared the George Pasero team of the year award with the University of Portland women's soccer team.

Kent won the 100 meters, 200, 400 and long jump in May, becoming the first male to win four events in the 4A meet. He was also a first-team all-state selection in basketball for the Lancers, and is competing in both sports currently at Oregon.

"This will finally put a lid on it," Kent said of his decorated prep career. "It's been great."

Kent is the fourth boy to win back-to-back Carpenter awards. Charlie Sitton, Gus Envela and former Junction City standout Billy Harper were previous two-time winners.

"It's an honor. Last year was unexpected and this year I was happy to be nominated," Kent said. "I'm glad they didn't forget me."

Benson track star Deborah Jones, who won three events at state, won the Carpenter award for girls.

Runyan was honored for her performance in New York, which was the first marathon she ever entered. Runyan finished fourth in 2 hours, 27 minutes, 10 seconds, which was the best finish for an American woman since 1996.

"I want to thank the city of Eugene," Runyan said. "I did not grow up in Eugene, but Eugene taught me how to run. I did track and field in high school and college, but when I moved to Eugene in 1996 I began the process of learning how to run and how to be a distance runner. Distance running is not a sport, it's a lifestyle."

She also finished second in the Philadelphia Half Marathon, and won the 3,000 at the Prefontaine Classic and the 5,000 at the U.S. Outdoor.

Bob Gilder of Corvallis, who won four events on the Senior PGA Tour, was the male pro athlete of the year.

Jones made it two straight years that a Duck won the Hayward Award, as he followed former UO quarterback Joey Harrington. Jones averaged 18.6 points and 5.4 rebounds per game as a senior for the Ducks, helping the team reach the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament.

University of Portland's Christine Sinclair, who scored the game-winning goal to lead the Pilots to the NCAA title, was the female winner.

The Oregon men were honored after going 26-9, marking the third-most victories in school history. The Ducks won the Pac-10 title and three NCAA Tournament games to reach the quarterfinals.

A pair of former Ducks received merit awards, as J.J. Birden and Anthony Newman were honored for their youth football camps. The two were teammates on the UO football team from 1984-87 before going on to the NFL.

Charlotte Brandon, the mother of former Duck basketball star Terrell Brandon, also received a merit award for starting the Mothers of Professional Basketball Players organization, which raises money for charity.

University of Portland soccer coach Clive Charles won the Slats Gill Award for top coach, Lauren Jesperson won the Nike Steve Prefontaine Award for top prep distance runner, and Debra McDougald won the Lou Burge Special Olympics Athlete of the Year award.

The Ad Rutschman Small College Athlete awards went to Meagan Webber, a softball player at Oregon Institute of Technology, and Linfield football player David Russell.