Miller named Boggs Award recipient

Posted Jun 3, 2010 by Adam Adkins

Updated Jun 3, 2010 at 10:52 AM

Cambridge Christian senior baseball player Peter Miller on Thursday was named the recipient of the 2010 Wade Boggs Athletic Achievement Award, which is presented annually to a high school baseball player or team in recognition of outstanding athletic and scholastic achievement.

Miller, a shortstop/right-hander pitcher, was presented the award by Boggs during a morning ceremony in the boardroom at the Fredrick B. Karl County Center in downtown.

“I look back on my career and it’s just a lot of hard work paying off,” Miller said. “I’ve always tried to be a good role model and be a Christian athlete, and it’s tough sometimes, but obviously today it paid off, and to see that happen is kind of cool.”

In addition to carrying a 3.8 GPA as a home schooled student, Miller was heavily involved in community service, spending time visiting patients at the Shriners Hospital for Children and John Knox Village, making trips with his church, Idlewild Baptist, to downtown Tampa to feed the homeless and joining a mission trip to the Dominican Republic last summer, among other things.

Miller also excelled on the baseball field, where he was a staple for the Lancers during the program’s most successful stretch. Miller, who has signed a baseball scholarship with Florida State, helped Cambridge Christian finish as the Class 1A state runner-up in both 2008 and 2009 and this year helped the Lancers come within one win of making a third consecutive trip to the state tournament.

“It’s just unbelievable his growth, both maturity and ball-playing wise,” said former Cambridge Christian coach Rick Shears, who stepped down after the season following a three-year stint. “He accepted the challenge of playing at Cambridge with the volunteer stuff that we do and he loved it, and obviously his baseball talent speaks for itself. He made great strides from last year to this year.”

Jesuit pitcher Daniel Gibson and King right-handed pitcher/designated hitter Taylor Freeman also were recognized Thursday as honorable mention award recipients.

Pictured: Cambridge Christian senior Peter Miller, right, on Thursday was named the recipient of the 2010 Wade Boggs Athletic Achievement Award. King senior Taylor Freeman, left, was one of two players to receive honorable mention awards.