Roy Wedge has long been known as the best cross country runner in Lawrence. But now he has an award that says he’s the best in the state.

Although the cross country season technically ended in November, the Lawrence High senior continues to reap the benefits of one of the most successful individual seasons in LHS cross country history.

Already armed with individual and team state titles, as well as a host of other first-place finishes at meets along the way, Wedge received the surprise of his life a few weeks ago when he was named the Gatorade Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year for Kansas.

Wedge first learned about the honor during a second-hour Calculus class, when he walked in and saw a cake and the faces of some folks who did not belong in the class.

“I was just expecting it to be a normal school day,” Wedge said. “Mrs. (Pam) Fangohr doesn’t normally bring in cakes.”

A closer look at the cake revealed the latest honor Wedge can toss on his resume. Each year, for the past two and a half decades, Gatorade has honored the top high school athletes around the country for excelling in both athletics and academics.

In addition to winning the Class 6A individual state title last fall, Wedge led the Lions to their second consecutive team title and also finished 49th at the Foot Locker Midwest Regional Championships following the conclusion of the high school season.

Wedge also has a Kansas Science Olympiad state championship to his name and owns a 4.02 weighted Grade Point Average in the classroom.

Though Wedge said he was thrilled to receive this latest bit of recognition, he said he wasn’t finished with his high school days just yet.

“This is cool,” Wedge said. “And a lot of people have come up to me in the halls and congratulated me. But the (state title) banner’s still more meaningful to me, and I still have track before I’m finished here.”