BILLINGS — The Montana Amateur Athletic Union named its 2019 Little Sullivan Award winners on Saturday night at the Red Lion Hotel Grand Ballroom.
Former Forsyth and MSU-Northern wrestler Brandon Weber took home the male honor, while former Choteau and MSU Billings basketball standout Alisha Breen was the female winner.
Weber was a three-time state champion at Forsyth High School and ranks second in Montana High School Association history with 200 career wins. A four-time NAIA national tournament qualifier, Weber won the 2017 157-pound national title at MSU-Northern. He finished as the national runner-up each of the past two seasons to become a three-time all-American.
Tucker Yates, Jayse McLean and Tres Tinkle were the other male finalists.
Breen was an all-state performer at Choteau High School but re-wrote record books at MSU Billings. Her 2,001 career points are first in both MSUB and the Great Northwest Athletic Conference history. A first-team academic and athletic all-American performer, Breen ranks in the MSUB top 10 in rebounds, free throw percentage, blocks and assists. She led the Yellowjackets to the 2018 NCAA Division II Elite Eight for only the second time in program history.
Breen was joined at the banquet by fellow finalist Hailey Copinga, who had a standout volleyball career at Billings Skyview High School and Rocky Mountain College. The other finalists, Sydney Stites and Makena Morley, were not present at Saturday’s banquet.
“It means a lot, it really does,” Breen said. “This award encompasses so much of Montana, and getting to see athletes from DI and DII, but then — Morley was obviously from Class B, Yates was from Class B. You get to see some of those smaller town kids that are maybe forgotten about. I couldn’t be more honored, really, especially a year out. Just looking back at the numbers — the only reason I got to those numbers was because we made it as far as we did. We had a great postseason run. I couldn’t thank AAU enough for giving me this, and I really do appreciate it.”
The Little Sullivan Award was created by the late David and Ella Rivenes of Miles City. David Rivenes served as the national AAU President and held numerous positions within the Montana AAU and Miles City sports communities. The Rivenes family created the Little Sullivan Award to honor outstanding male and female athletes in the Treasure State that display qualities of athletic excellence, leadership, character, sportsmanship and ideals of amateurism, according to the Montana Amateur Athletic Union.
All current card-holding adult Montana AAU members, plus Montana media representatives, are eligible to vote for the winners.
