Aden, Jones, D'Argento earn Gatorade honors

Charlestown's Omar Aden, Bromfield's Emily Jones, and Ashland's Nicole D'Argento have earned Massachusetts Gatorade Player of the Year honors for their respective sports.

Aden won for boy's track, Jones for girls' track, and D'Argento for softball. They join Acton-Boxboro's Scott Weismann as those honored for the 2008 spring season.

Here's a bit on each athlete from the press releases distributed by the Gatorade folks:

Omar Aden

The senior distance runner won the mile at the MIAA All-State Outdoor Track and Field Championships with a time of 4:13.83, which ranked as the nation's No. 7 scholastic performance in 2008 at the time of his selection and helped the Townies to the state championship. An Indoor Track All-Scholastic selection as named by The Boston Globe, Aden, who placed fourth in the mile at the National Indoor Scholastic Championships, captured second place in the 1,600-meter run at the New England Outdoor Track and Field Championships in 4:13.19.

Emily Jones

The junior distance runner ran the 2-mile race at the Central Region Meet in 10:27.03, the fastest time in the nation at the time of her selection. A week later, Jones ran the 2-mile in 10:33.30 to win the All-State Meet with the fourth-fastest time in the nation. Also the 2007-08 Gatorade Massachusetts Girls Cross Country Runner of the Year, Jones ran the mile race in 4:59.15 this spring, which ranked as the nation's No. 22 performance in the mile this spring at the time of her selection, and she placed second in the 3,000 meters at the Penn Relays Carnival.

Nicole D'Argento

The junior pitcher started 22-0 with a 0.28 ERA and 288 strikeouts in 147.2 innings this season, leading the Clockers to a 26-0 record entering the Division 2 state semifinals scheduled for June 11. A returning All-Scholastic selection as named by The Boston Globe, D'Argento had produced a .605 batting average, 35 RBI, 33 runs scored and six home runs at the time of her selection. The two-time Tri-Valley League Player of the Year, she concluded her sophomore season of 2007 with a 9-0 record and a 0.00 ERA.