Lufkin Pro Day Group Honors Runnels, Lane, And Hearne At Event

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Three Lufkin High School professional athletes were honored Thursday evening during the seventh annual Lufkin Pro Day Group, a banquet that honors excellence on and off the field.

Professional athletes Trey Hearne, Jorvorskie Lane, Sr., and the late Pete Runnels were chosen as the 2016 honorees for the banquet, which was held at the Pitser Garrison Convention Center.

“We’re excited to honor your accomplishments in the area of your high school, college, and professional sports,” said Don Muhlbach, president of the Lufkin Pro Day Group, as he welcomed the crowd to the event. “We also want to recognize our community, because our community has a part of helping, developing students and athletes. Neighbors help, the church helps, family helps, coaches help. So, we also recognize that it’s not only individually that we’re recognized but it’s as a community. We are very proud of you.”

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Honoree Trey Hearne addresses the crowd Thursday evening at the seventh annual Lufkin Pro Day Group.

Hearne, a 2001 graduate, was introduced by Diboll High School Head Baseball Coach Todd Foley, who coached Hearne his junior varsity and freshman years.

“As coaches, it’s a great source of pride to watch your players succeed not only on the field, it’s even a greater honor to watch them grow as a person, and this is one of the reasons why I coach,” he said, “In talking to some of his teammates and coaches, some great things they said about this young man, ‘He was very focused, Mr. Consistency. He was reliable, loved to compete, best teammate, mentally tough. He’s as good as advertised, and doggone it, he stepped up and won the game for us tonight.'”

After high school, Hearne continued playing baseball at Angelina College and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. After college, Hearne was selected in the 28th round of the MLB June Amateur Draft. He spent six seasons with the Cardinals organization before his career ended after the 2010 baseball season.

“I’m very proud to be a part of this community,” Hearne said. “I got to play with and against some of the best players in the world. I was very fortunate, but I can tell I had just as much fun playing here in Lufkin, Texas, as I did professionally….Baseball and all of these experiences are hopefully only the beginning. I hope to carry on the legacy of those who have done so much for me….I’m only a product of their hard work, sacrifice, commitment, love, duty, and leadership. And I’m so very grateful for all they’ve done.”

Pete Runnels’ youngest son Steve Runnels accepted the award on behalf of his late father, with his mother, Betty Runnels, in attendance.

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Son of the late Pete Runnels, Steve Runnels, accepts the award in honor of his late father Thursday evening.

Pete Runnels was a quarterback and point guard who went on to serve the Marines and attended Rice University after graduating. He played in Major League Baseball for 14 seasons with the Washington Senators, Boston Red Sox, and Houston Colts. He was a career .291 hitter with 1,854 hits in his career. He was also a three-time All-Star, and he won American League batting titles in 1960 and 1962.

During Steve’s speech, he told the audience about his father’s four biggest thrills in baseball – winning his first American League battling title in 1960; losing the battling title to Ted Williams on the final day of the season in 1958; hitting a home run in the All Star Game at Wrigley Field in 1962; and winning his second battling title in 1962.

“Dad was a good guy,” Steve said. “On behalf of our entire family, we want to thank you for inviting me tonight.”

Lane, a 2005 graduate, was the final honoree to be introduced by friend James Self, who described Lane as a man with dreams and aspirations.

“I’m really thankful to be honored today,” Lane said.

Lane played tailback and fullback for the Texas A&M Aggies college football team. He holds the school record for career rushing touchdowns. After his college career, Lane played indoor football with the West Texas Roughnecks and Orlando Predators. He then moved on to the Miami Dolphins in 2012. After being out of football for a year and a half, Lane signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2014.

Lane is the half-brother of Jermichael Finley, who was honored last year at Lufkin Pro Day Group.

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Honoree Jovorskie Lane Sr. speaks Thursday evening at the seventh annual Lufkin Pro Day Group.

“Being a pro, that’s what we got to teach those kids. We’ve been at the highest level you can go. It’s important we instill these kids the dedication, the countless hours of push ups, bench press, sit ups, massages – it’s all dedication. It’s just work, but a lot of people don’t see that,” Lane said. “I’m a student athlete, a lot of people forget about that first part. Yes, I am a great athlete, but do you understand what’s at the beginning of what I just said? A student first. You have to teach that. We have to teach how to save money. We have to teach how to read, write. It’s up to us. It’s up to me. Today opened my eyes because I look at all of this talent that comes through this small town. I know plenty of business people out here right now – lawyers, doctors, news reporters, teachers, pro baseball players, pro football players. It’s up to us, we have to teach our youth.”

Previous honorees include Jermichael Finley, Bud Maddux, Oscar Kennedy, Guy Davis, Scotty Bailess, Bruce Alexander, Brandon Belt, Elmer G. Redd, Willie Ross, Rex Hadnot, Elvin “Buddy” Lowrey, John Outlaw, J. J. Montgomery, T. J. Turner, and Ken Houston.

“We love our sports, but most importantly we love our students, our professionals, and our people that really put us on the map as a great, great community,” Muhlbach said.

A silent and live auction were held to raise money for scholarships for students in Angelina County. Tome’ Catering prepared and served dinner, while artists Reed Porterfield, Colby Cates, Josh Murray, and Matt Tutt provided music at the event.

Megan Whitworth
Megan Whitworth is the former creative director of Texas Forest Country Living. Growing up in East Texas, Megan discovered her love of writing at the age of 11, writing song lyrics and poetry, which turned into essays and articles for publications around East Texas. She later added photography into the mix capturing Friday night football games, the latest fashion looks, and portraits of people around the nation. Megan enjoys karaoke, blogging, reading, and road trips. She resides in Lufkin with her husband, Ryan, and two cats, Felix and Lucy.

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