The names of 12 finalists for the 24th annual Winged Foot Scholar-Athlete Award were released Tuesday night.

Joe Klimas, the voice of sports for generations of area athletes as a TV and radio broadcaster, died Monday. The 74-year-old passed away at 7:30 a.m. after a long battle with lung cancer.

When Community School goaltender Olivia Lynch got the opportunity to meet U.S. women’s soccer star Brandi Chastain, she could hardly contain her excitement.

Soccer has grown in popularity over the years in Southwest Florida, and the Winged Foot Scholar-Athlete Award either has been won or shared by a young woman the last five years.

The 2012 winner of the Winged Foot Scholar-Athlete Award will be announced Thursday night at Waldorf Astoria Naples. The award banquet begins at 7 p.m. A cocktail reception precedes the banquet.

Kendall Smallwood enjoys Everglades City, but she’s ready to leave.

Most high school seniors have a general idea of what they want to do with their life. Golden Gate’s Revenel Metayer already has it all mapped out — down to the name of what he’s going to do.

Joseph Flores is a classic example of a love of sports pushing excellence in academics. The Immokalee High School senior has a deep affinity for baseball. But he knew he couldn’t play sports without having good enough grades.

Adam Smith has had no problem following in his brother’s footsteps. At a small school like First Baptist Academy, the fact that he did isn’t a surprise.

Winners

Brian Ullrich signed up to take a mission trip to St. Lucia looking to build up his faith. It did that — and more.

Alex Fogg was not going to get cheated on his high school experience.

As one of the Winged Foot Scholar-Athlete Award committee members pointed out, Matt Colligan has an interesting range of qualities.