By TOM WILLIAMS

2024 was another pretty good year and Ocean City High School’s sports teams made the best of it.

The coaches play a big role in this success, especially because the strength of the programs continues even after graduation losses. But you have to have good athletes to put together a success story like this.

And Ocean City High School had them again in 2024.

There were many athletes who brought success to OCHS sports over the last 12 months. But the purpose here is to recognize two of them – one male and one female – as the best of the year. It is never an easy choice but two have emerged.

Pat Grimley is the dominant player in the history of OCHS boys lacrosse. He scored 249 goals in his career, the greatest total in school history and almost double what the player with the second most scored. He also had 144 assists – the most in school history. He had 84 goals in his senior year last spring and his scoring totals each of his four seasons in the lineup are all ranked among the OCHS top seven. During his four years in the lineup, the Raiders won their only South Jersey championship in school history, three Cape-Atlantic League Tournament titles and four conference championships. He was selected New Jersey Player of the Year by NJ.com as a senior.

But that’s not all.

On a basketball team that set a record by winning 26 games. Grimley started 29 0f 30 games, averaged nine points and four rebounds per game to help the Raiders reach the South Jersey Group 3 final and the semi-finals of the Cape-Atlantic League Tournament. He was selected to play in the CAL All Star Game. He is currently getting ready for his first lacrosse scrimmage next week at Harvard, where he is a freshman.

Senior Maeve Smith is committed to Villanova and will leave behing an impress resume at Ocean City High School.

She is one of four runners in school history to win an individual South Jersey cross country title in back-to-back seasons, joining Brittany Sedberry, Megan Hartman and MaryJo Dougherty. She also won both the 1600 and 3200 meter runs in the South Jersey Group 3 Track Meet in May and finished third in both events in the state meet.

Her performance in National events, coupled with her high school success, earned her All-American status. The Raiders were 26-1 in dual cross country meets with her in the lineup and won two South Jersey team championships.

Pat Grimley and Maeve Smith have had impressive high school careers through 2024. Smith is still competing. For their success and as representatives of all the other outstanding OCHS athletes, they are the Ocean City High School Athletes of the Year for 2024.

Tomorrow – the 62nd annual Ocean City Sportsperson of the Year.