(KMAland) – Lenox standout Gabe Funk made a big impression on many of the Tigers teams he played for during his freshman and sophomore years.
Thanks to his continued development and improvement, as well as taking on an even larger role in each of these sports, the rising senior is KMAland’s youngest male athlete of the year.
“I was surrounded by very good teammates,” Funk said. “We have a very good community in Lenox and everyone is super supportive. In different sports, it’s just about accepting your role. You can be good at one sport and maybe not so good at another, but we all show up, work hard and do what we’re told.”
Funk was the star for Lenox in football, basketball, track and baseball during the 2023-24 sports year. There were many standout candidates this year, but the impact Funk made consistently and routinely night after night was hard to match in the region.
“The first sport I ever played was soccer in kindergarten,” Funk remembers. “I just ran past everyone and thought, ‘This is pretty easy.’ I’ve since learned the other sports as well.”
A year after helping Lenox to the UNI Dome, Funk had another great football season, passing for 1,103 yards, rushing for 1,080 yards and totaling 42 offensive touchdowns. He was also a key player on defense, recording 43.0 tackles and three interceptions.
“When my sophomore year in the Dome was coming to an end, (Lenox co-head coach Cole Bonde) sat me and (Dalton Kitzman) down right after the game,” Funk said. “He said all these seniors have graduated, so you guys need to start working on becoming leaders. That was set in stone from then on. I wanted to try to lead the team and do the best I could.”
Funk was named Pride of Iowa Conference Offensive Player of the Year, Junior of the Year and Best QB by KMA Sports, adding Second Team All-State and First Team All-District to his long list of accolades.
Funk didn’t let up in basketball, scoring 22.4 points per game and averaging 10.9 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 3.4 steals and 1.6 blocks.
“We had a record around .500, but we lost half of those games by single digits,” Funk said. “We had a lot of guys that were new to the varsity team, just like in football, so it was a learning curve. But overall we did pretty well.”
Funk was named POI Junior of the Year and was named to the POI Elite, POI All-Junior and POI All-Defense teams, as well as being named to the KMAland Basketball Elite Third Team by KMA Sports.
In the spring, Funk combined his athleticism with his speed on the track, earning four top-two finishes at state championships, including a state championship in the 110-meter hurdles and as a member of the shuttle hurdle relay. He placed second in the 400-meter hurdles and as the lock on the sprint medley relay.
“It was definitely a good feeling (to win the state championship),” Funk said. “I was chasing the (110 highs) because I had finished second the year before, and this year Jack Follmann (of CAM) had me on the edge all year. At this state championship, I pulled one out. The shuttle did it, too, and that was a great way to end on a high.”
Funk was again named POI Track & Field Junior of the Year by KMA Sports and was named to the All-POI Track & Field Team.
In baseball, he emerged as one of the Tigers’ best hitters, batting .357/.505/.452, which included three doubles, one triple, and one home run. He pitched 31 1/3 innings with a 2.46 ERA while allowing 24 strikeouts and just six walks.
“I thought we were very good,” he said of the baseball season. “I think we could have gone a little further in the postseason, but overall I was grateful for the season. I was more of a role player. Just get on base, run the bases and Dawson Evans is going to hit a home run. That’s the role I accepted.”
Funk was selected to the All-POI First Team by the league’s coaches and landed on the All-District First Team and All-State Third Team, while also being named to the POI Baseball All-Junior Team by KMA Sports.
All of this adds up to the first winner of the KMAland Athlete of the Year banner from Lenox.
“(Being a multi-sport athlete) definitely helps you see all sports in a different light,” Funk said. “You can take different perspectives and approaches. I’m just super competitive. Nobody likes to lose, but I hate to lose. I’ll do anything not to lose. That’s the main drive.”
Hear much more from Gabe Funk, this year’s KMAland Sportsman of the Year, in the audio file below.
KMAland Sportsman of the Year (History)
2024: Gabe Funk, Lenox
2023: Koleson Evans, West Harrison
2022: Lane Spieker, CAM
2021: Layne Pryor, Woodbine
2020: Justin McCunn, Red Oak
2019: Chase Mullenix, Atlantic
2018: Nick Foss, Harlan
2017: Sam Phillips, Fremont Mills
2016: Ryan Hawkins, Atlantic
2015: Austin Simmons, Lewis Central
2014: Jay Wolfe, Creston
2013: Ricky Williams, Riverside
