It's one of the biggest nights in honoring Cleveland sports and 2016 offered plenty of moments to celebrate.
The Greater Cleveland Sports Awards' nominees are in. This year, the group of finalists represents an elite class of Cleveland sports after the city celebrated arguably its greatest year in sports ever. Cleveland's own Jay Crawford, of ESPN, will host the event.
Stipe Miocic won -- and then defended -- the UFC Heavyweight title in May and September. The Cleveland Monsters won the Calder Cup in June. Just over a week later, the Cleveland Cavaliers ended the city's major franchise championship drought as the Golden State Warriors blew a 3-1 lead in the NBA Finals. The Cleveland Indians carried the momentum into October on a World Series run before falling to the Chicago Cubs in one of the most epic Game 7s MLB has ever seen.
The nominees are:
High School Athlete of the Year
Dillon Dingler: Football, Jackson High School, Massillon
Jaylen Harris: Football, Cleveland Heights High School, Cleveland Heights
Valencia Myers: Basketball, Solon High School, Solon
Andrea Scali: Softball, Parma High School, Parma
Collegiate Athlete of the Year
John Carroll University Football Team: Football, NCAA D-II, Cleveland
Marshon Lattimore: Football, The Ohio State University, Cleveland
Mitch Trubisky: Football, University of North Carolina, Mentor
Amateur Athlete of the Year
Tianna Bartoletta: Track, U.S. Women's Olympic Team, Elyria
Charles Conwell, Jr.: Boxing, U.S. Men's Olympic Team, Cleveland Heights
Emily Infeld: Track, U.S. Women's Olympic Team, University Heights
Professional Athlete of the Year
LeBron James: NBA, forward, Cleveland Cavaliers
Francisco Lindor, MLB, shortstop, Cleveland Indians
Stipe Miocic, UFC, MMA, UFC Heavyweight Champion
Joe Thomas, NFL, offensive lineman, Cleveland Browns
Lifetime Achievement Award
Mike Hargrove, former Cleveland Indians manager
Cleveland Clinic Sports Health Courage Award
Kendra Seitz: Swimming, Hudson Explorers Aquatics Team, Hudson
Good as Gold
If you're hoping to show support for Cleveland's big three pro sports teams, be sure to enter the Golden Ticket raffle. The winner gets season tickets for the Indians, Cavaliers and Browns for the 2017 season. Click here for more information.