Vote: Who should be SBLive’s Iowa high school athlete of the week? (12/18/2023)
Here are the candidates for SBLive’s Iowa high school athlete of the week for Dec. 11-17. Read through the nominees and cast your vote. Voting will conclude Sunday at 11:59 p.m. If you would like to make a nomination in a future week, email nate@scorebooklive.com.
Editor’s Note: Our Athlete of the Week feature and corresponding poll is intended to be fun, and we do not set limits on how many times a fan can vote during the competition. However, we do not allow votes that are generated by script, macro or other automated means. Athletes who receive votes generated by script, macro or other automated means will be disqualified.
Dru Ayala, Fort Dodge boys wrestling
A week after winning the Dan Gable meet, the Iowa Hawkeye recruit won the Dodgers’ Don Miller Invitational 120-pound division. The championship match, Ayala pulled out a 1-0 victory over Ankeny Centennial’s Cody Vandermark.
Alyssa Bartlett, Southeast Polk girls basketball
The junior finished with 23 points, eight rebounds and five assists for the Rams in a 65-36 win over Urbandale.
Emiliano Barrantes, Grand View Christian boys basketball
The 6-foot-9 junior had 36 points and 17 rebounds in a 72-60 win over Cedar Rapids Washington Tuesday. Barrantes followed that with a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds in a loss to Nebraska power Omaha Skutt on Friday.
Bailey Birmingham, Norwalk girls basketball
The junior had 31 points, six rebounds and six assists against Council Bluffs Lewis Central. Birmingham was 11-for-12 from the free throw line and splashed four 3 pointers.
Brady Boulton, Montezuma boys basketball
The 5-10 sophomore guard scored 31 points, leading the Braves to a 61-58 victory over Sigourney-Keota. Boulton just missed a double-double, pulling down nine rebounds.
Morgan Christian, Sioux Central girls basketball
The senior finished with 17 points, five rebounds, five steals and two assists in a 70-7 win over Storm Lake St. Mary’s. The Rebels held St. Mary’s scoreless in the third quarter.
Macy Comito, Carlisle girls basketball
The 5-8 sophomore produced a double-double with 27 points and 12 rebounds, leading the Wildcats to a 59-39 victory over Ballard. Comito also had four steals and four assists.
Lucas Frohwein, Colo-Nesco boys basketball
The senior finished with 31 points and 10 rebounds, leading the Royals to a 76-49 win over GMG. Frohwein, who made 15 of 20 shots, also handed out six assists.
Noah Fuelling, Dunkerton boys basketball
The junior tossed in 30 points in an 81-80 loss to Denver, which was the Raiders’ first setback of the season. Fuelling cashed in on six 3-pointers.
Savannah Gage, Ankeny boys basketball
The junior scored 27 points, leading the Hawks past Waukee Northwest 79-61. Gage hit five 3-pointers and shot 9 of 14 from the field.
Triton Gwinn, Mormon Trail boys basketball
The senior combined for 46 points and 25 rebounds in games against Melcher-Dallas and Central Decatur.
Evan Hammer, Carroll boys basketball
The 6-5 senior posted a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds, leading the Tigers past Winterset 50-42.
Luke Hellige, Holy Trinity Catholic boys basketball
The 6-4 junior posted a double-double with 31 points and 11 rebounds, leading the Crusaders past Burlington Notre Dame 66-57. Hellige made 12 of 13 free throws.
Broedy Hendricks, Humboldt boys wrestling
The top-ranked freshman in 2A knocked off the top-ranked 1A grappler Jace Nelson-Brown of Emmetsburg to win the 175 pound division at the Don Miller Invitational.
Desta Hoogendoorn, Central Lyon girls basketball
The senior post charted a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds for the unbeaten Lions in a 46-42 win over rival West Lyon. Hoogendoorn also had three blocked shots and two steals.
Carson Johnson, Ankeny boys basketball
The senior scored 24 points, leading the Hawks to a 79-77 victory over West Des Moines Dowling. Johnson, who was 10-for-16 from the floor, also handed out three assists while nearly reaching his season scoring average of 25.4 points per game.
Grace Knutson, Cedar Falls girls basketball
The senior all-stater and Drake University commit tossed in 29 points for the Tigers in an 83-38 win over Cedar Rapids Kennedy. Knutson, who made four 3-pointers, also dished out six assists.
Aubrey Kroymann, Maquoketa girls basketball
The sophomore led the Cardinals with 23 points in a 67-45 win over Dyersville Beckman. Kroymann also contributed six rebounds and four steals.
Jayden Kuper, Monticello girls basketball
The senior had a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds in the Panthers’ 46-33 win over Cascade. Kuper tacked on six steals.
Owen Larson, Estherville-Lincoln Central boys basketball
The South Dakota State recruit, averaging 30.1 points per game, threw in 38 points in a 72-65 victory over Storm Lake. The senior point guard tacked on 10 rebounds, six assists and two steals.
Jackson Lieurance, Cascade boys basketball
The junior poured in 35 points, but the Cougars suffered their first loss, 61-57, to unbeaten Monticello. Lieurance made five 3-point shots.
Ava Locklear, Clear Creek-Amana girls basketball
Locklear scored 20 of her game-high 26 points in the second half, leading the Clippers to a 58-37 win over Solon. She added 10 rebounds and four assists.
Maximus Magayna, Waterloo Columbus boys wrestling
The North Dakota State commit had five falls in just under five minutes at the Battle of Waterloo.
Jahlil Manago, Waterloo West boys basketball
The junior guard had 31 points, 11 rebounds and five assists in a 77-38 win over Cedar Rapids Jefferson.
Lauren McLaughlin, Algona girls basketball
The junior fired in 27 points as the Bulldogs downed Humboldt 64-54. McLaughlin was 9-for-13 from the field and canned four 3-pointers.
Braden McShane, New Hampton boys wrestling
The senior was dominant, pinning five opponents in just over three minutes at the Battle of Waterloo.
Brooks Moore, Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont boys basketball
The 6-5 senior charted a double-double with 34 points and 10 rebounds for the Rockets in a 72-69 win over Clarke.
Matilde Motta, Roland-Story girls basketball
The 5-8 junior scored 21 points and pulled down nine rebounds as the Norsemen remained unbeaten with an 89-25 win ove Saydel. Motta also had five steals and four assists.
Brody Muenchrath, Westwood boys basketball
The 6-foot junior tallied 34 points for the Rebels against Lawton-Bronson. Muenchrath also had six steals, five rebounds and four blocked shots.
Matt Noll, Sioux City Bishop Heelan boys basketball
The senior and Wayne State College recruit had back-to-back performances of 26 points, 13 rebounds and three assists against Hull Western Christian and 28 points and 11 rebounds against Caledonia, Minnesota.
Trista Ohlmeier, MVAOCOU girls basketball
The 6-foot-1 junior contributed a double-double effort of 25 points and 14 rebounds as the unbeaten Rams downed Woodbury Central 79-41. Ohlmeier, who hit 11 of 18 shots, also had seven assists, four blocked shots and three steals.
Reagan Pagniano, Pleasant Valley girls basketball
The junior scored 19 points and handed out 12 assists in the Spartans’ 87-26 rout of Davenport West. Pagniano made 7 of 11 shots, including three 3-pointers.
Cale Reichter, North Fayette Valley boys basketball
The 6-7 junior scored 26 points and pulled down 15 rebounds in a 56-55 victory over MFL MarMac Friday. On Tuesday, Reichter had 23 points and 16 rebounds in a 65-44 win over South Winneshiek.
Preston Ries, Monticello boys basketball
The senior, who will play football at the University of Iowa, had a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds for the unbeaten Panthers in a 61-57 win over Cascade.
Kendall Riherd, Aplington-Parkersburg girls basketball
The 5-10 senior posted a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds, helping the Falcons top Marquette Catholic 67-48. Riherd also contributed five assists and three steals.
Hayden Schwab, Don Bosco boys wrestling
The freshman went a perfect 6-0, including a win over Class 3A’s top-ranked Dylan Munson of Cedar Rapids Prairie in the Battle of Waterloo. Schwab had four takedowns in the third period to pick up a 12-6 victory.
Toryn Severson, Madrid boys basketball
The 6-4 senior had 28 points and 10 rebounds, helping the Tigers to a 56-40 victory over West Central Valley. Severson also blocked two shots, had two steals and two assists in the Friday contest after hitting for 28 points and six rebounds in a Tuesday loss to Van Meter.
Mason Smith, Chariton boys basketball
The 5-9 senior poured in 37 points in a two-point loss to Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont. Smith was 16 of 26 from the field and pulled down nine rebounds.
Rayce Snyder, Wayne boys basketball
Snyder, one of the leading scorers in the state, had 30 points in a losing cause as the Falcons fell to Southeast Warren 69-67. Snyder, averaging just over 25 points per contest, was 15 of 17 from the free throw line and pulled down eight rebounds.
Reggi Spotts, Mason City boys basketball
The senior surpassed 1,000 points in her career, becoming only the ninth player in school history to reach that milestone. Spotts scored 14 points in a rout of Des Moines Hoover, scoring her 1,000th point in the first quarter.
Eva Steffensen, CAM girls basketball
The senior hit for 25 points in a 66-18 waltz past Paton-Churdan. Steffensen was 12-for-17 from the field.
Aiden Stensrud, Lake Mills boys basketball
The 6-5 junior had 28 points, 13 rebounds and six steals for the undefeated Bulldogs in an 83-59 win over Eagle Grove. Stensrud made 13 of 15 shots from the field.
Reed Strohmeyer, Dubuque Hempstead boys basketball
The junior tossed in 30 points for the Mustangs in a narrow loss to Cedar Rapids Xavier. Strohmeyer is averaging just under 23 points per game.
Sage Suntken, West Fork boys basketball
The 6-2 senior guard fired in 37 points for the unbeaten Warhawks in a 93-58 win over Central Springs. Suntken made 13 of 16 shots, including 11 of 14 3-pointers.
Emma Townsley, Benton girls basketball
The senior posted a double-double with 26 points and 10 rebounds as the Bobcats clipped Williamsburg 60-58. Townsley added seven assists coming off another 26-point performance in a loss to Marion.
Reece Vander Zee, Central Lyon boys basketball
Although his team lost to rival West Lyon, the University of Iowa football recruit tallied a double-double with 29 points and 11 rebounds. That was just over his season scoring average of 28.2 points per game.
Lauren Walker, Central DeWitt girls basketball
The junior had 28 points, seven rebounds and four steals for the unbeaten Sabers in a 56-53 victory over Bettendorf. Walker made all four of her 3-point attempts.
Jonovan Wilkinson, Roland-Story boys basketball
The senior just missed a double-double with 20 points and nine rebounds for the unbeaten Norsemen in a 68-37 win over Saydel. Wilkinson followed that up with a 26-point, 13-rebound performance against PCM.
Luke Winkel, Ankeny Centennial boys basketball
The 6-1 senior had 32 points and five assists for the Jaguars in a 76-49 victory over Johnston. Winkel made 11 of 16 shots, including four 3-pointers.
Addy Wolfswinkel, Cherokee girls basketball
The 5-8 freshman hit for 26 points to go along with 11 rebounds for the Braves in a 61-53 win over Storm Lake.
Drew Wagner, Waterloo Christian boys basketball
The 6-4 senior finished with 30 points and 18 rebounds, helping the Regents beat West Central 86-29. Wagner also had six assists, four steals and two blocked shots.
