Vote: Who should be SBLive's Illinois High School Athlete of the Week (11/6/2023)?
Here are the candidates for SBLive's Illinois High School Athlete of the Week as nominated by fans, readers and SBLive’s staff.
Read through the nominees and cast your vote at the bottom of the page. Voting will conclude on Sunday at 11:59 p.m. and the winner will be announced the following week. If you would like to nominate an athlete in the future, please email athleteoftheweek@scorebooklive.com.
THIS WEEK’S SBLIVE ILLINOIS ATHLETE OF THE WEEK NOMINEES:
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 that receive votes generated by script, macro or other automated means will be disqualified.
AJ Abrams, Blue Island Eisenhower football
The senior had nine catches for 285 yards and four TDs in a 49-35 Class 6A second-round loss to Kankakee.
Aden Bandukwala, Hinsdale Central boys cross country
The senior won the Class 3A state title, running 14:13.56.
Robert Battle, East St. Louis football
The Lindenwood commit threw for 243 yards and four touchdowns in a 54-7 Class 6A second-round win against Normal West. Two of his receivers – Rico Bond and Christopher Bennett Jr. – were over 100 yards receiving.
Nico Bertolino, Belvidere North football
In a 28-21 Class 6A second-round victory over Wauconda, the senior had a 98-yard touchdown run and a pick-six.
Charleston Coldon, Althoff football
In a 56-20 Class 1A second-round victory over LeRoy, the junior caught seven passes for 207 yards and three touchdowns.
Jake Curry, Edwardsville football
The Southern Illinois commit had four total touchdowns, two passing and two rushing, in a 48-14 Class 8A second-round win over Glenbard West.
Michael Dellumo, Maine South football
The junior had three touchdowns, including two in the fourth quarter, during a 33-21 Class 8A second-round win against Belleville East.
Donovan Dey, Carmel football
In a 50-7 Class 5A second-round win over Antioch, the junior ran for 229 yards and three touchdowns.
Jack Elliott, Mount Carmel football
The junior threw for four touchdowns and rushed for another in less than a half as the Caravan beat Prospect 49-15 in a Class 7A second-round game.
Gavin Genisio, Benton boys cross country
The senior won the Class 1A state title by more than 16 seconds with a time of 14:12.56.
Damian Glodz, York football
The senior kicked a 30-yard field goal as time expired to give the Dukes a 17-14 Class 8A second-round win over Lyons.
Becca Heitzig, Lincoln girls cross country
The senior was the Class 2A state champ, running 16:34.75 to edge St. Ignatius' Annika Swan by five-hundredths of a second.
Dierre Hill Jr., Althoff football
The junior ran nine for 177 yards and three touchdowns in a 56-20 Class 1A second-round win against LeRoy.
Addy Horner, St. Francis girls volleyball
The Wisconsin commit had six kills and 12 assists in a 25-8, 25-20 Class 3A Antioch Supersectional win over Belvidere North.
Calyx Hoover, New Trier boys soccer
The sophomore had a goal and an assist as the Trevians beat Glenbrook North and Lyons to win the Class 3A state championship.
Isabella Keller, Effingham St. Anthony girls cross country
The freshman won the Class 1A state title with a time of 16:26.13.
Calli Kenny, Willowbrook girls volleyball
The senior had eight kills to help the Warriors beat Joliet West 25-18, 25-14 in the Class 4A Bolingbrook Supersectional.
Matt Larson, Glenbard East football
The senior ran 28 times for 296 yards and four touchdowns in a 28-13 Class 7A second-round win over Addison Trail.
Keshawn Lewis-Hunt, Morgan Park football
The senior rushed 18 times for 81 yards and two touchdowns, including the eventual game-winner with 6:29 left, in a 27-21 Class 5A second-round win against Sycamore.
Carter Murphy, Breese Mater Dei football
The junior caught two touchdown passes from quarterback Trenton Zeeb and returned a fourth-quarter interception 38 yards for another score in a 27-18 Class 2A second-round win over Johnston City.
Dylan Nalley, Marion boys cross country
The senior won the Class 2A state title by more than 16 seconds, running 14:05.20.
Caden O’Rourke, Lincoln-Way East football
The junior had three sacks and helped the Griffins' defense hold Minooka to 49 total yards in a 28-0 Class 8A second-round win over Minooka.
Justin Scott, St. Ignatius football
The five-star Ohio State commit as a defensive lineman contributed several key stops on defense and ran eight times for 68 yards and a touchdown as a fullback in a 35-23 Class 8A second-round win over Huntley.
Kaleb Stanford, Marian Catholic football
The junior had a 16-yard scoop-and-score in a 14-7 win over St. Patrick in the quarterfinals of the CCL/ESCC Playoffs.
Nate Stempowski, Geneva football
The senior ran for 115 yards and threw for 164 yards and two touchdowns in a 42-7 Class 6A second-round win over Lake Forest.
Aaron Stewart, Warren football
The sophomore ran 27 times for 194 yards and had a career-best four touchdowns in a 51-21 Class 8A second-round win over South Elgin.
Scout Storms, Barrington girls cross country
The junior won the Class 3A state title in 16:38.46.
Nico Velasco, Crystal Lake South boys soccer
The senior midfielder had a goal in a 2-1 win over Peoria Notre Dame for the Class 2A state final. He also had the game-winning goal in a 1-0 semifinal win against Rochester.
Larevious Woods, East St. Louis football
The junior had 17 carries for 184 yards and three first-half touchdowns in a 54-7 Class 6A second-round victory against Normal West.
Trenton Zeeb, Breese Mater Dei football
The senior passed for 195 yards and three touchdowns in a Class 2A second-round win against Johnston City.
- Mike Carpinelli, Mike Clark and Nate Latsch contributed to this list.
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- Mike Clark | latsch@scorebooklive.com | @SBLiveIL
