Athlete of the Week

Athlete of the Week Voting: Week of October 23rd

by
LebCoSports Staff
October 31, 2023

Help us decide which male and female athlete should be honored for their outstanding efforts during last week’s local high school sports action. While you may have a favorite school or athlete already, we still encourage you to read through the lists below and then click on the link to vote. The winners will be announced later this week.

We have also included Team of the Week vote to honor the collective efforts of some of the top squads in the county.

Voting will remain open until Wednesday at 7 pm. Only one vote per email address will be allowed.

While athletes can be nominated multiple weeks, the winners will be removed and updates will be provided as the season progresses.

While this may be a vote and emotions can run high, this is intended to bring attention to some of the best performances from our local student-athletes.

Nominations, which are made working with the schools, are listed below in alphabetical order.

Please read about each nominee and then go vote who you feel is most deserving.

If you like this type of coverage, please let us know by Following us on social media:

Twitter/X – @lebcosports1 and Facebook.

For any questions, comments, or discrepancies, please reach out to dan@lebcosports.com.

Vote Here

Female Nominees

Keely Bowers (Palmyra / Sr.) – Field Hockey: In District wins over Garden Spot and Hershey, the senior midfielder accounted for 3 goals and 1 assist. The assist against Hershey was on Mallory Hudson’s eventual game winning goal that clinched a PIAA State Playoff berth for the Cougars.

Hayden Boyer (ELCO / Fr.) – Soccer: Down late to Hamburg in the District 3 Quarterfinals, the freshman responded late to score the equalizer. ELCO eventually fell on penalty kicks following a double overtime thriller.

Mackenzie Stellmach (Annville-Cleona / So.) – Cross Country: At the District 3 Championships, the sophomore finished 6^th in the AA race. Her time of 20:20.0 helped to lead the Dutchmen to a 3^rd place finish that qualified them for the PIAA State Championships.

Male Nominees

Owen Chernich (Cedar Crest / Sr.) – Football: In the Cedar Bowl, the senior totaled 3 touchdowns and 2 interceptions to tip the game in Cedar Crest’s favor. At wide receiver, Chernich caught 3 passes for 64 yards, scoring twice. He also added a rushing touchdown while playing quarterback. On defense, he had 4 tackles to go with his two 1^st half takeaways.

Cornelius Cummings (Palmyra / So.) – Cross Country: At the District 3 Championships, the sophomore ran a 16:48.7, finishing 24^th in the AAA race. He earned an invitation to the PIAA State Championship Meet.

Cael Harter (Annville-Cleona / Sr.) – Football: At running back, Harter carried the ball 26 times for 122 yards and a touchdown in the shutout win over Northern Lebanon. On defense he added a Pick 6 (interception for a touchdown), while also forcing a fumble and making 4 tackles. The senior also eclipsed the 1,000 yard rushing mark for the season.

Offensive Line (ELCO) – Football: The Raiders rushing attack, led by Jake Williams and his 304-yard performance led ELCO in defeating Berks Catholic. While they are individual athletes, they are also a collective unit that blocking provided the performance that made this win possible.

Tyler Shunk (Northern Lebanon / Sr.) – Cross Country: The senior finished 4^th in the District 3 AA Championship race with a time of 16:51.1, helping to lead the Vikings to a 2^nd place finish.

Ramon Urena Batista (Lebanon / Sr.) – Cross Country: Finishing 11^th at the District 3 AAA Championships, Urena Batista’s 16:22.2 was the fastest time of any LebCo runner. He is a PIAA State Championship Qualfier.

Team Nominees

Annville-Cleona Boys Cross Country: The Dutchmen won the District 3 A Championship, placing six runners in the top twelve. As a result, they qualified for the PIAA State Championship Meet.

Cedar Crest Football: With their 49-6 win over Lebanon in the Cedar Bowl, the Falcons improved to 8-2 on the year and secured a spot in the District 3 AAAAAA Playoffs.

Northern Lebanon Boys Cross Country: The Vikings finished 2^nd in the AA race the District 3 Championships, qualifying them for the PIAA State Championship Meet.