Athlete of the Week

Athlete of the Week Voting: April 15 – April 21

by
LebCoSports Staff
April 23, 2024

Presented in coordination with Froggy Valley 100.1/WiLBuR 99.7 & Lebanon Federal Credit Union, 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 at the end of the week. Linked below are the articles about our most recent winners of the award.

Voting will remain open until Wednesday at 7 pm.

Only one vote per email address, per day 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, celebrate their accomplishment, and then go vote who you feel is most deserving of this week’s honor.

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

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

Female Nominees

Brooke Beamesderfer (Northern Lebanon / Sr.) – Softball: The Vikings went 4-2 during their busy week. Beamesderfer achieved a career milestone as she had her 100th career hit. Her success at the plate included a 3-run home run against Columbia.

Abby Berarducci (Palmyra / Sr.) – Track & Field: At the Jack Roddick Invitational, the senior distance runner set a new Palmyra record when she went 5:13.22 in the 1600m. Earlier in the week, Berarducci won two individual events as Palmyra defeated Hershey, taking the top spot in the 800m (2:28.41) and 1600m (5:27.96).

Meda Pulaski (Annville-Cleona / Sr.) – Softball: Pulaski picked up three wins last week over Pequea Valley, Lancaster Catholic, and Northern Lebanon. In the victories that included two complete games, the senior struck out 35 batters and allowed only 4 earned runs. At the plate, Pulaski knocked in 6 runs as Annville ended the week tied for the Section 4 lead.

Gabby Smith (ELCO / Jr.) – Softball: In Thursday’s exciting eight-inning 1-0 win over Donegal, Smith pitched the final 4 innings before her solo home run broke the tie. Smith followed it up on Friday by breaking the ELCO All-Time Strikeout record when she recorded the 408th of her career. She finished the week with 414 Ks.

LebCo Female Athletes of the Week: Addison Hollenbach & Zariyah Whigham (Week Ending April 14, 2024)

Male Nominees

Gavin Bicher (ELCO / Jr.) – Baseball: On the mound, Bicher won three games, including two in relief. In a 5-3 win over Octorara, the junior pitched 6.2 innings, striking out 10 and only allowing 2 runs. At the plate, Bicher batted .421 (8-19) with 3 RBI, 3 walks, and added a steal. As a result, ELCO finished the week bringing their record back to .500 (5-5) for the season.

Kody Kerkeslager (Cedar Crest / Sr.) – Volleyball: In an epic five-set showdown versus Lower Dauphin, the senior setter reached the 1,000 career assist milestone. Kerkeslager’s Falcons finished the week with a season record of 7-3.

Max Liedtka (Annville-Cleona / Sr.) – Tennis: On Tuesday, the Dutchmen earned a stunning 4-3 victory over Donegal. Liedtka played a major role in the win, teaming up with Travis Hostetter to take the #1 Doubles (8-3). He then won his Singles match 6-1, 6-4 to give Annville a come-from-behind win.

Tyler Mahaffey (Palmyra / Sr.) – Tennis: The senior two-time defending doubles champion notched another career highlight when he won his150th career match. The Cougars ended the week with a season record of 12-2.

Diego Serrano (Lebanon / So.) – Baseball: On the mound against Solanco, Serrano pitched a complete game shutout to lead Lebanon to their 1st win of the season. He limited the Mules to just 3 hits while striking out 4 batters. He helped his own cause by going 1-2 at the plate, driving in a run.

Connor Stoltz (Northern Lebanon / So.) – Baseball: The Vikings went 3-0 during the week, an effort that was aided by the play of their sophomore catcher. Stoltz went 5-9 with a double, RBI, and 3 runs scored. He also walked twice and stole a base.

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