Athlete of the Week

Athlete of the Week Voting: October 14 – 20

by
LebCoSports Staff
October 22, 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 10 pm.

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

Akaiya Hershey (New Covenant / Jr.) – Soccer: The Flames rolled to their first-ever CCAC Championship with a 2-1 win over Mount Cavalry. In addition to making huge plays all over the field, Hershey scored the game-tying goal. In the semifinal matchup against High Point, the junior scored twice as New Covenant won 5-1.

Kenzie Long (Palmyra / Jr.) – Soccer: In the final regular season game against Middletown, the junior led the Lady Cougars to victory by scoring a hat trick. This win helped push Palmyra to a better seed in the District 3 Playoffs. Serving as the team’s leading playmaker this season, Long finish the regular season with 11 goals and 28 points.

Mia Summers / Nia Hafey (Annville-Cleona / Sr., So.) – Tennis: At the District 3 Tennis Championships, Summers & Hafey paired up to finish 4th in the AA Tournament.

Reece Woelfling (ELCO / Sr.) – Tennis: Woelfling capped off her four-year playing career at the District 3 Doubles Tennis Tournament, where she was paired with fellow senior Nicole Books. They lost a hard-fought match (6-2, 6-3). Woelfling had also been a #1 Singles qualifier at Districts, adding to her legacy as one of ELCO’s top all-time tennis players.

Read about last week’s LebCo Female Athlete of the Week: Susie Hoffman

Male Nominees

Travis Furmanski (Cedar Crest / Jr.) – Cross Country: A week after setting the Cedar Crest program record with the fastest all-time race, Furmaski took part in the Lancaster Lebanon League Championship. In the race at South Hills Park, the junior charged his way to a 4^th place finish with a time of 15:54.1. This effort helped the Falcons claim 3^rd place overall and a spot in the District 3 Championships.

Justin Kaplan (Palmyra / Sr.) – Football: On Friday night, the senior running back was featured on offense as he racked up 132 all-purpose yards while scoring the lone Palmyra touchdown. On defense, Kaplan recorded 9 tackles, including 2 tackles that threw Red Land for a loss.

Gavin Meson (New Covenant / So) – Soccer: The sophomore midfielder came up large for the Flames as they made it to the CCAC Championship Game. Meson recorded a hat trick in the 3-2 semifinal win over West Shore Christian. He finished the CCAC Playoffs with 3 goals & 2 assists and was crucial in helping the Flames control the pace of play.

Brady Ryan (Northern Lebanon / So.) – Football: In Friday’s 36-13 win over Daniel Boone, the sophomore loomed large in sparking the Vikings. In the 2nd quarter, Ryan returned a kickoff 81 yards for a touchdown to put the Vikings on the board. He later had a reception for another touchdown, finishing the game with 2 receptions for 64 yards. On defense, Ryan contributed by making 8 tackles.

Xavier Smith (Palmyra / So.) – Football: In a great effort against Red Land, Palmyra’s sophomore linebacker had 16 tackles, including 6 tackles of a loss. Smith also forced and recovered a fumble in the contest.

Brady Stoops (ELCO / Sr.) – Football: In Friday’s 34-8 victory over Donegal, the senior fullback carried the ball 5 times for 31 yards and had 1 reception that went for 35 yards. On defense, Stoops had 4 tackles, including one that resulted in negative yards. Playing as a two-way player all season, Stoops has contributed both from the fullback and defensive end positions as the Raiders have achieved a 5-4 record and are on the cusp of a District 3 Playoff berth.

Noteworthy Performance Isaiah Zimmerman (Cedar Crest / So.) – Football: The sophomore had a gigantic week against Hempfield, as he carried the ball 19 times for 210 yards and 2 touchdowns. He also had 2 receptions that went for 70 yards and a touchdown. Zimmerman already won the award this season, but his outstanding performance should be noted.

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