Football: Vote for the 2023 LebCo Players of the Year!

With the high school Football season now complete for our LebCo athletes, we wanted to take the chance to reflect upon some of the top performers from the 2023 campaign.  There were many noteworthy performances for our local stars, so it was tough to narrow down who was most deserving.  After consulting with each program, where we could we chose the top Offensive and top Defensive player from each school.

Now, we need your help in determining who deserves to be named the Offensive Player of the Year and the Defensive Player of the Year based on their outstanding performances during the Fall season.

Additionally, we chose the top underclassman (freshman/sophomore) from each school and put them up for the Rising Star award.

After you have reviewed the nominees and chosen who you think is the most deserving, please use the link to give your opinion in order to help us to make the selections.

It is very important to note that while voting is involved and emotions can run high, the main purpose is to draw attention to the hardworking athletes that competed for LebCo’s high schools this past season.  We also recognize that there may be other good possible selections who did not make the list, but we limited it to one per school for each category.

Read about the accolades of the nominated athletes from each school, then go vote!

Vote Here

Voting will remain open until Wednesday, November 29th at 10 pm.

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Nominees are listed in the alphabetical order by last name.

Offensive Player of the Year Nominees

Malachi Briddell (Lebanon / So.) – WR: The sophomore totaled 29 receptions for 254 yards.  He was able to score 3 offensive touchdowns for the Cedars.

Moises Gonzalez (Northern Lebanon / Sr.) – RB/WR: The senior rushed for 523 yards on 61 carries, averaging 8.5 yards each time he was handed the ball.  He added 11 receptions for 190 yards.  In 9 games, he scored 9 touchdowns for the Vikings.

Cael Harter (Annville-Cleona / Sr.) – RB: Harter amassed 1,109 yards on 156 carries, giving him an average of 7.1 yards per carry.  In the 11 games, he rushed for 100+ yards a total of 7 times, with a season-high of 212 rushing yards against Pequea Valley. He scored 13 offensive touchdowns for the Dutchmen.  Overall, he totaled 1,619 all-purpose yards this season.  Weighing only 150 pounds, his toughness helped to pace Annville, as he led the team both on and off the field.

Fernando Marquez (Cedar Crest / Sr.) – RB: Marquez was reliable for the Falcons, carrying the ball 152 times for 982 yards.  He scored a total of 21 touchdowns, both from goal line situations to longer runs which included a season long of 60 yards.  Maybe the most impressive stat was that the senior did not fumble the ball once.

Jon McDannell (Palmyra / Sr.) – WR: As the top receiving threat that Palmyra had on the field, McDannell tallied 300 receiving yards on 21 receptions.  Out of those receptions, he was able to find the end zone 4 times.

Jake Williams (ELCO / Sr.) – RB: In 11 games, Williams carried the ball 206 times for a total of 2,402 yards, giving him an average of 11.7 yards per carry. He broke the ELCO single season rushing record, as well as the single game rushing record when he ran for 356 yards and 5 touchdowns against Columbia.  Williams totaled 30 touchdowns for the Raiders. He had his share of long touchdown runs with the longest going for 85 yards.  His season yardage total was good enough for 2nd all-time in the history of the Lancaster Lebanon League.

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

Defensive Player of the Year Nominees

Owen Chernich (Cedar Crest / Sr,) – DB: The defensive back led the Falcons with 74 tackles, including 26 solo tackles.  8 of his tackles were for a loss.  He also created 4 turnover with 3 interceptions and a forced fumble.  Relied upon to call the plays for the defensive backfield, Chernich finished his career at Cedar Crest as a 4-year starter.

Darrian Holloway (Annville-Cleona / Sr.) – LB: Totaled 104 total tackles, 64 of which were solo.  He had 6 tackles for a loss and 2 sacks.  Holloway also created turnovers, nabbing 1 interception, forcing 3 fumbles, and recovering a fumble.  He was considered the leader of the Annville defense that gave up only 13 points per game over the course of the 7 games played in Section 5.

Kadin Jones (Palmyra / Sr.) – LB: Despite playing with a broken hand that required a cast throughout the duration of the 10-game campaign, Jones was able to total 101 tackles.  Of the tackles he made, the senior had 2 sacks and 15 tackles for a loss.

Elliott Kreider (ELCO / Sr.) – LB: Taking over the middle linebacker position as the play caller, Kreider tallied 103 tackles in 12 games.  43 of his tackles were solo and 11 of them were for a loss, including 2 sacks.  Kreider also had an interception, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery.  He played the last 4 games with a cast on his broken hand.

Luke Shaffer (Northern Lebanon / Sr.) – LB:  Playing interior linebacker, Shaffer totaled 139 tackles in 10 games.  He registered 14 tackles for a loss to go with 2 quarterback sacks.  He also was credited with forcing 2 fumbles.  He was considered the leader of the Northern Lebanon defense.

LebCo Football Coaches All-County Selections

Rising Star Nominees

Malachi Briddell (Lebanon / So.) – WR / DB / KR: At wide receiver, Briddell had 29 receptions for 254 yards and 3 scores.  He was also a potent threat at the kick return position, such was evident when he returned a Warwick kick for a touchdown.

Landyn Kline (Cedar Crest / So.) – LB: Getting an opportunity to play for the senior-heavy Falcons, Kline was able to register 34 total tackles.  He also had an interception.

Braxtin Risser (Palmyra / So.) – RB: The sophomore was called upon to carry the ball a total of 113 times for the Cougars.  Averaging 5.8 yards per carry, Risser totaled 661 yards on the ground and scored 5 touchdowns.

Brady Ryan (Northern Lebanon / Fr.) – WR / DB: On offense, Ryan had 5 receptions for 37 yards, including a touchdown.  Defensively, the freshman had 32 tackles, including 1 for a loss.  He defended 5 passes and was involved in creating 4 turnovers with 2 interceptions and 2 fumble recoveries.

Hudson Sellers (Annville-Cleona / So.) – LB: The sophomore totaled 81 tackles, 46 of which were solo.  Of those tackles, 7 of them were for a loss.  He had an interception that he returned defensive touchdown in the Annville win against Columbia.  He added a fumble recovery against Northern Lebanon.  Started all 11 games for the Dutchmen.

Paul Williams (ELCO / So.) – OL/DL: On defense, the sophomore had 66 tackles, 29 of which were solo.  That total included 13 tackles for a loss.  He added a fumble recovery.  On the offensive side of the ball, Williams was a key blocker, using a combination of size, strength, and speed to open holes for his older brother.

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