Vote now: Who should be the WaFd Bank Arizona High School Athlete of the Week?

Here are the candidates for the WaFd Bank Arizona High School Athlete of the Week for Oct. 17-23 as nominated by coaches, fans and readers.
Vote now: Who should be the WaFd Bank Arizona High School Athlete of the Week?
Vote now: Who should be the WaFd Bank Arizona High School Athlete of the Week? /

Here are the candidates for the WaFd Bank Arizona High School Athlete of the Week for Oct. 17-23 as nominated by coaches, fans and readers. 

Read through the nominees and cast your vote. We’ll send a free SBLive T-shirt to the winner of the poll! Voting will conclude Sunday at 11:59 p.m.

If you would like to make a nomination in a future week, email brittanyabowyer@gmail.com. Follow her on Twitter at @bbowyer07. You also can tag us on Twitter or Instagram at @sbliveaz. 

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 who receive votes generated by script, macro or other automated means will be disqualified.

FOOTBALL

Kaden Armstrong, Senior, Eastmark - Eastmark’s defense has been playing lights-out, and it was no different Friday night with Armstrong leading the charge in the 56-6 victory over Coolidge. Armstrong had 12 tackles, two tackles for loss and a fumble recovery. 

Andres Bonilla, Sophomore, Buena - Bonilla had a phenomenal performance Friday to help Buena clinch a 47-35 victory over Mountain View - Marana, carrying the ball 17 times for 176 yards and three touchdowns. 

Darrien Campbell, Senior, Kellis - Helping Kellis to a 42-0 victory over North Canyon on Thursday night, Campbell had 12 carries for 151 yards and four touchdowns.

Diego Contreras, Junior, Moon Valley - While he was targeted only twice on the night, he made both of them count for the Rockets in their 35-18 victory over Youngker. With only two catches, Contreras still racked up 127 yards, crossing the goal line for touchdowns on both.

Vance Cooper, Senior, Paradise Honors - In Thursday’s 39-6 victory over Dysart, Cooper had 20 carries for 162 yards and a touchdown.

Drew Cowart, Senior, ALA-Queen Creek - Completing 20 of his 30 pass attempts, Cowart threw for 336 yards and four touchdowns in Friday’s 59-14 victory over Campo Verde, good for a new career high for passing yards in a game.

Malachi Eafon, Senior, Cholla - Rushing for a new career high in Friday’s 30-19 victory over Rincon/University, Eafon carried the ball 14 times for 248 yards and three touchdowns.

Anthony Garcia, Senior, Shadow Ridge - Thursday night was an explosive performance for Garcia, who had 17 carries for 137 yards and four touchdowns in the 41-22 win over Tolleson.

Manuel Garcia, Senior, Yuma - Blowing his former career best for receiving yards in a game out of the water, Garcia had nine catches for 207 yards and four touchdowns in Friday’s 33-0 victory over Wickenburg.

Zuri Glenn, Junior, Corona del Sol - With five receptions, Glenn picked up 122 yards and two touchdowns for the Aztecs in their 62-48 victory over Desert Vista.

Robert Juniel, Senior, Washington - Washington was able to pick up a 50-18 win over Alhambra on Friday, largely powered by the legs of Juniel. The senior had 16 carries for 220 yards and three touchdowns. 

Carson Kolb, Junior, Horizon - Kolb was an absolute nightmare for Casa Grande’s offense Friday in Horizon’s 27-13 victory. He finished the game with 10 total tackles, all of them solo, along with four tackles for loss, two sacks and a forced fumble.

Tristen McClelland, Junior, Canyon del Oro - After getting his opportunity to shine earlier in the season, it’s only been up from there. McClelland helped the Dorados roll to a 49-14 victory over Pueblo on Friday, completing 13 of his 15 pass attempts for 237 yards and four touchdowns.

Jaiden McDaniel, Senior, Paradise Valley - McDaniel returns to the list this week for another strong performance against La Joya on Friday, when he completed 6 of his 8 pass attempts for 152 yards and two touchdowns and carried the ball 10 times for 115 yards and three rushing touchdowns in the 55-6 victory. 

Adam Mohammad, Junior, Apollo - It was a fight to the finish for Mohammad and the Apollo Hawks on Friday in the 40-36 victory over Canyon View. Mohammad’s legs were working all night, carrying the ball 33 times for 166 yards and four touchdowns. He also had three receptions for 23 yards and two solo tackles.

Cooper Perry, Sophomore, Notre Dame Prep - Perry had an explosive night for the Saints in their 44-23 victory over Sunnyslope on Friday. He finished the night with 10 receptions for a new career high of 229 yards and four touchdowns, his fourth game of the season with four touchdowns.

Jayden Pico, Freshman, Shadow Ridge - With one of his strongest performances of the year, Pico helped Shadow Ridge pick up a 41-22 win over Tolleson on Thursday by completing 17 of his 23 pass attempts for 248 yards and two touchdowns.

Zeus Pindernation, Junior, Millennium - Grinding away for Millennium in Friday’s 24-7 victory over Verrado, Pindernation had 30 carries for 204 yards and a touchdown.

Kendre Pride, Junior, Carl Hayden - With 20 carries on the night, Pride helped the Falcons to a 56-6 victory over Maryvale with 254 yards and three touchdowns.

Duce Robinson, Senior, Pinnacle - Stepping up as the main receiver for Horton in Pinnacle’s 18-14 win over Brophy on Friday, Robinson had nine receptions for a season-high 223 yards and a touchdown.

Osyruss Rodriguez, Senior, Barry Goldwater - Setting a new career high of four touchdowns Friday night in the 43-15 victory over Ironwood, Rodriguez had 13 carries for 141 yards. He also had one reception for 24 yards, four tackles and a sack.

Anthony Ruiz, Senior, Liberty - It was a big night for Ruiz in Liberty’s 42-0 victory over Mountain Ridge. He finished with 11 tackles, two-and-a-half tackles for loss and two sacks.

Sean Sierra, Senior, Desert View - Sierra was all over the field for the Jaguars in Friday’s 42-10 victory over Tucson High. Offensively, he had 23 carries for 189 yards and three touchdowns, while defensively he managed to put up 10 total tackles, three tackles for loss, a sack and a half, as well as a blocked field goal.

Junior St. Cyr, Junior, Mesa - It was an all-around career-best kind of night for St. Cyr in Friday’s 64-14 victory over Westwood. He had 26 carries for 207 yards and four touchdowns to help the Jackrabbits to victory.

Richard Stallworth, Senior, Yuma Catholic - In a big game against Glendale, Stallworth had a stellar night by completing 22 of his 28 pass attempts for 286 yards and five touchdowns to lead the Shamrocks to a 35-20 victory.

Isaac Stopke, Senior, Lake Havasu - Stopke returns to the list with another strong performance Friday in the 55-14 victory over Greenway. With 10 carries on the night, he had 151 yards and three touchdowns. 

Gavin Thrower, Senior, Poston Butte - Taking the ball in for three touchdowns Friday, Thrower had 19 carries for 156 yards in the 40-13 victory over Benjamin Franklin. 

VOLLEYBALL 

Kierstyn Barton, Senior, Corona del Sol - In Corona del Sol’s 3-2 victory over Gilbert on Thursday, Barton helped the team push their way to a win with 17 kills, one ace, four blocks and 14 digs.

Haylee Brown, Senior, Maricopa - Brown returns to the list this week for her strength Tuesday in the 3-0 victory over Cesar Chavez, where she posted 17 kills, an ace, a block and eight digs for the Rams.

Raechelle Dykstra, Junior, Verrado - Helping Verrado sweep the Desert Edge Scorpions 3-0 on Monday, Dykstra had 20 kills, four blocks and six digs in the victory. Despite the team’s hard-fought effort Wednesday, the Vipers fell to No. 2 Millennium 3-0, but she finished the night with 19 kills, an ace, two blocks and 11 digs. 

Mikayla Haner, Freshman, Hamilton - Setting a new personal best of 15 kills in Thursday’s 3-0 victory over Basha, Haner also had an ace, a block and nine digs.

Amanda Hardt, Senior, Deer Valley - It was a lights-out night for Hardt on Tuesday in the 3-0 victory over Agua Fria. Hardt led the stat sheets with 19 kills, nine aces and three blocks to help the Skyhawks soar to a win.

Brooke Harwood, Freshman, Eastmark - The freshman standout returns to the list after starting the week off strong in Monday’s 3-0 victory over Tempe. Harwood had 12 kills, an ace, three blocks and two digs to help the Firebirds sweep their way to victory. Despite Eastmark’s 3-2 loss to ALA-Gilbert North, Harwood had an outstanding personal night with 17 kills, four aces, eight blocks and 18 digs. Rounding things out, she exploded to a career-high 27 kills, three blocks and five digs on Thursday in the 3-0 victory over ALA-Queen Creek.

Evan Hendrix, Junior, Notre Dame Prep - In Monday’s 3-1 victory over Chaparral, Hendrix led the attack with 18 kills, five aces, a block and 24 digs to help the Saints pick up a win. She also had an outstanding performance Wednesday to help Notre Dame Prep stun No. 9 Horizon, 3-2, finishing with 20 kills, three aces, three blocks and 11 digs.

Britany Kogbara, Senior, Peoria - Kogbara normally is on our basketball stars list every week, but this year she managed to find her way onto our volleyball all-stars list for her performance Monday in the 3-1 victory over Dysart. Kogbara finished with 13 kills, two aces, nine blocks and three digs.

Ella Kraver, Junior, Arizona College Prep - In Wednesday’s 3-0 victory over ALA-Queen Creek, Kraver was the leader on the floor, finishing with 15 kills, three aces and 14 digs.

Kendal Murphy, Senior, Horizon - Helping the Huskies rally to a 3-2 victory over Cactus Shadows on Thursday, Murphy had 21 kills, three aces, four blocks and nine digs.

Francesca Pieroni, Senior, Salpointe Catholic - In a rivalry match against Canyon del Oro on Thursday, Pieroni led things for the Lancers with 16 kills, two aces, three blocks and nine digs in the 3-1 win.

Raegan Richardson, Sophomore, Gilbert - Helping Gilbert knock off Queen Creek on Tuesday 3-1, Richardson had 17 kills, two blocks and 12 digs. 

Makena Rumple, Sophomore, Mesa - Coming in clutch for the Jackrabbits in their five-set match against Westwood on Thursday, Rumple set a season high of 23 kills along with one ace, one block and two digs to help Mesa pick up a 3-2 win.

Teraya Sigler, Sophomore, Horizon - Despite Horizon’s 3-2 loss to Notre Dame Prep on Wednesday, Sigler had an outstanding personal performance, leading the game in kills with 24, while also posting two aces and 23 digs.

Georgi Stein, Sophomore, Sunnyslope - In the Vikings’ 3-0 victory over No. 5 Liberty on Tuesday, Stein led things for the team with 15 kills, two aces, two blocks and six digs. She followed Wednesday night as No. 7 Sunnyslope was able to knock off No. 6 O’Connor 3-2, again dominating on the court with 15 kills, two aces, three blocks and 16 digs.

Elizabeth Steinkamp, Freshman, Seton Catholic - Going the distance Tuesday in the 3-2 victory over Mesquite, Steinkamp had her strongest performance of the season with 14 kills, four aces and 19 digs. She followed with another lights-out performance Thursday in the 3-1 victory over Marcos de Niza, putting up 11 kills, 11 aces and four digs.

Anna Williams, Sophomore, Mountain Pointe - Cracking the list this week is the sophomore from Mountain Pointe, who helped the Pride pick up a 3-1 win over Casa Grande with 19 kills, an ace, two blocks and a dig. 


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