Vote now: Who should be SBLive's Illinois High School Athlete of the Week (Feb. 6-11)?

Here are the candidates for SBLive's Illinois High School Athlete of the Week as nominated by fans, readers and SBLive’s staff

Here are the candidates for SBLive's Illinois High School Athlete of the Week for Feb. 6-11 as nominated by fans, readers and SBLive’s staff.

Read through the nominees and cast your vote at the bottom of the page. Voting will conclude on Sunday at 11:59 p.m. and the winner will be announced the following week. If you would like to nominate an athlete in the future, please email athleteoftheweek@scorebooklive.com.

THIS WEEK’S SBLIVE ILLINOIS ATHLETE OF THE WEEK NOMINEES:

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

Gannon Birkner, New Athens boys basketball

Birkner had a big week with 75 points in three games, including a career-high 40 in a 61-35 win at Lebanon on Friday. The senior is averaging 22.3 points per game this season. 

Brooke Carlson, Batavia girls basketball

A junior guard for the Bulldogs, Carlson scored a career-high 42 points during Batavia’s 62-49 upset victory over St. Charles North. 

Seth Chaney, Providence boys basketball

A sophomore guard, Chaney led the way for the Celtics during a thrilling 59-58 victory over Marmion on Friday. Chaney was able to get open all night and poured in a team-high 19 points while contributing a strong effort on the defensive end.

Tessa Crawford, Jerseyville girls basketball

A 5-6 junior guard, Crawford scored 29 points and knocked down five 3-pointers in a loss to Waterloo on Thursday. She's averaging a team-high 16.6 points per game. 

Nora Ezike, Lyons Township girls basketball

A sophomore forward, had another big performance in the West Suburban Conference crossover championship game on Wednesday. Ezike bested her career-high in points from her previous game with a 24-point effort to give Lyons a 68-45 win over Downers Grove South and an outright conference title.

Norah Gum, Waterloo girls basketball

Gum had a good week with 25 points against Freeburg on Monday and then 31 points and 16 rebounds against Jerseyville on Thursday. A 6-0 senior, she is averaging 20.4 points and 9.8 rebounds per game this season. 

Carlos Harris, Curie boys basketball

Harris had a solid all-around performance while leading Curie to a 75-60 win over Whitney Young. The junior point guard scored a career-high 35 points on 13-of-18 shooting while adding six rebounds, three steals, and a block.

Sophia Hoffman, Carlyle girls basketball

Hoffman, a 5-5 sophomore guard, had a big week with 71 points in three games as the Indians improved to 25-5 on the season. Her 29 points against Red Bud on Thursday were a season high. 

Cordy Johnson, Clark boys basketball

With his 23-point effort on Thursday against Amundsen, the senior became the first player in school history to reach 1,000 career points. Johnson’s scoring output was also enough to help the Eagles to a 68-54 win.

Skylar Jones, Whitney Young girls basketball

A University of Missouri recruit, Jones poured in 28 points (20 of 21 from the free throw line) en route to a 58-45 victory over Kenwood on Saturday in the Chicago Public League championship game.

Alayna Kraus, Okawville girls basketball

A 5-7 junior, Kraus scored 59 points in wins over Breese Central, Carlyle and Wesclin last week as the Rockets improved to 27-4. She scored 28 points against Carlyle with four 3-pointers and then tied her season high with five 3's against Wesclin. 

John Kurysz, Kennedy boys basketball

Kurysz got it done in all phases of the game during Kennedy’s game against Comer Prep on Friday. The senior recorded a triple-double with 15 points, 10 rebounds, and an impressive 10 blocked shots as he helped the Crusaders to a 74-57 win.

Jermell Lymon, Shepard boys basketball

Lymon caught fire during a South Suburban Red matchup with Evergreen Park on Friday. The 5-foot-9 senior point guard recorded a career-high 29 points including a 10-point third quarter during the Astros' 78-66 victory.

Shakara McCline, East St. Louis girls basketball

A 5-4 senior, McCline poured in 32 points and made five 3-pointers in a 71-52 win over Belleville West on Tuesday. She also added six rebounds, five assists and four steals. 

Seth Mendoza, Mount Carmel wrestling

A sophomore, Mendoza had an impressive showing on Saturday at the Class 3A Hinsdale Central Sectional. The 113-pounder won his first two matches by pin and had an 8-2 lead in the championship before the match ended due to injury default. Mendoza improved to 33-2 on the season.

Caleb Newman, Thornton Fractional South boys basketball

The senior guard scored sank seven 3-pointers and finished with 27 points to lead the Red Wolves to a 75-60 South Suburban Conference victory.

Ben Oosterbaan, Hinsdale Central boys basketball

A University of Michigan baseball commit, Oosterbaan had a strong performance in a matchup with Lyons Township on Saturday. The senior scored a game-high 22 points including a 3-point buzzer beater to close out the first half. Hinsdale Central earned a 57-55 win.

Leah Palmer, Geneva girls basketball

The junior finished with 23 points and seven rebounds against Sycamore on Thursday and came up clutch late. She hit a 3-pointer with 28.5 seconds left to play in overtime along with two free throws in the last 10 seconds to help the Vikings to a 56-51 victory.

Jevon Warren, Thornton Fractional North boys basketball

Warren was dominant during TF North’s South Suburban Conference matchup with Hillcrest on Thursday as he scored 23 points (tied for the game-high) and grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds in a 84-64 victory.

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Kennedy's Brett Gomez voted SBLive's Illinois High School Athlete of the Week (Jan. 30-Feb. 4)

Previous winners: Oswego East's Bryce Shoto (Jan. 23-28), Benet Academy's Brady Kunka (Jan. 16-21), Lincoln-Way East's Lilly Dockemeyer (Jan. 9-14), St. Francis' Tea Rubino (Jan. 2-7), Libertyville's Will Buchert (Dec. 26-31), Rich Township's Diondre Henry (Dec. 19-24), Montini Catholic's Shannon Blacher (Dec. 12-17), East St. Louis' Macaleab Rich (Dec. 5-10), Butler's Xamiya Walton (Nov. 21-26), East St. Louis' TaRyan Martin (Nov. 14-20), Lake Zurich's Tyler Erkman (No. 7-12), St. Rita's DJ Stewart (Oct. 31-Nov. 5), Stevenson's Matt Projansky (Oct. 17-22), Prospect's Brad Vierneisel (Oct. 10-15), Brother Rice's Owen Lyons (Oct. 3-8), Bolingbrook's Jonas Williams (Sept. 19-24), Benet Academy's Aniya Warren (Sept. 12-17), Bolingbrook's I'Marion Stewart (Sept. 4-10), Lemont's Nate Wrublik (Aug. 29-Sept. 3) and Highland's Travis Porter (Aug. 22-28).

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