Vote: Who should be Texas high school Athlete of the Week? (12/9/2024)

We narrowed down the top winter sports performers of last week. Now, we want to hear from you!

AOTW

Which Texas high school athlete had the best week?

Each week, SBLive scoured the Lone Star State for the top winter sports like basketball, wrestling and now soccer is underway throughout Texas.

Congrats to basketball player Elijah Darden from South Garland boys basketball won last week's Texas Athlete of the Week poll with 65.9% of the vote. At the Lone Star Classic in Frisco, the junior had games of 27, 24, 31 and 14 points. His 31-point game was against Richardson Berkner.

Scroll down, read up on the nominees and cast your vote for your winner. Voting closes Sunday, Dec. 15 at 11:59 p.m. Central time.

If you would like to make a nomination in a future weeks, email swanson@scorebooklive.com.

TEXAS HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETE OF THE WEEK NOMINEES

Alia Baker, Spring Klein Cain girls wrestling

Baker went 4-0 with four pins to take home first place in the 120-pound bracket at the Battle at the Woods at Cypress Springs on Saturday.

Madison Bush-Lewis, Alief Taylor girls basketball 

The senior surpassed the 1,000-point mark in her career after scoring 14 points against Katy Paetow on Friday. 

Emily Camp, Houston Kinkaid girls soccer

The senior had a hat trick in a 4-2 win over Plano John Paul II on Friday — taking only three shots. 

Isaiah De Leon, Corpus Christi King boys wrestling

Competing at the Maverick Stampede in Katy, DeLeon went 5-0 to take home first place in the 106-pound bracket. He is now 12-0 on the season.

Roderick Dozier Jr., Galveston O’Connell boys basketball 

The 6-foot-7 wing had a double-double with 23 points and 11 rebounds in a 72-55 win over Katy St. John XXIII on Tuesday.

Skyler Espinoza, Harlingen girls wrestling

The Lady Cardinals took home first place at the Lady Mustang Invitational on Saturday in McAllen. She posted a 3-0 mark with a pair of pins to win the 145-pound bracket.

Roman Fraser, Azle boys wrestling

The sophomore took home first place in the 215-pound bracket at the Frisco Memorial War Games tournament on Saturday. Fraser, 14-2 overall, went 4-0 in the tournament and featured a pin in 11 seconds.

Anthony-Carlos Gameros, Anthony boys basketball 

He opened the week with 22 points in a 63-58 win over Clint in overtime on Monday. Playing in the Cager/Forbes Tournament, the senior had 28 points vs. El Paso Eastlake, 19 vs. El Paso Horizon, 19 vs. Dallas Harmony Science and 28 against El Paso Parkland.

Nataliyah Gray, Alief Taylor girls basketball 

The double-double machine kept going with a 35-point, 15-rebound effort on Tuesday against Dickinson. Facing Katy Paetow on Friday she nearly hit a triple-double with 25 points, 22 rebounds and 9 blocks.  

Brendan Harris, La Marque boys basketball 

The 6-foot-5 junior had a season-high 28 points to help the Cougars post a 63-58 win over League City Clear Falls on Tuesday. His previous season-high was 11.

Jazlyn Hernandez, San Elizario girls basketball

The freshman posted 29 points and added six steals to help the Lady Eagles pick up a 50-46 win over El Paso Del Valle on Monday. 

Whitney Jense, Southlake Carroll girls basketball 

The sophomore posted a career-high 29 points on Saturday in a 56-46 win over Waxahachie at the Cowtown Classic in Fort Worth. She was named to the all-tournament team.

Michael Johnson, Prosper boys basketball 

The Eagles knocked off defending 6A champions Plano East, 57-55, on Tuesday in a District 6-6A showdown. Johnson hit two free throws with 1.9 seconds left to secure the victory.

Titi Labarthe, Houston St. Thomas Catholic boys soccer

The sophomore midfielder had six goals and four assists to help the Eagles post a 3-0-1 mark. In a 6-1 win over Houston Second Baptist, he had his second hat trick of the season. 

Caden Leonard, Southlake Carroll boys cross country 

The junior ran 15:31 to take third place at the Nike Cross Country Nationals on Saturday in Portland, Oregon. 

Kylie Marquez, El Paso Americas girls basketball 

In five games this past week, junior guards had double-digit points in four of them. She had 20 points in a 72-17 win over El Paso Coronado on Monday. At the Cowtown Classic in Fort Worth, she had 11 points vs. Fort Worth Paschal, 16 vs. Midland Legacy and 22 against Denton Ryan. 

Ayla McDowell, Cypress Springs girls basketball 

In a pair of games in New York, she led the Lady Panthers to a pair of wins. They beat Brooklyn South Shore, 60-50, behind her 29 points and 12 rebounds on Friday. On Saturday, Cy Springs beat Philadelphia (Pa.) Audenried, 63-54. McDowell, a South Carolina pledge, had 21 in that win.

Alex Orr, Texarkana Texas boys basketball 

Competing in the Red River Hoopfest on Thursday, the senior had a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds in a 59-56 overtime win over Little Rock eSTEM Public Charter. 

Steven Ramirez, Keller boys basketball 

The Indians got five games of double-digit points from Ramirez, the latter four coming in the Mansfield Spring Creek Classic. The Northern Colorado signee scored 20 vs. Keller Central and then had games of 30, 13, 24 and 30 in the tournament. 

Robbie Rocha, Arlington Martin boys wrestling

At the Rumble at the Rock in Rockwall, Rocha improved to 11-0 on the year with a 5-0 showing. He posted three wins by major decision, one by tech fall and another by pin to win the 175-pound bracket. 

Jack Seiders, Austin Westlake boys basketball 

At the Anderson Tournament last week, the senior had games of 17 points, 37 points and 38 — the latter two were career-high first with 37 against Grapevine and then adding 38 against Cypress Falls. He was named to the all-tournament team.

Haley Sheppard, Hurst L.D. Bell girls wrestling 

The Lady Blue Raiders took home first place in the team hunt and Sheppard was one of three champions for Bell. She won the 145-pound bracket by pinning all three of her foes.

Jake Slaten, Groveton Centerville boys basketball 

In four wins for the Bulldogs last week, post scoring lines of 34, 43, 53 and 26 points.

Anakin Torres, El Paso Austin boys basketball 

The 5-foot-10 senior scored a game-high 21 points against El Paso Jefferson on Monday.

Editor’s Note: Our Athlete of the Week feature and corresponding poll are 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.