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In a vote that ended Oct. 9 and 10, readers of The Gaston Gazette and The Shelby Star selected the area’s seventh Athlete of the Week nominees. The group included a pair of the week’s top high school football players, as well as a boys and girls athlete from fall sports including volleyball, boys soccer, boys and girls cross country, as well as girls golf and tennis.
Each week, area high school coaches can submit a list of standout performers for their team from the previous week’s games. If your child’s name – or anyone from your child’s team – does not appear on the list, please encourage your coach to email their submissions to jhughes@gastongazette.com.
Offensive Player of the Week
Markel McKinney, East Gaston
In a competitive vote, the East Gaston senior running back’s 23% of the vote edged out a host of other nominees including teammate Justin Hill, Mari Adams of Crest, Mountain Island Charter’s Dylan Bisson, T.J. Riley of South Point and Burns’ Ryan Thompson among others.
In a 42-37 win over Thomas Jefferson, he rushed for 191 yards on 16 carries and four touchdowns, along with three catches for 48 yards. For the season, McKinney has racked up 1,067 total yards and 14 touchdowns, helping East Gaston to a 5-2 mark, 3-0 in Southern Piedmont 1A/2A.
Defensive Player of the Week
Easton Dellinger, Lincolnton
Received more than 2,000 votes en route to earning recognition as the area’s top defensive player in Week 7. He was nominated for the award after finishing with 13 tackles, five of them for a loss in Lincolnton’s 27-7 win over Bandys.
Dellinger tacked on nine more tackles this past week in a 27-7 win over West Caldwell, with one of those coming in the opponent’s backfield. A junior, he has 59 tackles with six of them coming for a loss.
Boys Athlete of the Week
Jesus Blanco-Tellez, Lincolnton
Received 83.6% of last week’s vote to earn boys Athlete of the Week recognition. Part of a Wolves side that has yet to suffer defeat in 12 games this season (9-0-3), Tellez scored three goals and assisted on two more in his team’s 9-0 win over Maiden.
Girls Athlete of the Week
Addie Beaver, Crest volleyball
For the second time this fall, Beaver has earned girls Athlete of the Week recognition after receiving 66.4% of last week’s vote. In a win over Ashbrook, she had 25 assists and six kills, following that effort with 54 assists, 15 digs and 11 kills in a 3-1 victory over Stuart Cramer.
She has played a key role in the Chargers sitting in second in Big South 3A volleyball, a game behind first-place Kings Mountain.
Previous recipients
Week 1: Dylan Bisson, Mountain Island Charter football; Aaliyah Byers, Kings Mountain volleyball; Terry Bryant, East Lincoln football; Jack Matz, Stuart Cramer boys soccer.
Week 2: Addie Beaver, Crest volleyball; Ben Cutter, East Lincoln football; Cole Hart, Mountain Island Charter football; Dylan Platt, Kings Mountain boys soccer.
Week 3: Daimean Bentley, Stuart Cramer football; Montrey Bost, Lincolnton football; Joseph Bravo, Stuart Cramer boys soccer; Reese Coltrane, West Lincoln girls golf.
Week 4: Mason Avery, West Lincoln football; Nathan Kester, West Lincoln football; Patrick Spake, Highland Tech cross country; Macy Parks, East Lincoln cross country.
Week 5: Kaela Bryson, Piedmont Community Charter volleyball; Aiden Cloninger, East Gaston football; Justin Hill, East Gaston football; Dylan Platt, Kings Mountain boys soccer.
Week 6: Trace Gilmore, West Lincoln football; Holly Hackney, South Point volleyball; Agustin Meza, Highland Tech boys soccer; Jaycob Neely, Forestview football
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