Which Texas high school athlete had the best week?
Each week, SBLive searches for the top fall sports players in the Lone Star State, looking at every sport except football. Soccer is covered separately. While volleyball is the only fall sport left, boys and girls basketball is currently popular across Texas.
Congratulations to Lancaster women’s basketball standout Mackenzie White, who ran away with 56% of the votes in last week’s Texas Athlete of the Week poll. In the OTR Exposure Tournament, the junior scored a game-high 22 points in a 58-54 win over San Antonio Brennan on Saturday, Nov. 2.
Scroll down to read the candidates and vote for the winner. Voting closes Sunday, November 17th at 11:59pm Central Time.
If you would like to nominate us in the coming weeks, please email andy@scorebooklive.com.
Editor’s Note: Our “Athlete of the Week” feature and corresponding polls are meant to be fun, and we do not place a limit on the number of times fans can vote during a competition. However, we do not allow votes generated by scripts, macros, or other automated means. Athletes who receive votes generated by scripts, macros, or other automated means will be disqualified.
Texas High School Athlete Candidate of the Week
Graham Bolles, Austin St. Stephen’s Episcopal Boys Cross Country
After placing second and third in their previous two trips to the Southwest Preparatory Conference 4A finals, the senior and Davidson broke their title vows with a time of 16:05.89, winning by 13 seconds.
Suri Davis, Colleyville Heritage Volleyball
The BYU pledge had a double-double with 26 digs and 23 kills, adding four aces and three blocks in a 3-1 win over Burleson Centennial in Thursday’s Class 5A Division I playoff game.
Luke Dial, Austin St. Andrews Episcopal Boys Cross Country
The senior ran a time of 16 minutes, 16.37 seconds to take first place at the Southwest Preparatory Class 3A title in Dallas on Saturday. He also contributed to the Highlanders’ team title.
Parker Featherstone, Round Rock Volleyball
The 5-foot-9 junior added two blocks in a 3-1 win against Austin Lake Travis in Tuesday’s 6A Division I playoff game, setting season highs in blocks (17) and digs (seven). Recorded.
Taylor Gaines, Liberty Hill Volleyball
The senior recorded 17 kills, 13 digs, three assists and 11 service points in a 3-0 win against San Antonio MacArthur in Thursday’s Class 5A Division II playoff game. She also had 17 kills and seven digs in a playoff victory over San Antonio Pieper on Tuesday.
Leah Galford, El Paso Eastwood volleyball player
Eastwood defeated San Angelo Central 3-2 on Tuesday in a Class 6A Division II playoff game. Galford had a double-double with 30 kills and 12 digs.
Danae Gonzalez, El Paso Burgess women’s basketball
The senior point guard scored 28 points in a 43-32 win over Brandeis on Nov. 7 and 20 points in a 55-46 win against Veterans Memorial later that day. He gave up 25 points in a game against Spring Memorial on November 8th, and 20 points in a 44-35 win against Arlington Martin on November 9th.
Lainey Hennessy, Wimberley Volleyball
On Tuesday, the Lady Texans defeated Manor New Tech 3-0. The University of Alabama pledge had 16 kills, six digs and two aces in the win in the Class 4A Division II playoff game.
Peyton Lee, Southlake Carroll girls basketball
The Lady Dragons got a game-high 18 points from the junior in a 72-21 win over Dallas Hillcrest on Thursday in the Colleyville Heritage Tipoff Classic.
Rojok Loliwa, Denton Men’s Basketball
The Broncos got 33 points from the 6-foot-4 junior in two games to open the season, including 22 points Saturday against Little Elm.
Mekalynn Marshall, Abernathy women’s basketball
The Tulane commit had 55 points and 17 rebounds on Tuesday against Plainview, going 19-of-20 from the free-throw line.
Haley Martinez, Corpus Christi Miller women’s basketball
She recorded an unusual double-double with 20 points and 10 steals in a 56-33 win over Corpus Christi John Paul II on Tuesday. She added five rebounds and shot 53 percent from the field.
Kinsley McPherson, Blum Volleyball
During Friday’s Class 1A playoff game against Milford, the junior recorded a double-double with 16 kills and 12 digs against the defending state champion Bobcats.
Jackie McClain, Azure Volleyball
The Lady Hornets advanced to the regional semifinals for the first time since 1998 with a 3-1 victory over Mansfield Timberview on Thursday in a Class 5A Division II playoff game. The junior had 24 digs and 17 kills in the win.
Courtney McCracken, Fort Worth Trinity Valley women’s cross country
The senior picked a good time to take his first win of the season, running a time of 19:58.91 at the Southwest Preparatory Conference Class 3A Championship in Dallas on Saturday.
Gemini Mitchell, Cypress Springs girls basketball
In an 89-61 win over Dickinson on Nov. 5, the sophomore finished with 45 points on 20 of 26 shots. She added 12 rebounds, four assists, and two blocks in that game. Later that week, he scored 22 points against Frisco Memorial and 19 points against Hebron.
Makayla Olvera, Edinburg Volleyball
The 5-foot-10 junior had a double-double of 20 kills, 13 digs and added two blocks in Monday’s Class 6A Division II playoff game against Brownsville Veterans Memorial.
Jermaine O’Neal Jr., Irving Dynamic Prep Men’s Basketball
The SMU pledge scored 22 points to open his senior season, defeating Austin St. Michael’s and contributing to the school’s 19-game winning streak dating back to last year.
Sibley Oster, Cedar Park Volleyball
The Timberwolves defeated Boerne Champion 3-0 on Tuesday in a Class 5A Division II playoff game. The junior had 20 assists, 10 digs, five kills and three blocks in the win. She also surpassed 1,000 assists in her career.
Sophia Lueg, Houston St. John’s Women’s Field Hockey
She scored the tie-breaking goal to lead the Mavericks to their third straight Southwest Preparatory Conference Class 4A title on Saturday.
Taylor Sinnott, Houston St. John’s women’s cross country
The freshman won the final three races of his debut season with a time of 18 minutes, 57.19 seconds to capture the Southwest Preparatory Conference Class 4A championship Nov. 9 at Norbuck Park in Dallas. .
Eva Marie Thompson, Pflugerville Hendrickson Volleyball
The sophomore had 22 kills, 11 service points and 17 digs for the Hawks in a 3-2 win over Austin McCollum in a Class 5A Division 1 playoff game on Monday.
Sean Tisdall, San Antonio Brandeis Men’s Basketball
At this year’s CTX Showcase, he scored 46 points with two wins through two games for the Broncos. In Saturday’s 93-68 win over Leander Glenn, he recorded 30 points and nine rebounds while making 12 of 13 from the free throw line.
Olivia Wayne, Dallas Hockaday Volleyball
The senior had 17 and 13 digs and three blocks to help the Daisies win the Southwest Preparatory Conference Class 4A championship with a 3-0 victory over Houston St. John’s on Saturday.
Amiyah Weathersby, Aleaf Hastings Women’s Basketball
The seniors had a great day in the Lady Bears’ big win. She had a double-double with 20 points on 17-of-20 shooting and 11 rebounds in a 90-6 win over Spring Dekaney on Monday.
