Winner of The News Tribune’s Athlete of the Week (Dec. 2 to 7)
Voting is now closed for The News Tribune’s Athlete of the Week for contests played between Dec. 2-7. Thanks to everyone who voted and supported local student-athletes.
This week’s winner is:
Darius Alexander, Spanaway Lake boys basketball
Alexander, a junior guard, posted 21 points, six assists and three steals in a loss to Olympia, then dropped 27 points with six assists and three steals in a win over Graham-Kapowsin. Shot 15-of-28 (54%) from the field in that span.
You can read about all of the candidates and their accomplishments below.
Note: If you are not seeing the poll at the bottom of the story, try opening the story in a different browser, such as Chrome or Safari. Votes emailed will not be counted.
Want to nominate a South Sound high school athlete in the future? Email reporter Jon Manley (jon.manley@thenewstribune.com) or Tyler Wicke (twicke@thenewstribune.com) or send a direct message on Twitter/X (@manley_tnt or @WickeTyler) with the athlete’s first and last name, school, year, position and a stat line from game(s) during the past week. Nominations must be submitted by 5 p.m. Sunday.
Darius Alexander, Spanaway Lake boys basketball — Junior guard posted 21 points, six assists and three steals in loss to Olympia, then dropped 27 points with six assists and three steals in win over Graham-Kapowsin. Shot 15-of-28 (54%) from the field in that span.
Ryan Avary, Rogers boys basketball — Senior scored 21 points and had four rebounds and a steal in win over Emerald Ridge on Friday.
Austin Ferencz, Sumner football — Spartans kicker drilled the game-winning, 21-yard field goal as time expired in Saturday’s 4A state championship, the hero in a 27-24 win over No. 1 Camas.
Kainoa Grounds, Sumner football — Caught four passes for 148 yards in Sumner’s 4A state championship game win over Camas.
Carter Hansen, Auburn boys basketball — Senior point guard dropped 23 points in Wednesday’s win over Kentwood, 69-56.
Steele Isaacs, Sumner football — Workhorse RB took 35 carries for 170 yards and two touchdowns to lift Sumner over Camas, 27-24, in Saturday’s 4A state championship game.
Daniel Johnson, Auburn boys basketball — Junior shooting guard dropped a team-high 27 points in Wednesday’s 69-56 win over Kentwood.
Drew Jones, Puyallup boys basketball — Senior guard dropped 27 points in Friday night’s rivalry win over Sumner, 61-51.
Colton Kelley, Sumner boys basketball — Senior guard scored a game-high 24 points with four rebounds, two assists, and a steal in season-opening win over Rogers, 81-69.
Dar Mcjimpson Jr., Decatur boys basketball — Scored a team-high 16 points, had four rebounds, two steals and an assist in loss to Todd Beamer on Friday.
Abby Mesler, Sound Christian girls basketball — Junior scored 23 points, had six rebounds, five assists and two steals in win over Foss on Friday.
Ryzen Nunez, River Ridge boys basketball — Scored a team-high 23 points, had six rebounds, an assist, a steal and a block in loss to Mount Tahoma on Thursday.
Raelyn Ofrancia, Kentridge girls basketball — Scored 16 points in win over Mount Rainier on Thursday.
Grace Richardson, Peninsula girls basketball — Senior guard posted 15 points, 11 rebounds, seven steals, and four assists in Tuesday’s win over Silas, then dropped 22 points with seven assists, five rebounds, and three steals in Thursday’s win over Lincoln.
Cash Short, Tumwater football — T-Birds RB/LB handled 24 carries for 95 yards and a touchdown, adding one reception for one yard in Saturday’s 2A state championship game at Husky Stadium, a 20-10 loss to Anacortes. He tackled one on defense.
Brandi Stanford, River Ridge girls basketball — Scored 17 points in win over Clover Park on Tuesday, 21 points in win over Mount Tahoma on Thursday and 16 points in loss to Bellarmine Prep on Saturday.
Kalee Swanson, Enumclaw girls basketball — Senior point guard dropped 30 points with eight rebounds and three assists in Friday’s 67-25 win over Federal Way, then scored 24 points in Saturday’s win vs. Klahowya.
Tyler Venable, Black Hills girls basketball — Scored 24 points in win over Elma on Tuesday and 14 points in win over Castle Rock on Friday.
This story was originally published December 9, 2024 at 12:06 PM.
