(To cast your vote for the Iola Register’s athletes of the month, click here.)
As the winter sports season hits the home stretch, several standout performers on the athletic stage are up for consideration of the Register’s Athlete of the Month honors.
On the boys’ side, readers can select from three nominees: Iola’s Landon Weide, Humboldt’s Colden Cook and Crest’s Ryan Golden for their work on the basketball court.
For the girls, the nominees are Marmaton Valley’s Maria Forero for basketball, Humboldt’s Taevyn Baylor for wrestling and Allen Community College’s Sarang West for basketball.
Boys
Iola’s Landon Weide’s remarkable consistency in all aspects of the game is one of the reasons why the Mustangs (8-7) remain a team few will want to tangle with in the postseason.
As Iola’s starting point guard, the 6-foot senior ranks second on the team in scoring at 13 points per game, second in rebounds (5.7), first in assists, 5.3, and first in steals. 1.8.
RYAN GOLDEN, too, is a mainstay for Crest High’s Lancers.
He averages a double-double, 16 points and 10 rebounds, both team highs, and nearly 2 blocks a game. He ranks second on the Lancers with nearly 2 steals a game as well.
The Lancer senior shines brightest when the stakes are highest, such as with his 18-point, 10-rebound performance in the War on 54 Midseason Tournament win over Humboldt.
Crest stands at 8-7 on the year.
SPEAKING of Humboldt, the Cubs (14-2) remain atop the Tri-Valley League thanks to the sustained excellence of post players like Colden Cook. The 6-4 junior ranks second in scoring at 13.5 points a game, first in rebounds (6.4), second in assists (2.1), second in steals (2.1) and first in blocks with nearly one per contest.
His 60% shooting leads the team, which hasn’t lost since the War on 54 stunner, winning by an average of nearly 29 points a game since then.
GIRLS
Maria Forero, a senior foreign exchange student from Spain, has been just what the doctor ordered for Marmaton Valley High’s Wildcats (10-5).
