DESIGN NOTE: Please bold athlete's names on first reference and in congratulatory paragraph
The Mount Vernon News sports department’s 23rd ATHLETE OF THE WEEK nominations continues the established procedure of spotlighting student-athletes’ skills and performances on the fields and courts of action.
Based on performances, we ask ADs, coaches and the community to nominate one boy and one girl from their athletic programs to compete against other schools’ nominations. We ask for a recap of their worthy performances and a picture. Please send your nominations to me, Mike Blake, MVN Sports Editor, at mike.blake@mountvernonnews.com. Make sure YOUR school is represented.
This week, our female Athlete of the Week had a huge fourth quarter to end an opponent’s dominance, and our male Athlete of the Week gave a performance of the ages in a rivalry game of the ages.
FEMALE ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Danville’s Ella Proper is a reliable monster with the game on the line, and she gained her second nomination in this competition for her final-frame heroics. In December, Danville trailed by five points entering the fourth quarter of its game against Mount Gilead, and Proper hit for 11 to assure the victory and gain a nomination. More was on the line Feb. 10 when the Blue Devils played KMAC champion Cardington-Lincoln, who entered the contest with a 68-game conference win streak.
In a tight game, with Danville down by five, Proper was on fire as the clock wound down with the game on the line, putting in 17 points on two treys, a deuce and perfect foul shooting. The clutch performance propelled Danville to a five-point win to end C-L’s long streak and set the Lady Blue Devils up for the playoffs. Proper finished with a game-high 20 points, 9-for-9 at the line, three steals, three assists, eight rebounds and two blocks.
Danville coach Matt Proper said, “Ella came alive offensively in the clutch by scoring 17 of her 20 points. She helped to seal the victory by going 9-of-9 from the free throw line. Along with her teammates, Ella played a great game defensively, forcing Cardington to make difficult shots for much of the game.” Additionally, off the court, she serves as the president of the sophomore class and ranks at the top of her class academically
MALE ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
East Knox’s Shane Knepp is the first four-time nominee in this competition – twice for football and twice for basketball. He put in a week of three performances that saw 62 points, 14 rebounds and 13 steals, but his give-it-all-on-the-court effort in a losing cause against archrival Danville was a game for the ages.
Following a 17-point, eight-steal game in a win against Loudonville, Knepp put on a scoring clinic with 26 points against the Blue Devils in a 45-44 nail-biting loss. He took over in the second, as he scored all of EK’s 10 points to keep the game close.
Down 31-29 after three quarters, Knepp put on a display for the rivalry in the fourth, scoring 12 of EK’s 15 points as they fell to Danville by a point. Knepp’s 26 points were 21 more than any other Bulldogs player. He followed that up with 19 points and four steals in a rebound win over Ridgedale. Knepp’s East Knox coach Ryan Powel said, “The best thing I can say about Shane is he is the most coachable player I have ever been around.”
Congratulations on a great week by our ATHLETES of the WEEK, Ella Proper and Shane Knepp, and congratulations to all local athletes for solid efforts.
To all local schools: Send us your athlete nominations for next week and show them and the community how much they mean to their schools.
