By james art Regional action is starting to heat up around Lexington County, meaning teams will be counting on their stars as the battle for playoff positioning draws to a close.
This week’s Sportsman of the Week winners helped their teams earn wins in the region to help their standings. With only a few weeks left in the season, every win counts.
Voting for Athlete of the Week takes place from 10am Saturday to 10am Monday each week at lexingtonchronicle.com/athleteoftheweek. To submit a candidate for consideration, send a photo and brief bio to [email protected]
Cooper James
Gilbert’s Cooper James came up big for the Indians in their win over Brookland-Casey, throwing six touchdown passes.
The Indians offense was on fire as they pulled away from Brookland-Casey with a 50-49 victory. James led the offense to points on every drive but one and was late with his receivers for a touchdown and two scores.
James finished the game 14 of 19 for 242 yards to help the Indians improve to 2-1 in 4A Region 4 play. Gilbert has four regional games before its final game on Nov. 6, including two this week. The team hosted South Aiken on Tuesday after the Chronicle’s press deadline and will travel to the airport on Saturday.
Jasiah Brunson
Jasia Brunson helped the Lexington volleyball team win the 5A Region 4 title after defeating River Bluff for the second time this season three sets to one.
Brunson finished the contest with 20 kills, 10 digs and five aces. She finished with a 47% kill percentage and a 28% ace percentage.
The senior played two of her biggest games this season against the Gators. In the latter victory, she set a new season high for kills, surpassing the 17 she recorded against the Gators in the first game.
The Wildcats are undefeated in regional play at 9-0 with one game remaining scheduled for this week. A win over White Knoll Thursday would give the team its second consecutive undefeated season in the region. Brunson was also a key part of last year’s group.