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Mar. 12-18 Nominees: Boland, Eckles, Krizenesky, Showalter, Wilson

03/19/2012, 11:00am CDT
By Martenzie Johnson
Athlete of the Week WisSport.net

Below are the nominees for the Army National Guard Athlete of the Week for the week of March 12th through March 18th.  Voting is below and will be open until Thursday at 4:00pm with the winner announced Friday morning.

Kalli Boland, Seneca girls basketball –  For the first time in nearly 29 years, the Seneca girls team will be headed to the state tournament in Madison.  Despite three-consecutive years of undefeated regular seasons, the Indians have been ousted in the earlier rounds of the playoffs, until this season.  Boland, a 5-foot-10 forward, led the way last Thursday and Saturday while totaling 36 points in two wins over Potosi and McDonell Central.  She scored 15 points in a 57-46 win over the third-seeded Chieftains, and followed that up two days later with a game-high 21 points against the Macks.  Her nine points at the end of the fourth put the game out of reach for Central.

Alexis Eckles, Milw. King girls basketball – With their counterparts on the boys side losing a tough game to Germantown in the Division 1 state finals on Saturday, the Lady Generals made an effort to bring a gold ball back to Rufus King one way or the other.  The fifth-ranked team in D1 knocked off Pius and Oak Creek last Thursday and Saturday, respectively, to reach the state tournament for the fourth time in school history.  Eckles, a Drake commit, was the spark plug for King in the winding seconds of the sectional semi-finals game with the Lady Popes.  With 56 seconds left, and the Generals down by one, the senior guard hit a jumper in the lane to put King ahead, 53-52.  With a couple steals after her shot, the Generals put the game away with free throws and a put-back basket.  In the 74-65 sectional finals win over upset-minded Oak Creek, Eckels was second on the team in scoring with 17 points; freshman Shakeela Fowler led the way with 28.
Trevor Krizenesky, Brillion boys basketball – In only their second trip ever to the boys state tournament, the Brillion Lions captured the gold ball with the lowest winning score in Division 3 history, defeating Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau 40-35 in the finals.  Krizenesky, a senior, only managed 14 points in the team's wins over Lodi and G-E-T, but was a key player late in the finals game.  With the Redhawks within two points with about seven minutes left to play, the guard went off for eight points during a 90-second spurt, according to WisSports.net contributor Dick Knapinski.  He hit back-to-back three-pointers and followed with a runner in the lane to give Brillion a ten-point lead with five minutes left to play.  G-E-T got as close as four points with under a minute to play, but were unable to overcome the late deficit.  Krizenesky finished with 10 points and 4 rebounds.
Zak Showalter, Germantown boys basketball – The Warhawks won their first boys basketball state title in school history this past weekend, defeating Milwaukee King 72-69 in the finals.  They join a prestigious group of programs that have gone undefeated in the regular season and have gone on to win the state title, including 2010's Randolph and 2006's Racine St. Catherine's.  Showalter, like he has been all season, was the player to watch in Germantown's two wins over the weekend.  In their semi-finals blowout of defending champion Madison Memorial, Showalter electrified the crowd with big dunks and slick passes on his way to 22 points and 9 assists.  The following evening he struggled to find his offense—going just 3-of-5 from the field—but made up for it at the charity stripe.  The Wisconsin commit went 15-18 from the free throw line, including clutch makes near the end of regulation.  He finished with another 22 points along with 4 assists and 4 rebounds.
Duane Wilson, Dominican boys basketball – The Knights won their third state title in eight years this past Saturday after defeating all-time winningest coach Jerry Petitgoue and the Cuba City Cubans 61-43 in the Division 4 finals.  Wilson, a 6-foot-3 point guard, showed why he is receiving interest from some of the top college programs in the state.  The junior scored 46 points in Dominican's two tournament wins to go along with 8 assists and 7 rebounds.  In the state title game he connected on 5 three-pointers while sharing the scoring load with fellow guard, Jamall Taylor. Wilson is an early contender for the 2013 Mr. Basketball after a junior year where he averaged over 18 points, 4 rebounds and nearly 6 assists per game.  According to Knapinski, Wilson has narrowed his college choices down to Marquette, Memphis and Missouri.

Tag(s): Athlete of the Week  News Archive