Postseason play began in the 2024-25 IHSA season with golf regionals last week while other sports begin to sniff the scent of the playoffs soon as well.
Ten athletes around the area put on sterling performances to lead their teams down the home stretch – or further into the postseason in the case of boys and girls golf – and are nominees for CSM Fall Athletes of the Week Presented by Dominos.
This week’s nominees include a pair of quarterbacks who put up massive games plus another star running back, regional medalists in golf and clutch performers in boys soccer, cross country, volleyball and girls swimming.
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UPDATE: Alek Weiland of Normal U-High football and Jenna Kozinski of Washington girls swimming won voting for CSM Fall Athletes of the Week Presented by Dominos. Voting ended at 11:59 PM on Thursday.
Boys Athlete of the Week nominees
Aiden Faulkner, Elmwood/Brimfield boys cross country
Faulkner was busy last week with a pair of top-10 finishes, including winning the Prairieland Conference Meet with a personal-best time of 15:40.1. The Trojans won the team championship there and finished second at the Elmwood Invitational on Oct. 5, where Faulkner led the team with a 10th-place finish of 16:08.50
Alek Weiland, Normal U-High football
Weiland was lights out in Normal U-High’s 33-13 win over Class 6A No. 9 Chatham Glenwood on Friday and kept the rest of Pioneers’ offense humming as well. The senior QB completed 24 of 34 passes for 375 yards and five touchdowns with two scoring throws apiece to Cade Cunningham and AJ Holden. Weiland also picked up 39 yards on the ground to finish with over 400 yards of total offense.
Bryson Horning, Delavan boys golf
Horning was the medalist at the Class 1A Illini Central Regional on Oct. 2 and led the Panthers to a team championship there as well. The senior fired a two-over round of 74, which included a pair of birdies and an eagle on the par-5 17th to help him shoot a one-under 35 on the back nine.
Jackson Orris, Dunlap boys soccer
Orris has scored several big goals for the 14-1 Eagles this season but perhaps none more important than a strike against Washington on Oct. 1. The goal was Dunlap’s lone score of the match but it was all that the Eagles needed in a victory that all but clinched a Mid-Illini title.
Ty Jackson, Pekin football
Jackson came up big for Pekin in a wild 42-35 win over Metamora that pushed the Dragons to 4-2 and 3-1 in Mid-Illini conference play. The running back ran for a 16-yard touchdown to put Pekin up 21-8 in the second quarter but saved Pekin from a furious Redbird rally with the game-winning touchdown from two yards out with 6:59 left in the fourth to go ahead 42-35. Jackson finished his night with 190 yards on 20 carries.
Girls Athlete of the Week nominees
Mackenzie Howard, Peoria Notre Dame girls golf
Howard was the medalist at the Class 1A Canton Regional on Oct. 1 and helped PND win the regional championship as a team as well. Howard’s round of 81 was enough to win by four shots and featured nine pars and no double bogeys. The Irish won the tournament with a 361, eight shots clear of host Canton.
Jenna Kozinski, Washington girls swimming
Kozinski had a laundry list of strong finishes last week, starting with four wins in a dual meet against Richwoods on Sept. 30. There, she swam a season-best 26.65 to win the 50 yard freestyle and won the 100 yard backstroke with a time of 1:10.24. Kozinski also swam legs on the Panthers’ 200 freestyle relay and 400 freestyle relay teams that won. At the Richwoods Invite on Oct. 5, she added a personal-best time of 2:03.11 in the 200 yard freestyle to take third and helped Washington win the 200 free relay and finish second in the 400 free relay.
Meika Bender, Eureka girls cross country
Bender led the Hornets to a team title at the Elmwood Invitational, which features one of the strongest small-school fields in the area, on Oct. 5. The senior’s time of 18:30.2 tied a season-best and gave her a fifth-place finish.
Mya Juenger, Pekin volleyball
Juenger capped off a strong week with a berth on the Pekin Invitational all-tournament team. She tallied 49 assists through four games in the tournament, led by a 16-assist game against Lena-Winslow, and set up outside hitter Bella Benassi for multiple big games as well. Juenger also posted a double-double of 25 assists and 13 digs in a three-set win over East Peoria on Oct. 1 and recorded 12 assists and six digs against Dunlap on Oct. 3.
Brooklyn Groves-Watson, Richwoods girls flag football
Groves-Watson was on the money for Richwoods, quarterbacking the Knights to a 32-0 win over Peoria High. She completed nearly all her passes, going 11-for-12, with 223 yards and three passing touchdowns in the victory.
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