Tatum Postel of Catawba Ridge girls’ basketball is The Herald’s Athlete of the Week

Tatum Postel of the Catawba Ridge girls’ basketball team is The Herald’s high school Athlete of the Week.

The 5-foot-10 junior was consistently productive last week: Postel had 15 points, five assists, five rebounds and six steals in a 79-45 win over Belmont South Point on Dec. 13. She also had 10 points and seven rebounds in a 49-43 victory at Marvin Ridge on Dec. 15. And then she finished off the week with 24 points — including six 3-pointers — in a 70-40 win over Nation Ford.

There were 56,652 votes cast in this week’s poll. Postel earned 55% of the vote; Jordan Watford of the Lancaster boys’ basketball team earned 40% of the vote; and Yannis Charles of Clover wrestling earned 2% of the vote.

Meet the finalists below.

All statistics and records below are up-to-date through Monday afternoon, when this article first appeared online.

Athlete of the Week nominees

Nas Berry, Nation Ford boys’ basketball. The 6-foot-1 freshman had 13 points and one rebound in a 75-39 win over York on Dec. 14. Berry also had 18 points, two rebounds and one assist in a 44-40 loss at Catawba Ridge on Dec. 17. The Falcons are 3-6 so far this season.

Waverly Brooks, Rock Hill wrestling. The Bearcat junior won the heavyweight division (285 pounds) at the Elizabeth Barry Memorial Clash at Mallard Creek on Dec. 18. Brooks also helped the Rock Hill wrestling team to victory at the same meet. Brooks is 17-4 overall for Rock Hill (3-7) this season.

Yannis Charles, Clover wrestling. The Blue Eagle junior won the 145-pound title at the Elizabeth Barry Memorial Clash at Mallard Creek on Dec. 18. Charles is 12-2 this season.

JaNiya Cunningham, Northwestern girls’ basketball. The Trojan seventh-grader had seven points and seven rebounds in a 54-29 win over Clover on Dec. 14. She then had 10 points and 17 rebounds in a 47-45 loss to South Pointe on Dec. 17. Cunningham is averaging 8.7 points and 8.8 rebounds for Northwestern (3-3) this season.

Jada Jones, Rock Hill girls’ basketball. The 5-foot-6 senior showed her versatility with a season-high 17 points, seven rebounds, five steals, three assists and one block to lead Rock Hill to a 79-26 win at Andrew Jackson on Dec. 13. Jones — who committed to run track and field at Dartmouth in the fall — is averaging 8.7 points, 6.8 rebounds, 4.5 steals and 3.8 assists per game for Rock Hill this season.

Marcus Kell, Legion Collegiate boys’ basketball. The 6-foot-8 senior had a double-double with 23 points and 11 rebounds in a 70-45 victory at Aiken on Dec. 14. Kell also had 14 points and four boards in a 64-53 victory over Forsyth Country Day on Dec. 17. Kell is a Western Carolina commit and is averaging 23.8 points and 8.8 rebounds per game for Legion Collegiate (6-3) this season.

Tatum Postel, Catawba Ridge girls’ basketball.

Ca’Darrius Sowell, Andrew Jackson boys’ basketball. The 6-foot-2 senior had 26 points and four assists to lead Andrew Jackson to a 57-56 win over Rock Hill on Dec. 13. Sowell also had 18 points in a 62-46 loss at York Prep on Dec. 17. Sowell is averaging 29.7 points per game for Andrew Jackson (6-4) this season.

Jordan Watford, Lancaster boys’ basketball. The 6-foot-3 freshman was special in three games this past week: Watford had seven points, four rebounds and two blocks in a 45-31 win over Chester on Dec. 13. The 14-year-old also had 14 points, eight rebounds, and three assists in a 46-43 victory over Monroe on Dec. 15. And then to finish off the week? Watford had 12 points, six rebounds and three assists in a 52-42 win at Blythewood on Dec. 17. Watford is averaging 13.3 points per game for Lancaster (12-1) this season.

Shaheim Willard, Chester wrestling. The Cyclone senior was a perfect 7-0 on the mat this week at 160 pounds — notching five first-period pins — in the South Florence Duals on Dec. 18. Willard is a perfect 12-0 this season.

See full results here

If you can’t view the poll on your mobile device, click here.

How to nominate

Athlete of the Week awards highlight high school players with outstanding performances. The goal is to recognize all athletes — both the accomplished and the underrated/underappreciated players. If you want to suggest someone to be included in the ballot in future weeks, send an email to Jay Edwards at edwardswork23@gmail.com. Please include the athlete’s name, school, class and applicable game performance statistics. Coaches must be willing to verify information. The Herald reserves the right to remove a name from the poll at its discretion.

This story was originally published December 20, 2021 at 12:39 PM.

Alex Zietlow

The Herald

Alex Zietlow writes about sports and the ways in which they intersect with life in York, Chester and Lancaster counties for The Herald, where he has been an editor and reporter since August 2019. Zietlow has won nine S.C. Press Association awards in his career, including First Place finishes in Feature Writing, Sports Enterprise Writing and Education Beat Reporting. He also received two Top-10 awards in the 2021 APSE writing contest and was nominated for the 2022 U.S. Basketball Writers Association’s Rising Star award for his coverage of the Winthrop men’s basketball team.