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Vote for this week's GHT Player of the Week

dylan jespersen, the petoskey news-review
·4 min read
Vote for this week's GHT Player of the Week.
Vote for this week's GHT Player of the Week.

GAYLORD — The Gaylord Herald Times Player of the Week Award is officially back for the winter sports season.

Each week, four athletes from Gaylord, St. Mary and Johannesburg-Lewiston will be eligible to win, and it will be up to you to decide who takes home the crown each week.

Polls will go live on petoskeynews.com/sports on Sunday afternoons and will close on Mondays at 11:59 p.m.

Coaches, to have your athletes considered, please submit stats by email to djespersen@gannett.com by Sunday mornings.

Gus James, Gaylord Wrestling

Gaylord High School is no stranger to high-caliber wrestling talent, and this year's senior class will leave among the most decorated in the school's history.

The Class of 2023 is no stranger to big milestones on the mat, with many of them among the 2020 team that finished as the runner-up at the MHSAA Division 2 Finals while Louden Stradling and Brayden Gautreau were the latest individual state champions in 2022.

This week, it was Gus James's turn to make history,

In a Big North battle at home with Petoskey, James accomplished a major milestone, defeating the Northmen's Jaden Vanderwall for career win No. 100.

Gus James (right) and coach Dan Cornish (left) pose with a banner celebrating James's 100th career win as a Gaylord Wrestler on Wednesday, January 18.
Gus James (right) and coach Dan Cornish (left) pose with a banner celebrating James's 100th career win as a Gaylord Wrestler on Wednesday, January 18.

"This was a goal of mine coming into high school and I loved doing it in front of a home crowd," said James.

Later, James secured win No. 101 after defeating Ogemaw Heights's Torey Walters, giving him two wins on the night as the Gaylord team secured two victories.

Then, at the 60th Jim Mooney Williamston Classic on Saturday, James placed fourth in the 150-pound weight class, defeating Collin Scott (Yale HS) and Decklan Davis (Corunna HS) before falling to Jeremy Griffith (Yale HS) and Ethan Younts (Clinton HS).

Gavin Bebble, St. Mary's boys basketball

Gavin Bebble shoots a 3-pointer during a boys basketball matchup between Gaylord St. Mary's and Johannesburg-Lewiston on Friday, January 20 in Johannesburg, Mich.
Gavin Bebble shoots a 3-pointer during a boys basketball matchup between Gaylord St. Mary's and Johannesburg-Lewiston on Friday, January 20 in Johannesburg, Mich.

No two area programs have seen more success than the Gaylord St. Mary's basketball programs have in the past two months.

On the girls' side, the Snowbirds have rattled off nine straight victories atop the Ski Valley Conference standings yet to lose a game in the conference. Meanwhile, the boys have been just as impressive, winning ten straight games since their opening night loss while staying undefeated and in first place in the conference.

Another two conference wins this week helped the Snowbirds solidify their hold on first place, and senior point guard Gavin Bebble had his hands all over both victories, meaning him another nomination this week.

It started with his masterful performance in the win over Central Lake, where Bebble set a new career-high after finishing with 35 points in a 74-57 win over the Trojans.

Then, in another 17-point win over their rivals from Johannesburg-Lewiston on Friday, Bebble fought through foul trouble to finish with 17 points in the victory.

Another 52 points in two games show his ability as one of the area's top scoring guards.

Jocelyn Tobias, Johannesburg-Lewiston girls basketball

Jocelyn Tobias looks to pass the ball during a matchup between Gaylord St. Mary's and Johannesburg-Lewiston on Friday, January 13.
Jocelyn Tobias looks to pass the ball during a matchup between Gaylord St. Mary's and Johannesburg-Lewiston on Friday, January 13.

Some bad weather led to some girls basketball games getting canceled, leaving the Johannesburg-Lewiston girls with just one game this week.

Senior Jocelyn Tobias took advantage of her lone opportunity.

In the Cardinals' 50-20 win over Forest Area on Tuesday, Tobias was on top of her game, leading the team with 17 points and eight rebounds along with two steals and a block.

The JoBurg girls continue to be competitive among conference foes, currently sitting in second place in the standings behind St. Mary's.

Bryton Thaxton, Gaylord hockey

Bryton Thaxton celebrates after his third first-period goal during a high school hockey matchup between Gaylord and Petoskey on Wednesday, January 18 at the Otsego Country Sportsplex in Gaylord, Mich.
Bryton Thaxton celebrates after his third first-period goal during a high school hockey matchup between Gaylord and Petoskey on Wednesday, January 18 at the Otsego Country Sportsplex in Gaylord, Mich.

After taking a tough loss in Petoskey earlier in January, the Gaylord hockey team got revenge back at home this week.

The Blue Devils ran away with a 5-1 win over the Northmen on Wednesday, and Bryton Thaxton had a big part in that victory, immediately putting up three goals for a first-period hat trick in the four-goal win.

Gaylord was back in action in the UP over the weekend, splitting results with Painesdale Jeffers and Negaunee. Thaxton had his hand in the OT win over Negaunee, scoring a shorthanded goal in the second period to get the Blue Devils on the scoreboard while assisting on an Isaac Hopp goal to help complete a three-goal comeback victory.

Thaxton leads the team in points (22) and goals (15) and is second in assists (seven) this season.

This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Vote for this week's GHT Player of the Week