Martinez, Cooper named Athletes of the Week

Another week has gone by in Graham and Newcastle sports which means there’s a new slate of athletes who made their marks across the county. 

This week, the Graham Leader is recognizing Kya Cooper of the Lady Blues and London Martinez of the Bobcats as this week's Athletes of the Week. 

Kya Cooper, Lady Blues Volleyball

The Lady Blues varsity volleyball team has had some of their best moments during tournament play so far this season. 

The team has already finished with medals in multiple tournaments and they had another strong showing at the Denver City tournament this past weekend. 

The team finished 6-2 in the 36-team tournament and Cooper was a standout in multiple departments during the weekend. 

Cooper found her way onto the leaderboard for kills for the team with 15 while also continuing to be a force at the setter position, leading the Lady Blues in assists with 81. 

In addition to this, Cooper was also effective at the service line picking up five aces on the weekend. 

While her play speaks for itself, Lady Blues head coach Marci Faulk also spoke about Cooper’s impact as a multi-faceted player. 

“When she’s on the back row, she is our setter. In that role, she runs three rotations of our offense,” Faulk said. “When she’s on the front row, she plays middle blocker, meaning she’s in every block, which is our first line of defense against the other team.”

This isn’t the first time that Cooper has shined on the brightest stages either. In the team’s first tournament in Llano where they came home as champions, Cooper was named to the all-tournament team alongside her teammate Katy McGehee. 

The future looks to be bright for the Lady Blues volleyball program as Cooper is only a sophomore. 

 

London Martinez, Bobcats Football

Last Friday was a big day for many high schools across Texas as it marked the official start of football season. That was no different for Newcastle, as the Bobcats picked up a dominant 46-0 victory over the Iredell Dragons. 

Several players stood out in the contest, but Martinez arguably shined above the rest with his performance offensively. 

Martinez continued to utilize his abilities as both a runner and a passer hybrid player. The senior completed a pass for a 37-yard touchdown in the game. 

He also rushed for 84 yards on five attempts and picked up an additional three rushing touchdowns to add to his name. Martinez also added three two point conversions to add to his point total on the game. 

Bobcats head coach Isiah Archer said he has been pleased with Martinez’s consistent growth during his time in the program. 

“I’ve had him since he was a freshman. He’s grown a lot,” Archer said. “He played a little role as a freshman, a little role as a sophomore; (he) started to come out of his shell as a junior last year. He’s one of the captains this year and he’s just a good kid.”

Martinez had a breakout campaign his junior year and will look to make the most of the final season of his high school athletic career.