Airline’s Danon Walker tops Week 15 Shreveport Times Athlete of the Week voting
Airline’s Danon Walker garnered enough votes this week to win the fifth annual Shreveport Times online poll for Athlete of the Week, sponsored by Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers, the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission and Silmon and Cosse Orthodontics.
A standout wrestler for the Vikings, Walker becomes the second Airline wrestler to win in the non-football poll for the 2023-24 school year. He joins previous winners that include Benton’s Claire Allen and Brody Hutchison, along with Caddo Magnet’s Elena Pizarro and Calvary’s Jackson Burney.
Walker and his supporters racked up 13,157 votes, a solid 38% of the 34,707 votes cast in the weekly online recognition. Those numbers allowed Walker to top a field of 11 additional candidates, including Byrd basketball standout Willis Baber, who made a solid run for the recognition with 12,098 votes (35%).
Walker will receive a duffle bag, a boxed lunch combo and some additional swag courtesy of Raising Cane’s.
Walker placed first at 215 pounds at the St. Michael’s tournament in Baton Rouge, and placed first at the Arlington Martin Tournament in Arlington, Texas.
“Danny is undefeated so far this season,” Airline coach Chase Cox said.
Others on the 15th ballot of the school year were Nathan Adams, North DeSoto wrestling; Bella Wiese, Benton basketball; Joseph Dodson, Woodlawn basketball; Makayla Gallien, Nat. Central basketball; Javon Johnson, Bossier basketball; Nikious Green, Northwood basketball; Kyndal Graham, Huntington basketball; Adam Parker, Calvary soccer; Carter Ebarb, Haughton soccer and Mary Helen Burford, Loyola soccer.
They were chosen because of their performance the previous week or because their names were submitted by their coach. The Times poll is posted each Monday at shreveporttimes.com with a new slate of student-athletes in high school sports other than football.
The Times online only poll runs through Thursday midnight. The poll includes northwest Louisiana athletes competing in volleyball, cross country, swimming, cheerleading, basketball, soccer, wrestling, powerlifting, indoor and outdoor track, baseball, softball, golf, tennis, bowling, gymnastics and fishing while those sports are in season.
Jimmy Watson covers Louisiana sports for the USA TODAY Network. Email him at jwatson@shreveporttimes.com and follow him on Twitter @JimmyWatson6.
PREVIOUS WINNERS
Week 1: Elena Pizarro, Caddo Magnet swimming
Week 2: Claire Allen, Benton cross country
Week 3: Brody Hutchison, Benton cross country
Week 4: Josiah Dang, Parkway swimming
Week 5: Sidney Hicks, Natchitoches Central volleyball
Week 6: Raylon Bailey, Airline volleyball
Week 7: Jackson Burney, Calvary cross country
Week 8: Alexandra Campanella, Calvary volleyball
Week 9: Ava Frith, Airline volleyball
Week 10: Zachary Seaton, Caddo Magnet cross country
Week 11: Analyse Fuqua, Northwood cheerleading
Week 12: Audrey Jordan, Caddo Magnet soccer
Week 13: Logan Olsen, Airline wrestlingWeek 14: Blake Guin, Providence Academy basketball
Week 15: Danon Walker, Airline wrestling
Preseason Fan’s Choice POY: Sicily Fontaine, Airline volleyball
This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Airline’s Walker tops Week 15 Shreveport Times Athlete of the Week poll
