Advertisement

Thurston baseball player Grady Saunders wins Register-Guard Athlete of the Week

edith noriega, register-guard
·1 min read
Thurston’s Grady Saunders makes a catch as North Eugene’s Brock Johnson is out at first as the Thurston Colts defeated the North Eugene Highlanders 9-0 Wednesday, April 12, 2023 at North Eugene High School.
Thurston’s Grady Saunders makes a catch as North Eugene’s Brock Johnson is out at first as the Thurston Colts defeated the North Eugene Highlanders 9-0 Wednesday, April 12, 2023 at North Eugene High School.

Thurston baseball player Grady Saunders is The Register-Guard's Athlete of the Week.

Saunders won the newspaper's poll for top area athletes, which is voted on by readers.

The freshman pitched a complete-game shutout with seven strikeouts in the Colts' 2-0 win over Crater.

Here is another look at this week's other nominees:

Addison Kleinke, Churchill

The freshman placed first in the girls pole vault with a jump of 13 feet, 1 inch at the Grants Pass Rotary meet. Kleinke's jump set a new Oregon high school state record, surpassing the 13 feet set by Sarah Sasaki of North Clackamas Christian in 1999.

Payton Burnham, Sheldon

The junior pitched a one-hitter to lead the Irish to a 2-0 win over Sherwood.

Kaden Starr, Marist Catholic

The senior went 7-for-8 with three doubles, a grand slam, six RBIs and six runs scored in the Spartans' double-header wins against Marshfield.

Edith Noriega is a sports reporter for The Register-Guard. If there is an athlete you would like to nominate for Athlete of the Week, you may reach her at ENoriega@gannett.com and follow her on Twitter at @Noriega_Edith.

This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Thurston baseball player Grady Saunders wins Athlete of the Week