The Post-Dispatch Athletes of the Week is compiled by Chris Gove based off stats reported to STLhighschoolsports.com. Please send nominations to cgove@stltoday.com by noon each Monday.
Cam Coziar, Highland soccer
The Bulldogs are tied for the Mississippi Valley Conference lead, and Coziar has helped lead the way between the pipes. A junior goalkeeper, Coziar picked up his seventh and eighth shutouts of the season last week — a 2-0 victory against Waterloo and a 3-0 win at Triad. Highland’s win over Triad snapped a 20-game losing streak in the series. The Bulldogs’ previous win over the Knights came in 2016. The win over Waterloo snapped a four-game losing streak in that series dating to 2022. A three-sport athlete who also plays basketball and baseball, Coziar made six saves in each game. He is 10-4 for the season.
Carter Dowell, Troy Buchanan football
A senior running back, Dowell rushed for a single-game career-high 309 yards on 23 carries and scored five touchdowns to help lead the Trojans to a 54-17 win at home over Francis Howell Central in a GAC South game. Howell Central led 10-0 through one quarter before the Trojans turned the game around with 26 points in the second quarter, including Dowell’s first three rushing touchdowns, which covered 1, 15 and 51 yards. He added TDs of 31 and 57 yards in the second half. For the season, Dowell has rushed for 695 yards on 85 carries and has scored 74 points, including 11 TDs. He has committed to Lindenwood.
Libby Gauspohl, Timberland softball
A junior pitcher and outfielder, Gauspohl and the Wolves are on a roll and shut out three successive GAC Central opponents last week. That included a no-hitter in a 13-0 win at Fort Zumwalt North in which Gauspohl struck out 10 and helped her own cause by going 2 for 4 with a home run and three RBI. She also struck out 10 in a 4-0 win over Fort Zumwalt East and eight in a 13-0 win over Washington. Gauspohl is Timberland’s all-time strikeouts leader with 442, including 129 this season. She is 11-4 this season with a 1.30 ERA and area-leading six shutouts along with a .433 batting average, three home runs and 29 RBI.
Peyton Guffey, Jefferson volleyball
A junior libero, Guffey helped the Blue Jays to three victories last week to push their win streak to eight matches overall. A third-year varsity player, Guffey twice set single-match career highs for digs — first with 32 in a 25-18, 26-24, 24-26, 25-22 win over Perryville, then with 33 three days later in a 25-23, 25-21, 11-25, 12-25, 15-11 win at Arcadia Valley. She missed only one serve on 58 attempts over the three matches and had only one serve reception error on 67 attempts. For the season, Guffey averages 5.7 digs per set (395 overall) and a 96.4 serve receive percentage. Both rank among area leaders.
Keeleigh Hankins, Festus softball
A junior who plays third base, Hankins helped the Tigers earn three victories last week as part of a winning streak that has hit double figures. A returning first team All-Metro selection, Hankins went 4 for 4 with a grand slam and five RBI in a 10-1 victory against North County. She also drove in three more runs as Festus won its own tournament with a 16-0 victory against Jefferson and a 17-0 win over East Carter. For the season, Hankins ranks among area leaders with a .466 batting average, five home runs, 38 RBI, 24 runs scoreed and eight doubles. Including a 10-0 win over Perryville on Monday, Festus has won 12 in a row.
Owen Niebruegge, Waterloo football
A 5-foot-11 and 180-pound senior who plays multiple roles on both sides of the ball, Niebruegge contributed in many ways as the Bulldogs picked up a 49-20 win over Civic Memorial in a Mississippi Valley Conference game. Niebruegge returned an interception 43 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter to help Waterloo take command of the game. Niebruegge also forced a fumble to stop an Eagles drive inside the Waterloo 5-yard line, he made four tackles, rushed eight times for 79 yards and made one catch for 40 yards. Niebruegge is Waterloo’s leading tackler this season with 33 total, including five for a loss.
Brooke Samuelson, Eureka cross country
A senior, Samuelson finished as the runner-up in the Gans Creek Classic’s elite division with a personal-best time of 17 minutes and 39.50 seconds on the 5-kilometer course that also is the site of the Missouri state meet and this year’s NCAA Division I Championships. Her performance was the fourth-fastest time ever for a Missouri high school girl on the course. Earlier this season, Samuelson won the First Capitol title at McNair Park in St. Charles and Northwest Cedar Hill’s Stan Nelson Invitational. In the spring, she was a second team All-Metro girls track and field selection after all-state performances in three events.
Sophie Wallace, Collegiate volleyball
The Owls captured the championship of the Public High League tournament for the first time, and Wallace’s overall impact played a big role. A 5-foot-9 senior outside hitter, Wallace had 27 kills, 19 digs and 11 aces across five tournament victories — including 12 kills and 12 digs in a 25-15, 14-25, 25-21, 13-25, 15-8 victory against Metro in the title match. Collegiate won eight matches overall last week during part of what now is an 11-match win streak. A four-year varsity player, Wallace has 164 kills this season (an average of 3.2 per set) and nearly 600 in her career. She also has 83 digs and 61 aces this season.
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Chris Gove | Post-Dispatch
Editor, high school sports
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