Barnes, Shaffer, and Gail Snag WyoPreps Athlete of the Week Honors 5-22-24 [VIDEO]

Our latest recipients of the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Wyoming WyoPreps Athlete of the Week awards for May 22, 2024, were sophomore Addison Barnes of Cokeville, junior Paige Shaffer from Thunder Basin, and Cody junior Carter Gail. These three athletes excelled at last weekend’s state championships for track, softball, and soccer. Their efforts came during the week from May 13 through May 18, 2024.

WYOPREPS ATHLETE OF THE WEEK AWARD WINNERS 5-22-24

Girls Winners

Barnes was the only girl or boy to win four individual events, no relays, at the state track meet in Casper. That’s a rare feat. Barnes’ first victory came in the high jump on Friday. She cleared 5-2 for the 1A crown. Addison won three events on the track last Saturday. She crossed the finish line first in the 1A 100-meter hurdles at 15.73 seconds and followed that with a victory in the 300-meter hurdles. Barnes set a new class record time of 44.88 seconds. She capped her 4-for-4 weekend with a win in the 1A 200 meters at 25.62 seconds. As an individual, Barnes scored 40 points and helped the Cokeville Panthers capture the 1A girls’ team championship. The sophomore defended her titles in the hurdle races and high jump from 2023.

Barnes spoke with WyoPreps about accomplishing the rare 4-for-4 performance on the big stage. She was very happy about helping her team to the title. She described her efforts and some of her keys in each event, the class record in the 300-meter hurdle race, and more.

Shaffer had a dominant weekend for state champion Thunder Basin at the softball state championships in Gillette. The junior helped the Bolts win their third straight title. Shaffer was 2-0 in the circle with an ERA of 1.75 in four appearances. She tossed a no-hitter in the state tournament against Laramie and followed that with a 3-hit shutout in the state championship game. Shaffer appeared in four games the Bolts’ played. She threw 16 of the 23 innings, 235 total pitches, and faced 64 batters. Shaffer allowed only 4 runs on 8 hits. She had 5 walks and 22 strikeouts. Opponents had a .145 batting average against the junior in the four games. Her WHIP was 0.813.

WyoPreps caught up with Shaffer and discussed her outstanding weekend. She said the feeling of being a state champion is slowly starting to sink in, described how she pitched so well, thanked her teammates and coaches for their help in her no-hitter and shutout in the championship, and more.

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Boys Winner

Gail led the Cody Broncs to the 3A boys’ soccer state title last Saturday in Green River. It was their fifth in school history. It was the Broncs’ first state championship since 2017 in boys’ soccer. Gail had 9 points at the state tournament. He scored 4 goals and had 1 assist. The junior scored 2 goals in a 6-0 first-round win over Douglas. He helped the Broncs to a semifinal victory over Lander, 4-1. In the championship match, Gail scored 2 more goals in a 3-0 win over Green River for the title.

Carter talked with WyoPreps about winning it all, the keys to Cody’s weekend triumph, the key in each game, described his two goals in the championship match, and more.

Congratulations to Addison, Paige, and Carter on receiving our weekly honor!