Top 15 rising juniors in Weakley County for the 2024-25 school year

By Michael Odom | July 17, 2024 |

Gleason’s Drake Lehmkuhl throws the ball against Dresden during a high school football 7-on-7 at Dresden on July 11, 2024.

As we have started to look at the 2024-25 school year, the top returning seniors were featured last week.
This week, we look at the top returning juniors across Weakley County.

1. Drake Lehmkuhl (Gleason boys basketball) – Lehmkuhl was named the 2023-24 All-Weakley County boys basketball player of the year after leading the Bulldogs to the District 14-1A championship game for the first time in over 50 years. He averaged 20 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.4 steals, while shooting 46 percent from two-point range. On the football field, he recorded 55 total tackles with five tackles for loss, two forced fumbles along with four interceptions with two of those returned for touchdowns, but look for him to play quarterback this fall.

2. Maddie Horton (Westview girls soccer) – Horton’s offensive attack played a key role in the Lady Chargers reaching the Class A state semifinals for the first time in program history. She finished the season with 24 goals and 15 assists.

3. Jack Mantooth (Westview boys cross country, track & field) – Mantooth was named the 2023 All-Weakley County boys cross country runner of the year and 2024 All-Weakley County boys track & field athlete of the year. In the fall, he reached the Class A-AA state meet after finishing 10th in the Region 7 A-AA meet with a time of 17:33.38. In the state meet, he finished 46th with a time of 17:31.28. In the spring, he reached the Class A state meet in the 3200-meter run and finished third with a time of 10:13.48.

4. Donteze Joy (Westview football) – Joy helped the Chargers reach the Class 3A second round playing mostly as a wide receiver. He had 40 catches for 906 yards and eight touchdowns to go with 14 carries for 119 yards and a touchdown.

5. Tessa Anderson (Westview girls soccer) – Anderson was a leader on the defensive line as the Lady Chargers made it to the semifinals of the Class A state tournament. She was named to the TSWA all-state team for her play at defensive centerback.

6. Easton Sullivan (Greenfield basketball) – While Sullivan is a three-sport athlete, his best performance has been on the baseball field as he helped the Yellowjackets to a third-place finish in the District 14-1A regular season. He batted .480 with two home runs, eight triples and 12 doubles along with a .604 on-base percentage, and he went 7-4 over 48 innings pitched with 94 strikeouts and 2.04 ERA.

7. Arden Smith (Dresden boys basketball) – Smith had a breakout season in helping the Lions finish fourth place in District 14-1A during the regular season. He averaged 15.6 points and 9.8 rebounds.

8. Kade Sawyers (Gleason boys basketball) – Sawyers played point guard last season as the Bulldogs reached the Region 7-1A semifinals for the first time in over 50 years. He averaged nine points, three rebounds and 1.5 assists, while shooting 33 percent from three-point range.

9. Christopher Damron (Westview football) – Damron excels on the baseball field as well as the football field. On the football field, he recorded 82 total tackles with one tackle for loss, one fumble recovery and four pass break-ups. He also had 14 carries for 86 yards and one touchdown to go with 10 catches for 145 yards and one touchdown offensively.

10. Chanler Spendlove (Westview girls soccer) – Spendlove played multiple positions on offense and defense to help the Lady Chargers reach the Class A state semifinals for the first time in program history. She finished with 14 goals and seven assists.

11. Aiden Legens (Gleason football, baseball) – Legend is a two-sport star for the Bulldogs. On the football field, he helped the team to a six-win season as he recorded 75 total tackles with seven tackles for loss, five forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries and two interceptions. On the baseball field, he helped the Bulldogs to a fourth-place finish in the District 14-1A tournament as he batted .408 with a .613 on-base percentage, two doubles and two triples.

12. Sarah Beth Byars (Westview softball) – Byars played a key role in the Lady Chargers getting back to the Class 2A state tournament and finishing in the top four. She batted .311 with 28 hits, 22 runs and 21 RBI.

13. Cevon McMullen (Greenfield football) – McMullen was key on the defensive line as the Yellowjackets increased the season’s win total by two over 2022. He recorded 54 total tackles with five tackles for loss and one sack.

14. Landon Carter (Dresden baseball) – Carter developed into a key bat for the Lions as they finished third in the Region 7-1A tournament, including being a wall behind the plate at catcher. He batted .310 with 15 doubles, one home run and 21 RBI.

15. Hayden Markowski (Westview girls soccer) – Markowski played a key role in helping the Lady Chargers in the postseason as they reached the Class A state semifinals. She scored two goals in the Region 6-A championship and finished the season with 12 goals and six assists.