Photos by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com – The finalists for the 2024 Humboldt Sports Little 4 Girls Athlete of the Year.

By Ray Hamill — It was another big year for Little 4 sports and there was no shortage of outstanding performances and brilliant individual accomplishments.

And with that in mind, it was not easy coming up with a shortlist of finalists for the 2024 Humboldt Sports Little 4 Girls Athlete of the Year.

The six finalists have plenty in common, most notably their competitive spirit and athletic ability.

All six enjoyed outstanding years on multiple sports fronts, and all six earned multiple MVP and/or all-league selections.

Picking a winner from this group won’t be easy and all of the finalists left a remarkable legacy in local sports over the past 10 months.

The group includes four seniors, a junior and a sophomore. 

The Humboldt Sports Little 4 Girls Athlete of the Year is one of six end-of-year awards we’ll be handing out, along with Team of the Year, Coach of the Year, Big 5 Girls and Boys Athletes of the Year and Little 4 Boys Athlete of the Year.

And a huge thank you to the local businesses that have stepped up to help sponsor this year’s awards, a group that includes Mendes Supply, DelReka Distributing, Bode Construction, The Humboldt Fence Company, and Chris Prior of Coldwell Banker Cutten Realty, whose generosity ensures all six award winners will receive trophies to honor their accomplishments.

Here then is our list of finalists for the 2024 Humboldt Sports Little 4 Girls Athlete of the Year in alphabetical order.

Hannah Finck

St. Bernard’s, Senior

Soccer, Golf, Basketball, Softball

Finck was without doubt one of the most accomplished athletes in the Little 4 this past year and matched Madelyn Shanahan with outstanding campaigns in four different sports.

A true team leader, Finck was an MVP in softball, one of the top golfers in the H-DNL, an all-league selection in soccer and a state championship winner on the basketball court, where she received an all-league honorable mention.

Laila Florvilus

St. Bernard’s, Junior

Soccer, Basketball, Track and Field

Florvilus was the best basketball player in the H-DNL this past winter and an all-state selection, and she also enjoyed a spectacular record-setting season on the track, where she was among the top girls hurdlers in the North Coast Section and joined Shanahan at the state championships.

The sky’s the limit for this super talented and hard working young athlete.

Cloe McConnell

South Fork, Senior

Soccer, Basketball, Softball

McConnell, who will play softball at College of the Redwoods in 2025, also had a memorable year competing in multiple sports.

The South Fork standout senior enjoyed all-league campaigns in soccer and softball, leading the Cubs to an NCS championship in the latter, as well as receiving an all-league honorable mention in basketball.

Tinnley Pidgeon 

Ferndale, Sophomore

Soccer, Basketball, Softball

Pidgeon was every bit as impressive as anyone in the Little 4 on multiple teams and one of the top softball, soccer and basketball players.

A league Goalkeeper MVP in soccer field and an all-league selection in basketball and softball, the best is yet to come for this sensational sophomore, who is the youngest of our finalists and has two more years of high school competition ahead of her.

Madelyn Shanahan

St. Bernard’s, Senior

Soccer, Volleyball, Basketball, Track and Field

Shanahan is back among the finalists once again in 2024 after MVP seasons in volleyball and basketball, as well as winning a state medal in basketball, qualifying for the prestigious state championships in track and field and enjoying an all-league campaign in soccer.

Is there anything on the sports fields that this outstanding young lady doesn’t do well?

Caidence Young

South Fork Senior

Soccer, Basketball, Softball

Young’s contributions to South Fork sports can’t be measured only in her performances.

In addition to her obvious skills and work ethic, the South Fork standout also provided some much-needed leadership to her younger teammates on multiple sports fronts and earned all-league honors in both soccer and basketball, while also playing a key role on the Cubs’ march to a North Coast Section championship on the softball field.