Photo by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com – The 2024 Big 5 Boys Athlete of the Year Russell Pascascio of Fortuna, along with his basketball coach Norm Sotomayor.

By Ray Hamill — It’s almost time to name the Humboldt Sports Big 5 Boys and Girls Athletes of the Year for the 2024/25 school year.

And as always, there are several worthy candidates to consider, including all eight finalists for the award.

It was a particularly good year for the Del Norte Warriors, who arguably had the best senior class of athletes in conference, both boys and girls.

But does that mean one of them will take home the coveted award and trophy?

Only time will tell.

For now, however, there are four Del Norte student-athletes included in our list of eight finalists.

It was also a good year for the Arcata Tigers, who have two finalists included on the shortlist, with a Fortuna Husky and a McKinleyville Panther rounding out the finalists.

Interestingly, three of the eight finalists are juniors, each of whom will be expected to only get better before they close out their high school careers next year.

The Big 5 Boys Athlete of the Year award is one of six awards Humboldt Sports will be announcing soon, along with our Team of the Year, our Coach of the Year, our Big 5 Girls Athlete of the Year and our Little 4 Boys and Girls Athletes of the Year.

Before we announce the winners and present each of them with a trophy to commemorate their achievements, we will be naming our finalists in all six categories.

And as always a big shout out and thank you to the award sponsors, a group that includes The Humboldt Fence Company, DelReka Distributing, Mendes Supply Company and Bode Construction, all of whose support will help to pay for the trophies. 

HUMBOLDT SPORTS 2025 BIG 5 BOYS ATHLETE OF THE YEAR FINALISTS

Curtis Bartley 

Del Norte Senior, Football and Wrestling

The senior standout was a force in two sports for the Warriors, receiving all-league honors in football and following that with an MVP-caliber season on the wrestling mats, winning an NCS crown and advancing to the state championships.

Skyler Collenberg 

Arcata Junior, Football, Wrestling and Track and Field

After playing a key role on the Tigers’ state championship team in football, Collenberg won a league title in wrestling and set a new school record in track and field in the shot put on his way to qualifying for the state championships.

Deken Hanks

Del Norte Junior, Soccer and Track and Field

The fastest athlete in H-DNL history has been one of the most dominating forwards in league soccer for the past two years, but was even more impressive on the track, breaking his own league record in the 100 meters on back-to-back weekends this spring.

Jake Houseworth

Fortuna Senior, Football and Basketball

Houseworth, who will play football for the University of California this fall, was named co-Defensive MVP of the Big 4 in football and followed that with another big winter on the basketball courts, where he received an all-league honorable mention.

Luke Lemke

Arcata Junior, Football and Basketball

One of the most exciting athletes to watch in the entire H-DNL, Lemke led the Tigers to a state championship in football with an MVP season and enjoyed another big all-league season on the basketball courts despite battling injuries.

Nick Maher

McKinleyville Senior, Soccer, Basketball and Track and Field

Maher could be the most effective all-around athlete in the Big 5 after impressive seasons in three different sports. He was arguably the best goalkeeper in H-DNL soccer, played a key role in the Panthers’ march to a Dick Niclai championship in basketball, and won a league title in track and field in the discus.

Aidan Rice

Del Norte Senior, Football, Basketball and Baseball

Another rare three-sport star, Rice closed out his high school career with a bang, earning all-league honors (and league championships) in football and baseball and also receiving an all-league honorable mention in basketball.

Colton Schaad 

Del Norte Senior, Football and Wrestling

The impressive Schaad dominated in both of his chosen sports this year. He was named Big 4 co-Defensive MVP in football in the fall and followed that by qualifying for the state championships on the wrestling mats.