Photos by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com – Laila Florvilus

By Ray Hamill — There was no separating two outstanding young athletes in the race for this year’s Humboldt Sports Little 4 Girls Athlete of the Year.

And that’s because both meant more to all of their teams than just about any other student-athletes in the area, epitomizing what it truly means to be an MVP.

St. Bernard’s senior Laila Florvilus closed out a remarkable high school career in dynamic fashion this year, leading the Crusaders to never-before-reached heights on the basketball courts and setting new standards in track and field.

Ferndale junior Tinnley Pidgeon was equally important to the Wildcats, performing at an MVP level in soccer, helping to lead them to a North Coast Section championship in basketball, and returning from a long injury layoff just in time to help the school secure a first section playoff win in softball in eight years.

Both young standouts were arguably the most important and influential players on all of their teams.

But that’s just half the story when it comes to these two remarkable student-athletes.

According to multiple coaches, they are both also outstanding human beings who have earned the respect of their teammates, coaches, fans and community.

And because of all of that, Laila Florvilus and Tinnley Pidgeon are the 2025 Humboldt Sports co-Little 4 Girls Athletes of the Year.

One year after playing a key role in helping to lead the Crusaders to the H-DNL’s first-ever state championship in basketball, as a senior Florvilus was front and center again in leading the program to a first-ever Dick Niclai tournament championship and earning conference MVP honors for the third straight year, as well as being named the Humboldt Sports Player of the Year for the second straight season.

She continued to excel in track and field, winning league titles in the 100 meters, the 100m hurdles and the high jump, and followed that with Class A NCS titles in the hurdles and high jump.

Tinnley Pidgeon

After a legendary high school career for the Crusaders, Florvilus will now continue her career at Chico State, where she will compete in both sports.

Pidgeon, meanwhile, is still a year away from potentially taking her undeniable talents to college, but you get the feeling she could compete there in whatever sport she chooses.

She was arguably the most important player to any local team on the soccer field in the fall, playing a hybrid goalkeeper/sweeper role on a roster that had just nine players for much of the season.

For her efforts, Pidgeon earned rave reviews from just about every coach the Wildcats faced.

She followed that with an all-league winter on the basketball courts for a Ferndale team that took home an NCS championship pennant and advanced to the NorCal playoffs.

Unfortunately, she missed much of the softball season through injury but would return late in the campaign to help the Cats secure a first section playoff win in close to a decade.

Laila Florvilus pictured with several of her teammates at her college letter signing.

Laila Florvilus and fellow St. Bernard’s seniors Jocelyn Sundberg and Aliyah Vigil after winning this year’s Dick Niclai tournament.

After spending much of the spring encouraging her teammates from the dugout, her inclusion in the lineup late in the season immediately elevated the performance of the entire team.

All in all, it was an outstanding year for both young stars, who beat a talented and deep list of finalists for the athlete of the year award.

Congratulations to both Laila Florvilus and Tinnley Pidgeon for being named the 2025 Humboldt Sports Little 4 Girls Athletes of the Year.

As always, a big shout out and thank you to this year’s 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.