Marshfield wrestler Ava Gardner voted Grassland Dairy February High School Athlete of the Month

Marshfield wrestler Ava Gardner was voted the Grassland Dairy February High School Athlete of the Month. (Photo by Paul Lecker/MarshfieldAreaSports.com)

MarshfieldAreaSports.com

Marshfield High School wrestler Ava Gardner has been voted the Grassland Dairy High School Athlete of the Month for February.

MarshfieldAreaSports.com & Zaleski Sports co-sponsor the award, which is in its 11th year. Grassland Dairy is the main sponsor for the 2023-24 school year.

Varsity athletes from the following high schools are eligible to be nominated for the award: Abbotsford, Amherst, Athens, Assumption, Auburndale, Colby, Columbus Catholic, D.C. Everest, Edgar, Granton, Greenwood, Iola-Scandinavia, Loyal, Marathon, Marshfield, Mosinee, Neillsville, Pacelli, Pittsville, Port Edwards, Rosholt, Spencer, Stratford, Stevens Point, Waupaca, Newman Catholic, Wild Rose, Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln and Wittenberg-Birnamwood.

Gardner received 4,786 of the nearly 9,400 votes cast during voting from March 1-8 at MarshfieldAreaSports.com.

Other nominees for the February award were: Wittenberg-Birnamwood girls basketball player Rory Salvesen, Marathon boys basketball player Grant Warren, Wisconsin Rapids wrestler Carter Freeman and Port Edwards boys basketball player Brynden Beck.

Gardner became the first girls state wrestling champion in program history as she won the 100-pound title at the WIAA State Individual Wrestling Tournament on Feb. 24. Gardner, a junior, rolled to a 17-4 major decision over two-time state champ Brooke Corrigan of De Pere and finished the season with a 27-1 record in girls competition.

Other winners of the award during the 2023-24 school sports year include: Marshfield volleyball player Abby Ongna (August), Stevens Point football player Jackson Spees (September), Edgar football player Karter Butt (October), Amherst girls basketball player Scout Spadoni (November), Stevens Point Pacelli boys basketball player Camden Schurk (December) and Wild Rose girls basketball player Cali Havlovitz (January).

To nominate someone for the March award, email publisher Paul Lecker with relevant statistics and accomplishments for that student-athlete prior to March 26. Voting will take place from April 1-8 at MarshfieldAreaSports.com.