VALDOSTA, Ga. – Valdosta State senior women's basketball standout Kayla Bonilla and senior men's basketball guard Burke Putnam were named the Steel's Jewelry Blazer Athletes of the Week.  This is the first weekly honor for both Bonilla and Putnam this season.
 
Bonilla, helped lead the No. 10 Lady Blazers to one of the biggest wins of the season in a 63-57 victory at Lee to earn the weekend split last Saturday.  Bonilla finished with a game-high 19 points on 5 of 9 from the field, while going 9 of 11 from the line.  Bonilla had five assists and three steals in the game.  The victory gave VSU a 2-1 season record against Lee and snapped Lee's 30-game home winning streak, which was good for fourth nationally. 
 
For the week, Bonilla averaged 15.5 points and was 17 of 20 from the line, while recording seven assists and five steals in the two games.  This season, Bonilla leads the team averaging 16.9 points per game.  She has 1,193 points for 15th all-time in school history in career points.  She needs just five points to tie Deidre Williams (1992-96) with 1,198 points.  Bonilla has played in 98 games with 86 starts for her career.  Bonilla is 48 of 92 from the field this season (52.2%), while going 12 of 28 from beyond the arc to lead the team.  She is a team-best 44 of 55 from the line (80.0%) and is averaging 3.7 rebounds per game.  Bonilla has a team-high 31 assists and 26 steals this season. 
 
The Lady Blazers (8-1, 8-1 GSC) return home after a season-long four game road trip to host Shorter (1-7, 1-7 GSC) in a pair of games Friday and Saturday at The Complex.  Friday's game is set for a 7 p.m. tip, while Saturday's matchup is scheduled for 2 p.m.  Fans can access links to live stats, audio/video streaming, ticket information and more at vstateblazers.com.  The games also will be broadcast on 94.3 WJEM FM with Mike Chason having the call and online at foxsportsvaldosta.com. 
 
Putnam led the Blazers in scoring during Friday's loss to Lee with 22 points, shooting 11 for 15 (.733) from the field, with four rebounds, five assists, and three steals.  He then followed up that performance with a team-high 16-point game, going seven for 16 (.436) from the field and two of four (.500) from three.
 
For the season, Putnam is third on the team in scoring at 13.9 points per game, while going 39 of 91 from the field (.429) and a team-best 27 of 34 from the line (.794).  He is averaging 5.0 rebounds per game, while leading the team with 33 assists. 
 
The No. 19 Blazers look to get back on track with a pair of games this weekend at Shorter.  The Blazers and the Hawks square off Friday at 6 p.m. in Rome, Ga., followed by a Saturday matchup at 2 p.m.  Fans can access links for the games at vstateblazers.com on the men's basketball schedule page.  The games also will be broadcast on 92.1 Talk WDDQ FM with Spencer Van Horn having the call and online at talk921.com.