Editor’s note: We prohibit the use of bots and any other artificial methods of voting. Suspicious activity could lead to the disqualification of candidates and a permanent suspension of the Athlete of the Week poll.
Scheduling note: After today, we are pausing the Athlete of the Week poll until after the holidays. The next poll will be posted on Jan. 9.
Welcome to the Bay Area News Group (Mercury News & East Bay Times) Girls Athlete of the Week poll.
For the entire academic year, we will provide a list of candidates who stood out over the previous week and allow you, the reader, to vote for the winner.
This week, we consider performances from Dec. 12-17.
Polls close at 5 p.m. Wednesday.
Vote as many times as you’d like until then without using bots or any other artificial methods of voting.
Votes by email are not counted.
Scroll to the bottom for the poll.
Winners are announced each Friday online and, starting Sept. 30, in the print edition of the Mercury News and East Bay Times sports sections.
Candidates for future Athlete of the Week polls can be nominated at highschools@bayareanewsgroup.com.
We accept nominations until 11 a.m. each Monday.
We also review stats submitted to MaxPreps by coaches/team statisticians.
On to the nominees:
Ashanti Dias, Archbishop Riordan basketball: Dias continued her torrid start to the season by scoring 16 against University and 21 against Sacred Heart Cathedral Prep. The junior scored in double-figures in seven of her first eight games.
Melissa Esquivel, Hayward soccer: In a match where the Farmers collected 14 goals, Esquivel was the most prolific scorer in Hayward’s blowout win over San Lorenzo. Esquivel netted five goals to lead the team in that statistic.
Deanna Luna, James Lick soccer: The Comets breezed past Oak Grove 6-2 thanks to a four-goal, one-assist night from Luna. Luna made the most of her chances, as she only had six attempted shots on goal the entire match.
Julysil Paycoan, Del Mar basketball: The point guard played a well-rounded game against Leigh on Tuesday, scoring 13 points while also giving out five assists. That kind of game has not been rare for Paycoan, who is averaging over five assists according to stats on MaxPreps.
NyEla Pete, College Park basketball: Pete put up back-to-back double-doubles last week. She had 13 points and 11 rebounds in a 60-50 win over Irvington, and then went for 10 points and 14 boards in the next 60-52 win over Dougherty Valley. Pete is also a standout in water polo.
Roya Rezaee, Menlo School soccer: Rezaee’s goal with 17 minutes left in the match broke a scoreless deadlock with Lincoln and won her Knights the Firebird Classic. Menlo School also had wins over Palo Alto, Gunn and Homestead on its way to a trophy.
Christabel Rodas, De Anza soccer: Rodas found the back of the net three times in a 9-0 win over Kennedy, and she also assisted on three other goals too. While Rodas did not repeat the hat trick in an 8-1 win over Bethel, she did score one goal while also giving out four assists.
Mari Somvichian, Oakland Tech basketball: Oakland Tech’s senior guard shot an efficient 4-5 from the field to get her 12 points in a blowout win over St. Mary’s-Berkeley. The captain had two three-pointers, as well as a couple of steals on the defensive side of the ball.
Asha Walker, American basketball: Walker was a combined 5-8 from three-point land in games against Newark Memorial and California. That torrid shooting from deep helped her score 19 and then 13 points. Walker also grabbed 10 rebounds to give her a double-double against California.
Samantha Wallace, Piedmont Hills soccer: The Piedmont Hills captain was unstoppable in a 5-0 win over Milpitas. She scored twice, and also was the assister on two other Pirates goals in the dominant win.
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