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. No voting by email: Votes by email and after 5 p.m. Wednesday are not counted.
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 Oct. 21-26.
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.
Scroll to the bottom for the poll.
Winners are announced each Friday online and 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:
Mia Bennette, The King’s Academy flag football: The junior threw for nine touchdowns and 482 yards to go along with 75 rushing yards in games against Gunderson and Castilleja. She now has over 3,000 passing yards and 54 passing TDs in 14 games this season.
Elise Chen, Menlo School tennis: Chen, a junior, staged a comeback in the third-set super-tiebreaker and won 6-4, 3-6, 10-6 at No. 1 singles against Sacred Heart Prep. The Knights won the team matchup 5-2 to clinch at least a share of the West Bay Athletic League championship.
Zoe Gaffney, San Leandro volleyball: Gaffney, a senior, compiled 12 kills, seven aces and four digs as San Leandro swept San Lorenzo 3-0.
Mae Kunihiro, Menlo-Atherton flag football: Kunihiro, a junior, tossed a school-record five touchdown passes as the Bears beat Terra Nova 40-7.
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Liliana Levin, Prospect water polo: The junior scored eight goals and added six assists as Prospect took down Christopher 22-8.
Sabrina Neal, Los Altos flag football: Neal, a sophomore, completed 56 passes for 720 yards and 11 touchdowns in three games against MacDonald, Gunn and Mountain View. She added 167 yards rushing and a TD on the ground as the Eagles went 3-0.
Ellie Shen, Sacred Heart Prep flag football: Shen, a senior, collected 100 yards receiving and four total touchdowns against Notre Dame-Belmont. She added two receiving scores, including the game-winner with less than a minute left, against Castilleja.
Sydney Silva, Bishop O’Dowd golf: Silva, a senior committed to Arizona, led the Dragons to a West Alameda County Conference title, carding a 3-under-par 68.
Tessa Smith, Castro Valley volleyball: Smith, a junior outside hitter, downed 31 kills and added four aces and four blocks as Castro Valley defeated Berkeley 3-1 to clinch the West Alameda County Conference Foothill Division crown for the second straight year.
Aveya Stone, Campolindo volleyball: Stone, a senior, notched 26 kills as Campolindo beat Berean Christian 3-1. She added 18 kills in a 3-0 sweep of Northgate.