Each week, publications from the Southern California News Group’s 11 properties (Orange County Register, L.A. Daily News, Press-Enterprise, San Gabriel Valley Tribune, Long Beach Press-Telegram, The Daily Breeze, San Bernardino Sun, Daily Bulletin, Redlands Daily Facts, Whittier Daily News and Pasadena-Star News) select the Athletes of the Week for their respective region.
Each athlete is then entered into the overall Southern California Athlete of the Week vote.
Click on the newspaper links below the athlete’s name to read about their performance from last week, and then vote for who you think deserves the top honor.
Readers are allowed to vote multiple times. Voting ends at midnight, but final totals aren’t always immediately reflected due to processing.
GIRLS ATHLETE OF THE WEEK VOTING
The overall winner will be announced on Friday, May 24.
Voting poll at bottom of the page.
Jason Martinez, Baldwin Park: Martinez’s pitching in the final innings helped Baldwin Park’s baseball team hold on for a 4-2 victory over Hueneme to win the CIF Southern Section Division 7 title, the Braves’ first sectional title since 1982. Martinez took the hill in the fifth inning and got the Braves out of a jam to keep the score tied, 2-2. After the Braves scored two runs in the seventh to go up 4-2, Hueneme threatened again, with two runners on with one out, but Martinez battled out of it again with consecutive strikeouts to end the game.
Kai Deines, Redondo: Deines finished fourth in the shot put (56 feet, 4 inches) and third in the discus (188-3) at the CIF-SS Masters Meet. Deines will compete in both events at this week’s CIF State Championship meet. On the state performance list this season, Deines is fourth in the discus and third in the shot put.
Kai Graves-Blanks, Upland: Graves-Blanks claimed the 110-meter hurdles title at the CIF Southern Section Masters Meet. He crossed the line in a wind-legal time of 13.75 seconds, 0.29 seconds faster than the next finisher. Graves-Blanks will be among the favorites to win the event at the CIF State Championships this weekend at Buchanan High School in Clovis. He placed second in the 300 hurdles (personal-best time of 37.74) and also ran a leg on Upland’s 400 relay team that finished third (41.76).
Dijon Stanley, Granada Hills Charter: Stanley crowned himself the boys 400-meter champion at the L.A. City Section finals with a winning time of 46.94 seconds, which tied the fastest time in California this season heading into this week’s CIF State meet in Clovis.
Jake Read, Newport Harbor: He was the Sailors’ top player in their sweep of Loyola in the CIF SoCal Regional Division I final. Read, a 6-foot-4 junior outside hitter, had 18 kills with a .640 hitting percentage as Newport Harbor won 25-15, 25-23, 25-14. The Sailors last week swept Servite in the first round and beat Beckman in five sets in the semifinals of the regional playoffs. Newport Harbor finished 28-5 and won the CIF Southern Section Division 1 championship.
Gil Sanchez, Bellflower: Sanchez, a senior shortstop, went 2 for 3 with a double and an RBI in Bellflower’s 4-1 loss to Anaheim in the CIF Southern Section Division 6 semifinals. The moment was historic for the Buccaneers, as it was the first time in school history Bellflower made it to the CIF-SS Division 6 semifinals. Sanchez also started several games this season at catcher.
