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 Nov. 24-29.
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 and after 5 p.m. Wednesday are not counted.
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.
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On to the nominees:
Elia Anne Kudemus, St. Mary’s-Berkeley basketball: Anne Kudemus led all scorers with 27 points as St. Mary’s beat California at the Pinole Valley Showcase.
Aastha Bhagat, Evergreen Valley: The senior led Evergreen Valley with 17 points, teaming with sophomore Ava Pham (15 points) to power EV over Lynbrook for a 54-32 win.
Amaya Bharadwaj, Palo Alto cross country: The senior finished third individually at the CIF Division II state cross country race, clocking a time of 16:52.7 to record the best finish in the division for a Bay Area runner.
Bella Fong, San Mateo basketball: The junior led the Bearcats to their first win of the season last Monday, scoring 20 points to help San Mateo beat Sacred Heart Prep 58-46.
Edeel Hersi, Deer Valley basketball: Hersi led Deer Valley with 27 points as the Wolverines beat Berkeley 55-40 to open their season.
Ella McFarlane, Los Altos basketball: McFarlane had a prolific week for Los Altos, scoring 28 points in a 59-35 win over Christopher and adding 21 in a 54-47 victory over Salinas.
Carina Nottingham, Berkeley cross country: Nottingham clocked the third-best finish for a Northern California runner and best in the Bay Area with a time of 17:53.1 at the CIF Division I meet, placing 16th.
Isabella Rodgers, Bishop O’Dowd cross country: Rodgers posted the top finish by a Bay Area runner in the CIF Division IV race, clocking a time of 18:18.5 to place 18th at the state meet.
Anna Salter, Crystal Springs cross country: The senior finished fifth in the Division V race at the CIF cross country championships, clocking a time of 17:43.0 in her final high school cross country event.
Chiemi Wong, Gunderson basketball: The senior led the Grizzlies with 14 points as Gunderson beat MacDonald 44-14 to open its season.
Gretchen Yakaitis, Carondelet cross country: Yakaitis won the Division III race at the CIF cross country championships, posting a time of 17:09.9 to finish 7.7 seconds ahead of second-place finisher Alyssa Gutierrez from St. Francis-Sacramento.