Spring has sprung — even though the weather feels like we sprung right past it into summer — and that means the return of The Desert Sun Athlete of the Week.
Remember we love submissions, so with a new sports season starting, coaches and parents of spring sports athletes in baseball, softball, track and field, swimming, boys’ golf, boys’ tennis, boys’ volleyball, you name it, we’d like to hear about it.
Send us the details to sports@desertsun.com and we’ll consider him or her for Athlete of the Week.
Before we look at this week’s honorees, let’s look back a few weeks to remember who you picked as the most recent winner. You voted and you chose Coachella Valley Arabs wrestler Ivan Angulo. Angulo made it to the CIF State Tournament after finishing second at the Masters Meet.
This week’s winner is up to you. As always, read the accomplishments of the five candidates and vote for your favorite in the poll at the bottom of this article at desertsun.com. Whoever has the most votes at noon on Saturday will be the weekly winner.
Here are the candidates in alphabetical order and happy voting!
Mia Afsar, Palm Desert competitive cheer
What she did: Only one desert athlete made the All-CIF-SS team for competitive cheer and that was Palm Desert junior Mia Afsar. Her hard work paid off this season, and she’s receiving the postseason accolades to prove that.
Carlos Guzman, La Quinta baseball
What he did: In an important early-DEL 6-4 win over Palm Desert. Guzman went 3 for 4 at the plate with a stolen base, and was the starting pitcher, notching the victory, yielding just two earned runs while striking out five in 5.2 innings of work.
Dayanara Marquez, Rancho Mirage softball
What she did: Even though it came in a loss in a wild 13-12 setback against Palm Desert. Marquez had a monster game with four hits including a double, four runs scored and four RBIs. She’s hitting .500 on the year with 14 RBIs through eight games.
Christian Starke, Xavier Prep golf
What he did: Starke, only a sophomore, shot a 73 to finish fourth out of 105 players in the Glendora Varsity Invitational in recent weeks, then led Xavier with a 38 in a 208-215 win over Yucaipa.
Joaquin Sterling, Shadow Hills track and field
What he did: Sterling, a senior threw a massive personal-best 59-4 in the shot put in a tri-meet with Coachella Valley and Banning. That throw broke an 11-year old school record (Jalen Morgan, 57-2) and would have finished third at the state meet last year. He also threw a personal-best in the discus (161-8) the same day.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: It’s time once again to vote for Desert Sun Athlete of the Week
Reporting by Shad Powers, Palm Springs Desert Sun / Palm Springs Desert Sun
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
