The Record will nominate several high school athletes in San Joaquin County for the Martin Dentistry Athlete of the Week award.
It’s up to you, the readers, to choose the winner for May 11-16.
The Martin Dentistry Award highlights top performances from 209-area schools — excluding boys baseball, which has its own poll. This week’s ballot features seven nominees from Stockton, Escalon, Oakdale, Ripon, Tracy and Linden.
Anyone can nominate an athlete of the week for every sport. Readers can email nominations to sports reporter Dylan Ackermann at dackermann@gannett.com. Please include the player’s stats and, if possible, a photo.
The poll at the bottom of this page closes at noon on Thursday, May 21. There are no voting restrictions, so vote now and vote often.
Here are the May 11-16 nominees (Athletes listed in alphabetical order by last name):
Tenley Adams, Girls Softball, Escalon
Playoff upsets do not happen without players rising to the moment.
Tenley Adams has done exactly that for Escalon.
The freshman opened the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division V playoffs by helping No. 7 Escalon dominate No. 10 Woodland Christian 11-0 on May 13, striking out eight over four innings while allowing one hit and adding two RBIs in a 1-for-2 day at the plate.
Then came the bigger challenge — No. 2 Calaveras, a team with only two losses all season. Adams answered with a complete game in a 2-1 quarterfinal upset, striking out 14 while allowing five hits and one earned run, while also going 1-for-3 offensively.
Escalon started the season 1-9, but Adams has helped fuel the turnaround, hitting .448 with 27 RBIs while posting a 3.19 ERA in 63 2/3 innings. Her 14-strikeout performance also pushed her to 100 strikeouts on the season.
Reese Donaldson, Softball, Oakdale
Championship players tend to show up when the stakes rise.
Reese Donaldson has done just that.
After helping Oakdale win a section title in 2024, she is now leading the charge. In the first round of the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV playoffs, she went 2-for-4 with a triple in an 11-1 win over No. 14 Placer on May 13.
Then came the quarterfinals, where she completely took over with a 4-for-4 performance, three RBIs and another triple.
The University of Nebraska Kearney signee is now batting .524 with 14 RBIs.
Olivia Fears, Softball, Linden
Stockton should start getting familiar with the name Olivia Fears.
The University of Pacific commit is giving plenty of reasons why.
In the first round of the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division VI playoffs, she went 4-for-4 with three RBIs and a home run as No. 3 Linden crushed No. 14 Colfax 16-0 on May 13.
Then she somehow raised the bar in the quarterfinals, going a perfect 5-for-5 with another home run in a 14-8 win over No. 6 Bear River.
These weren’t outlier performances. Fears has done this all season, now batting .683 with 71 hits and 25 RBIs.
Hayden Fell, Softball, Tracy
This one goes beyond a single performance.
It’s about everything Hayden Fell has done to put Tracy in this position.
The Long Beach State commit has been the foundation of the No. 1 seed in the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division II playoffs, compiling a 16-0 record, a 0.95 ERA and 133 strikeouts in 95 2/3 innings pitched, while also hitting .429 with 36 RBIs.
Against No. 8 West Park on May 18, she faced her toughest challenge yet. In a back-and-forth eight-inning battle, Fell threw all eight innings, struck out eight, allowed six earned runs and added an RBI in Tracy’s 7-6 win.
Before that game, she had allowed earned runs in only four of her previous 18 appearances, with three being the most in any outing. Dominance has defined her season, but resilience may have defined this performance.
Natalie Powell, Girls Track and Field, Oakdale
When it comes to Division III shot put in the Sac-Joaquin Section, Natalie Powell has owned the event all season.
At the SJS Division III Championship Trials on May 13, she threw a personal-best 40 feet, 11 inches to finish first in the shot put. She also placed fifth in discus with a throw of 114-1.
Three days later at the SJS Division III Finals/Masters Trials, she won the shot put title with a mark of 39-6 while again placing fifth in discus at 116-9.
The bigger picture is what stands out most.
Powell has entered nine shot put events this season and has finished first in every single one, a major leap from just two first-place finishes across all events a year ago.
Alonzo Ward, Boys Track and Field, Edison
Alonzo Ward’s future may be in football, but his track performances continue to turn heads, too.
The Edison sophomore wide receiver already owns offers from Washington State, San Diego State and Sacramento State, and the same athleticism that makes him a Division I prospect has translated seamlessly to the track.
That was on full display across the SJS Division III Championship Trials on May 13 and the SJS Division III Finals/Masters Trials on May 16.
Ward swept both hurdle events at trials, winning the 110-meter hurdles in a personal-best 14.78 and the 300-meter hurdles in a personal-best 39.32. He followed by winning both again at Masters, improving his 110 hurdles mark to 14.53 and taking the 300 hurdles in 39.36.
His two wins played a major role in Edison claiming the Division III team championship with 83 points.
Liam Wohle, Boys Track and Field, Ripon
Did Liam Wohle carry Ripon to the SJS Division V Finals/Masters Trials title?
Not by himself, but he came awfully close.
The week started at the SJS Division V Trials, where Wohle finished third in the 200 meters at 22.61, second in the 400 at 51.85, and helped Ripon take second in both the 4×100 relay at 44.05 and the 4×400 relay at 3:38.01.
Then he took things to another level at Masters.
Wohle placed second in the 200 at 22.43, won the 400 in a personal-best 49.80, and helped Ripon claim first in both the 4×100 relay at 43.42 and the 4×400 relay at 3:33.80.
With Ripon winning the team title by just 1.5 points, those three victories ended up making all the difference.
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This article originally appeared on The Record: Vote now for the SJ County Martin Dentistry AOTW for May 11-16
Reporting by Dylan Ackermann, The Stockton Record / The Record
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