This is the largest Livingston Daily Athlete of the Week ballot ever.
The standard ballot consists of five athletes and usually gets expanded a bit during the postseason. With so many incredible performances at the state track and field finals alone, it was time to open the floodgates and put 16 on the ballot.
Besides, with only a handful of teams still competing and the high school sports calendar winding down, it’s the last chance for most athletes to win the honor.
I usually don’t like to have more than one athlete from the same team or program on the ballot, because they could split the vote, but there were some cases in which multiple athletes were deserving. Remember, even if you believe someone is using bots to win the poll, it’s a big honor to have your local newspaper nominate an athlete for Athlete of the Week. To answer another question, the athletes who make the poll are 100% my decision.
By now you should all know the drill. Vote early, vote often. Voting ends at 3 p.m. Wednesday, June 3.
Sam Burtts, Pinckney track and field: Burtts ran a time of 14.49 seconds in the 110-meter hurdles prelims at the Division 2 finals, breaking the school mark of 14.64 set by Kurt Reichenbach in 2008 and coming within 0.01 seconds of the county record set by Fowlerville’s Kevin Henry in 2004. Burtts was fifth in the finals in 14.69.
Adam Forcier, Brighton golf: Forcier tied for seventh at regionals with a 74 before tying for first in the KLAA postseason meet with a 69. He won the KLAA championship with a two-round total of 139.
Lauren Hammond, Charyl Stockwell track and field: Hammond became the only girl in the county this year to break 26 seconds in the 200, placing sixth at the Division 3 finals in 25.84.
Kaydence Hoolsema, Brighton track and field: Hoolsema made all-state in high jump for the second time, placing fourth at the Division 1 finals with a leap of 5-4.
Emma Kanka, Howell track and field: Kanka made Division 1 all-state in two events, placing fifth in shot put with a toss of 40 feet, 7.5 inches and seventh in discus at 121-9. She won discus and took second in shot put at the Larry Steeb Memorial Meet of Champions four days earlier.
Blake Kulesza, Brighton track and field: Kulesza had sixth-place finishes at the Division 1 finals in the 3,200 relay in 7:54.47 and the open 800 in 1:55.01.
Graysen Lesniak, Howell baseball: Lesniak pitched 3⅓ innings of shutout relief during 17th-ranked Howell’s 7-4 victory over defending Division 1 champion Hartland in a district championship game.
Juliet Lewis, Brighton track and field: Lewis reclaimed the county record in the 800 with a fourth-place time of 2:12.89 at the Division 1 finals.
Jack MacGregor, Howell track and field: MacGregor took second in the 3,200 at the Division 1 finals in a close race, lowering his school-record time to 9:02.68.
Kelly McKaig, Brighton lacrosse: McKaig had four goals and two assists during a 23-1 victory over Plymouth in a regional semifinal and five goals during a 14-11 loss to South Lyon in the regional championship game.
Elliana Neuer, Hartland track and field: Neuer became the first Hartland girl to win a state track and field championship when she captured the Division 1 title in the 1,600-meter run in 4:51.73. She also made all-state in the 800, placing seventh in 2:14.06. Neuer helped Hartland set a school record in the 1,600 relay four days earlier.
Aidan Oake, Hartland golf: Oake shot 2-over-par 73 to tie for fourth place individually at regionals, leading Hartland to the team championship.
Austin Ouillette, Pinckney track and field: Only a sophomore, Ouillette broke the county record in the 300 hurdles at the Division 2 finals with a fourth-place time of 38.96. He broke the mark of 39.15 set by Pinckney’s Kurt Reichenbach in the 2008 Division 1 finals.
Henry Taube, Pinckney baseball: Taube hit three home runs during a doubleheader sweep of Ann Arbor Huron and drove in the winning run in the second game with a two-out triple in the eighth. He was 5-for-8 with six RBIs. Taube’s single in the first gave Pinckney a 1-0 lead during a 2-0 district semifinal win over Chelsea.
Alison Ulanowski, Howell softball: Ulanowski pitched 10⅓ shutout innings in a 5-2 victory over Hartland in the district semifinals and a 2-0 shutout of Brighton in the championship game. She has a 1.95 earned run average with 66 strikeouts and only eight walks.
Owen Zylka, Pinckney baseball: Zylka threw his third postseason gem against Chelsea, throwing a five-hitter and striking out 10 in a 2-0 victory in the district semifinals. Zylka allowed only one run and 12 hits against Chelsea in 20 innings of postseason play.
Contact Bill Khan at wkhan@livingstondaily.com. Follow him on X @BillKhan
This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Vote for Livingston Daily Athlete of the Week (May 26-30, 2026)
Reporting by Bill Khan, Livingston Daily / Livingston Daily
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