The week of Oct. 18-24 was a busy one for high school male sports featuring athletes from the Des Moines metro area.
It was Week 9 of Iowa high school football in Iowa. It was the final week of the regular season for teams in Classes 54, 4A and 3A, while teams from 2A, 1A, A and 8-player began their playoff competition.
The top Week 9 high school football games from the metro area included 5A No. 6 Indianola defeating Urbandale, 35-24, 4A No. 3 Carlisle claiming the 4A District 5 championship with a 35-3 win over No. 7 Ballard and 4A No. 10 North Polk securing a playoff spot with a 43-20 victory over Gilbert.
It was also state qualifying week in high school cross country. Several boys runners from the metro area are headed to Fort Dodge to compete at state on Oct. 30-31.
There were multiple outstanding individual performances by male high school athletes from the metro area during the week.
Here are the Des Moines Register's male Athlete of the Week candidates from the Des Moines metro area for the week of Oct. 18-24. DesMoinesRegister.com readers vote to determine the winners, who will be announced at the end of the week.
Daxton Heimbaugh, Indianola
Heimbaugh had a big game running the football to help the 5A No. 6 Indianola football team rally past Urbandale for a 35-24 victory on Oct. 23 at Urbandale.
Heimbaugh ran the ball 22 times for 122 yards and three touchdowns to help the Indians prevail.
Jaxton Alvarez, Ankeny Centennial
Alvarez earned a 4A state qualifying meet individual title for the Ankeny Centennial boys cross country team at the 4A qualifying cross country meet held at Southeast Polk High School on Oct. 21 in Pleasant Hill.
Alvarez helped the Jaguars qualify for state as a team by winning the 5-kilometer boys race in 16 minutes, 20.01 seconds.
Josh Ehrich, Southeast Polk
Ehrich made the most of his opportunity at running back during the 5A No. 2 Southeast Polk football team's 54-0 victory over Des Moines East to close out the regular season on Oct. 23 at Pleasant Hill.
With the Rams limited the carries for top backs Stanley and Adrian Cooper in preparation for the playoffs, Ehrich stepped in to rush for 117 yards and two touchdowns on just five carries.
Davis Caves, North Polk
Caves played a big role in helping North Polk secure third place in 4A District 5 and a playoff spot with its 43-20 victory over Gilbert on Oct. 23 at Alleman.
Caves was a big weapon at receiver for the Comets. He made eight catches for 87 yards and one touchdown.
Hayden Schulte, Carlisle
Schulte had a monster game at receiver to help the 4A No. 3 Carlisle football team secure the 4A District 5 title with a convincing 35-3 win over No. 7 Ballard on Oct. 23 at Carlisle.
Schulte caught five passes for 149 yards and two touchdowns to help the Wildcats head into the playoffs with a perfect 9-0 record.
Joe Randleman covers high school sports for the Ames Tribune. Contact him at jrandleman@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JoeRandleman
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Vote for the Register male Athlete of the Week for Oct. 18-24