As the fall postseasons really kick in, it's time for you to go and vote on another strong batch of stars in the Rockford Register Star high school Athlete of the Week poll for the week of Oct. 19-24.
Go to our poll and vote now. The poll will stay open until noon on Friday, Oct. 30.
More Rockford-area sports: Vote for your team to watch among the 18 Rockford-area football playoff hopefuls
To nominate an athlete for our AOTW poll, send an email to jtaft@rrstar.com by 10 a.m. Monday mornings, with information and stats on why you think they deserve to be nominated.
Almost every week for the rest of the school year, we will compile a list of athletes from the Rockford area who had standout weeks and let you, the reader, vote on who you think deserves the AOTW award. Every week you will be able to find the nominees as well as the poll at rrstar.com.
This week's nominees are:
Ella Carlson, Winnebago cross country
Carlson placed second at Saturday's Winnebago Regional and she sparked Winnebago, the defending Class 1A state champions, to the regional team title as well. Sectionals are this weekend, and state is Nov. 7.
Peyton Hillabolt, Hononegah swim and dive
Hillabolt won all four events she swam in during Saturday's NIC-10 girls swim and dive meet, leading Hononegah to its fourth straight conference title.
Merrik Mahon, Lena-Winslow football
Mahon not only started the playoff game off with a 2-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown, but he also went on to finish with 108 yards rushing on just four carries as Le-Win rolled into Round 2.
Zavian McElroy, Belvidere North football
Halfback McElroy helped Belvidere North pull away for a 42-29 opening-round win over NIC-10 foe Freeport on Friday with 284 yards rushing and 5 touchdowns.
Jack McLarty, Hononegah cross country
McLarty placed third with a time of 15:22.09 at the Class 3A DeKalb regional on Saturday, advancing to sectionals, and helping Hononegah to third as a team, and to sectionals as a team.
Thomas Olson, Freeport football
Olson threw for 288 yards and 3 touchdowns in Freeport's playoff defeat at the hands of Belvidere North last Friday night.
Angelina Sala, Freeport tennis
The Freeport sophomore was the only Rockford-area singles player to make it to Day 2 of last week's girls state tennis tournament as she went 3-2 in the tourney.
Haylee Simpson, Hononegah cross country
Simpson, just a freshman, took second for Hononegah in the Class 3A cross country regional in 17:26.10, helping spark her team to a sixth-place finish, and a sectional berth.
Nora Wedwick, Boylan cross country
Wedwick won the Class 2A Belvidere Regional title for the girls, and she sparked Boylan to second place, and a berth into sectionals.
Leilani Mora and Emily Wieja, Belvidere North tennis
This doubles team also went 3-2 at state and made it to the second day, using an early three-setter to advance, and a late comeback victory to stay alive.
Jay Taft is a Rockford Register Star sports reporter. Email him at jtaft@rrstar.com and sign up for the Rockford High School Sports Newsletter here at rrstar.com. Jay has covered a variety of sports, from the Chicago Bears and Blackhawks to local youth sports, since the turn of the century at the Register Star.
This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: VOTE for your favorite Rockford-area athlete of the week for Oct. 19-24