Vote now: Bay Area News Group boys athlete of the week

Editor’s note: We prohibit the use of bots and any other artificial methods of voting. Suspicious activity could lead to the disqualification of candidates and a permanent suspension of the Athlete of the Week poll. No voting by email: Votes by email and after 5 p.m. Wednesday are not counted.

Welcome to the Bay Area News Group (Mercury News & East Bay Times) boys Athlete of the Week poll.

For the entire academic year, we will provide a list of candidates who stood out over the previous week and allow you, the reader, to vote for the winner.

This week, we consider performances from Aug. 25-30.

Polls close at 5 p.m. Wednesday.

Vote as many times as you’d like until then without using bots or any other artificial methods of voting.

Votes by email and after 5 p.m. Wednesday are not counted.

Scroll to the bottom for the poll.

Winners are announced each Friday online and in the print edition of the Mercury News and East Bay Times sports sections.

Candidates for future Athlete of the Week polls can be nominated at [email protected].

We accept nominations until 11 a.m. each Monday.

We also review stats submitted to MaxPreps by coaches/team statisticians.

On to the nominees:

Maurice Hall, Hayward football: Hall had a monster game, rushing for 134 yards and three touchdowns on 14 carries in the Farmers’ 35-14 upset win over Moreau Catholic. Hayward (1-0) will host Windsor on Friday.

Andrew Ho, Branham football: The sophomore completed 20-of-31 passes for 252 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 50 yards and four scores in Branham’s 42-28 win over Hollister. Branham (1-0) will travel to Willow Glen on Friday.

Graham Ischo, Monta Vista football: Ischo rushed for 203 yards on 18 carries and found the end zone once in Monta Vista’s 34-6 rout of Andrew Hill. Monta Vista (1-0) will travel to James Lick on Thursday.

Duece Jones-Drew, De La Salle football: The junior had 99 yards of total offense and scored the game-winning rushing touchdown in the Spartans’ 10-6 win against Lakeland-Florida. De La Salle (1-0) is scheduled to play Serra on the road on Saturday.

Jack Lorenz, Liberty water polo: The senior goalkeeper had 15 saves, one assist and two steals in a 16-15 overtime win over James Logan. Liberty is 1-0 and will host College Park on Wednesday.

Ekiah Mclemore, Valley Christian football: The senior rushed for 67 yards and two scores to lead Valley Christian to a 41-10 victory over Wilcox. Valley Christian will travel to Salinas on Friday.

Stephen Messner, Mountain View football: Messner kicked the game-winning 28-yard field goal with 9.4 seconds left to lead Mountain View to a thrilling 46-44 victory over Palo Alto. Mountain View is slated to host Woodside on Friday.

Vote now: Bay Area News Group girls athlete of the week

Bay Area News Group girls athlete of the week: Lelani Laruelle, Monta Vista track and field

Bay Area News Group boys athlete of the week: James Stadt, Acalanes baseball

Jose “JoJo” Perez, Antioch football: Perez, a senior, had eight tackles, two pass deflections and returned an interception for a touchdown in Antioch’s 36-15 win over San Rafael. Antioch (1-0) is slated to host Weston Ranch on Friday.

Grant Ricker, Acalanes football: The safety picked off three passes and hauled in a receiving touchdown to help lead Acalanes to a 33-14 win over Archbishop Mitty. Acalanes (1-0) will host Menlo-Atherton on Friday.

Colin Wright, Serra water polo: Wright scored four goals and dished out two assists in Serra’ 14-7 win over Carmel. Serra has opened the year with three straight wins and is scheduled to host Burlingame on Wednesday.

Look for the boys poll here.