Vote now for the SJ County Martin Dentistry AOTW for Sept. 21-26

Each week, The Record will nominate several high school athletes for the Martin Dentistry Athlete of the Week award. The rest is up to you, the readers. The Martin Dentistry Award recognizes top performances from 209-area schools — excluding boys football, which has its own poll. This week’s ballot

What is the story about?

Each week, The Record will nominate several high school athletes for the Martin Dentistry Athlete of the Week award.

The rest is up to you, the readers.

The Martin Dentistry Award recognizes top performances from 209-area schools — excluding boys football, which has its own poll. This week’s ballot highlights athletes who made their mark from Sept. 21-26.

Anyone can nominate an athlete of the week from any sport. Readers can email nominations to sports reporter Dylan Ackermann at dackermann@gannett.com. Please include the player's stats and a photo if possible.

The poll at the bottom of this page closes at noon Thursday, Oct. 1. There are no voting restrictions, so vote now and vote often.

Here are the Sept. 21-26 nominees (athletes listed in alphabetical

order by last name):

Eden Fry, flag football, Tracy

Throw Eden Fry the ball, she scores. Throw it near her on defense, she might take it away. The Tracy junior had eight receptions for 99 yards and three touchdowns in a 40-8 win over Lincoln on Sept. 21, then added six catches for 81 yards, two touchdowns and an interception in a 31-13 win over St. Mary’s three days later. Fry now has 1,102 yards from scrimmage, 17 touchdowns and 13 interceptions for 13-4 Tracy.

Adrian Garcia, boys cross country, Chavez

First career top-five finish one week. First career victory the next. Chavez senior Adrian Garcia followed a personal-best 17:13.0 and second-place finish in the 5,000 meters at the SJAA BC/Chavez/Edison Tri-Meet by winning the SJAA No. 2 (Chavez, Franklin, Stagg) 5,000 meters on Sept. 24 in 19:12.0. And it wasn't close, with Garcia crossing the finish line 49 seconds ahead of everyone else.

Keegan Gehrke, boys cross country, Lincoln

Fastest he's ever run. Fastest anyone has ever run at the meet. Lincoln senior Keegan Gehrke clocked a personal-best and meet-record 16:08.5 in the 5,000 meters at the TCAL No. 2 on Sept. 23, shaving more than seven seconds off the 16:15.7 he ran at the Flame Invite on Aug. 21. Just four days earlier, Gehrke also ran a personal-best 15:10.8 in the 3 miles at the Woodbridge Cross Country Classic.

Maggie Graham, girls water polo, Lodi

Lodi girls water polo's Maggie Graham controls the ball during a match during her senior season in 2026.

Give Maggie Graham a look at the net, and chances are she's scoring. The Lodi senior had six goals in a 17-11 win over Bear Creek on Sept. 22 before pouring in nine more two days later in a 14-6 win over Lincoln, helping the Flames move to 3-0 in TCAL play. . According to UOP men's water polo coach James Graham, she also leads the team in exclusions and penalties earned.

Eli McLaughlin, boys water polo, Tokay

It hardly ever seems to matter who's in front of Eli McLaughlin. The Tokay sophomore scored seven goals in a 14-4 win over Kennedy on Sept. 22, followed with eight goals and two assists less than 24 hours later in a 24-6 win over Stagg, then accounted for six of Tokay’s seven goals in a 22-7 loss to Franklin on Sept. 24. Through eight games, McLaughlin already has 43 goals and 22 assists.

Taimane Tu'uga, girls volleyball, Manteca

There aren't many balls Taimane Tu'uga sees that she can't put away. The Manteca senior recorded 16 of her team's 38 kills with three aces and 19 digs in a 3-1 loss to Oakdale on Sept. 21 before pounding 18 kills with 10 digs in a 3-0 win over Patterson. The reigning VOL Most Outstanding Player leads the county with 225 kills and ranks top 10 in the Sac-Joaquin Section.

Samirah Wilson, girls volleyball, Weston Ranch

Before an attack can get anywhere, it first has to make it past Samirah Wilson. The Weston Ranch junior had five blocks and five kills in a 3-0 loss to Tokay on Sept. 21 before adding four blocks and five kills in a 3-0 win over Chavez two days later. With 71 blocks, Wilson has stopped more attacks at the net than anyone else in the Sac-Joaquin Section.

Tessa Zalunardo, flag football, Sierra

Eighteen offers make a lot more sense after watching Tessa Zalunardo play. One week after throwing five touchdowns against Oakdale, the Sierra junior went 20-of-26 for 251 yards and six scores while rushing for 66 yards and another touchdown in a 48-0 win over Mountain House on Sept. 21. She has 2,433 passing yards, 489 rushing yards and 35 total touchdowns this season.