This week, 31,483 votes were cast in the race to determine the winner of the Victorville Chevrolet High School Athlete of the Week voting.
The Riley Gresham Center in Oak Hills finished with 37.28% of the total votes cast by Daily Press readers.
The star softball player received 11,736 votes, beating out 10 other high school athletes from across the High Desert. She is an Oak Hills student who has been named Athlete of the Week for the second year in a row and is also her second member of the Bulldogs softball team.
In the last vote, Riley finished in second place with 35.46% of the votes.
To earn a spot in this week's voting, Riley stepped up to the plate in the Bulldogs' only game of the week and had a productive day. He went 4-for-4 with one home run, three RBIs, and four RBIs in a 14-1 win against Riverside Prep on March 5.
In the voting, Riley defeated Academy of Career and Exploration golfer Nate Carlson, who received 9,225 total votes and 29.30%.
Candidates were selected based on their performance from March 4th to 9th.
High desert sports summary:Victor Valley beats Barstow to open Desert Sky League play
Nominations are based on information available to The Daily Press. All High Desert high school varsity athletes will be eligible to vote.
Nominations for consideration must be received by the Sunday morning following that week's game. Anyone can nominate an “Athlete of the Week” for each college sport.
Want to know a little more about the winner? Check out what Riley had to say.
- How long have you been playing the sport and how did you get started: I have been playing softball since I was 4 and a half years old. So I've been playing for about 12 years. I started playing softball because my parents played softball and baseball and wanted me to be involved in sports and learn responsibility and leadership skills.
- What do you like most about your sport? Honestly, I love the people I meet through sports. I've made a lot of great friends through gaming. I also love the constant drive to improve, playing a game where you can never reach perfection, but there's always something to strive for.
- Do you have a pregame ritual? I always pray with my teammates before a game. Write your stepfather's old jersey number on the dirt. Because he's the main reason I'm still playing this game and the reason I work hard every day to get better. .
- What is your most memorable sports moment: My most memorable sports moment was probably when I first started learning how to slap hit, tried it in a match, and finally That's when he scored the winning goal and won the tournament.
- If you could be someone else for just one day, who would you be? Here's why: I don't know who I want to be.
- If someone gave you a million dollars, what would you do with it? If it were me, I'd use part of it for college tuition and save the other half. I'll probably give some to my family too.
- If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?: If I could travel anywhere, I would love to travel to Italy for the food and beaches. I had always seen it in pictures and wanted to see it in person.
- If you had an extra hour each day, how would you spend it? I spend my time reading and writing, and when I have time, I journal, write stories, and read books.
- What superpower do you wish you had: I wish I could read minds.
- Favorite sports team: I'm a San Francisco 49ers fan
- Favorite athlete: Brock Purdy
- Favorite superhero: Thor
- Favorite show: “The Originals”
- Favorite movie: “Rapunzel”
- Favorite song: “Runaway Baby” by Bruno Mars
- Favorite food: Shrimp Alfredo
- Favorite local restaurant: 760 Sushi Bros
- Favorite app: Instagram
Be sure to nominate yours for next week's ballot by emailing sports reporter Jose Quintero at JQuintero@VVDailyPress.com. Also feel free to connect with him on his X, formerly known as Twitter, @J0seQuintero, or @VVDailyPress_Sports on Instagram.Please include player stats and photos if possible.
