Time to vote: Who should be the Rockford area's Athlete of the Week for March 18-23

With all of the spring sports springing into action, there is another strong group of stars to choose from this week as you select your Rockford Register Star high school sports Athlete of the Week for the week of March 18-23.

Nearly every week we nominate a group of high school stars and you get to go and vote in our poll. The voting at rrstar.com ends at noon on Friday. You can email Jay Taft at jtaft@rrstar.com by 9 a.m. each Monday to submit a potential nominee who can be placed on the ballot.

Zariah Burnett, Guilford track and field

Burnett has been on fire during the indoor track and field season, which just finished up on Saturday as Burnett won the Class 3A Illinois Top Times Indoor State title in the high jump with a make at 5-foot-7. She cleared 5-9 earlier this indoor season, which is tied for second in the nation.

Jordan Dimke, Hononegah track and field

Just behind Burnett, Dimke placed second at Saturday's indoor state meet in Bloomington with a clearance of 5-5 3/4. Dimke and Burnett, both sophomores, will be battling it out all season long now that things move outdoors.

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Ava Morris, Belvidere North softball

Last Tuesday at home, Morris, just a freshman, earned the victory on the mound, allowing three runs on five hits with six strikeouts, and she also went 3-for-3 with an RBI batting leadoff. The Blue Thunder pounded out 10 runs in the first inning and beat Crystal Lake South 14-3.

Jordan Nuyen, Rochelle track and field

Nuyen soared over the bar set at 14-feet-11 1/3 at Saturday's Class 2A Illinois Top Times Indoor State Championships, winning the pole vault competition, and coming within 2/3 of an inch of the 41-year-old school record of 15 feet, set in 1983 by John Place.

Jasmine Fago, South Beloit softball

This South Beloit freshman went 2-for-3 with 5 RBIs during the Sobos' season-opening 20-0 win over East.

Emma Schlichtmann, Oregon softball

Schlichtmann had her third straight dominant performance on the mound for Oregon last week, mowing through Plano's lineup during a 16-1 victory on Thursday. Earlier in the week, on Tuesday, Schlichtmann struck out eight in four innings of a 10-0 win over Indian Creek.

Paige Stovall, Harlem soccer

Stovall had three goals and four assists during Harlem's 8-0 win over Auburn last week in girls soccer.

Kyla Warkentien, Winnebago softball

Winnebago claimed a 17-2 win over Boylan last week, and Kyla Warkentien pitched four innings, striking out five. She also went 2-for-3 at the plate with a home run, a double and a walk. She had three RBIs and scored three runs.

Jack Washburn, Oregon baseball

The junior pitcher threw a four-hit shutout during Oregon's 11-0 win over Indian Creek early last week, and he had 11 strikeouts and no walks while throwing 57 strikes in his 69 pitches.

Jay Taft is a Rockford Register Star sports reporter. Email him at jtaft@rrstar.com and follow him on Twitter at @JayTaft. Sign up for the Rockford High School newsletter at rrstar.com. Jay has covered a wide variety of sports, from the Chicago Bears to youth sports, since the turn of the century at the Register Star, and for over 30 years altogether.

This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Vote for the Rockford area's Athlete of the Week for March 18-23