Winner of The Olympian’s Athlete of the Week (March 8-13)
Congratulations to the winners of The Olympian’s high school Athlete of the Week poll (March 8-13). Thanks to everyone who voted and supported local student athletes.
Want to nominate a high school athlete from the South Sound in the future? Email TNT sports reporter Lauren Smith with the athlete’s first and last name, school, year, position and a stat line from game(s) during the past week. Nominations must be submitted by 5 p.m. Sunday.
This week’s winner is:
Gabe Downing, Olympia football
Read about the candidates and their accomplishments below:
Bryce Cerkowniak, Yelm XC: Tornados senior ran a season-best 15:44.7 at Timberline, which is the top boys time in Thurston County this spring.
Gabe Downing, Olympia football: Bears sophomore quarterback finished 20-of-28 passing for 350 yards and four TDs in 40-7 win over rival Capital in the Spaghetti Bowl.
Claire Fleckenstein, Olympia soccer: Bears senior tallied five goals and seven assists last week.
Aubrey Harrington, Capital XC: Cougars junior hasn’t lost a race this spring, and ran a season-best 20:31 at North Thurston.
Claire Kondrat, Pope John Paul II XC: Eagles junior ran a personal-best 19:09 at a 1B SeaTac League meet, which is the top girls time in Thurston County this spring.
Devyn Oestreich, Capital volleyball: Cougars senior posted a season-high 23 kills, 18 digs and two blocks in a 3-1 win over rival Olympia.
Alfredo Ramirez, Olympia football: Bears senior hauled in seven catches for 184 yards and two TDs — he finished with 209 total yards — in a 40-7 win over rival Capital in the Spaghetti Bowl. Also logged an interception.
Katelyn Rigg, Olympia soccer: Bears junior has scored eight goals in the past week-and-a-half.
Austin Terry, Tumwater football: T-Birds’ junior tight end hauled in five catches for 62 yards and a TD in a 41-0 shutout of W.F. West. Also tallied two sacks, two tackles and a blocked punt at defensive end for undefeated Tumwater.
Ainsley Wall, Tumwater soccer: T-Birds’ junior paces defense that has allowed one goal this season. Tallied two goals in Tumwater’s 2A EvCo title win over W.F. West.
Note: The poll can be found below the list of candidate accomplishments. If you’re having trouble viewing it, try opening this story in a different web browser, such as Chrome or Safari.
This story was originally published March 15, 2021 at 11:30 AM.
