Iowa High School Stars Shine: Register's Female Athlete of the Week Nominees Announced

The Des Moines Register has unveiled its female Athlete of the Week nominees for Oct. 4-10, spotlighting standout performances from across the metro area. From a repeat state tennis champion to a volleyball setter who engineered a dramatic comeback, these young athletes delivered memorable moments in a busy week of competition.

Who are the top Iowa high school female athletes this week?

The week featured the IGHSAU girls state tennis singles and doubles tournaments, held Oct. 7-8. Class 2A competition took place in Waterloo, while Class 1A was contested in Waukee. Volleyball teams across the metro geared up for regional play, and girls cross country and swimming and diving squads moved closer to the postseason.

Readers can vote at DesMoinesRegister.com to determine the winner, who will be announced at the end of the week.

Addison Latta repeats as 2A tennis state champion

Waukee Northwest sophomore Addison Latta claimed her second consecutive Class 2A girls state tennis singles title at the Byrnes Park Tennis Center in Waterloo. Latta went 4-0 at state, sweeping all four opponents in straight sets. She defeated Cedar Falls' Mackenzie Sagers in the championship match, 6-3 and 6-1.

Waukee Northwest also captured the 2A doubles title with the team of Riley Hilton and Alexa Perugini.

Cedar Rapids Xavier dominates 1A tennis

Cedar Rapids Xavier's Gabriella Fleming earned her fourth-consecutive 1A singles title, while teammates Kelsey Weiss and Gemma Younadam took the 1A doubles crown.

Yaretzi Patricio powers Des Moines North swimming

Des Moines North's Yaretzi Patricio won two individual events during a 124-46 dual victory over Des Moines East on Oct. 6. Patricio took first in the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 1:11.54 and claimed the 100 butterfly in 1:12.86.

Isabel Spradling pushes top-ranked runner at Fort Dodge Invitational

Des Moines Roosevelt's Isabel Spradling, ranked No. 14 in Class 4A by the Iowa Association of Track Coaches, finished second at the Fort Dodge Invitational cross country meet on Oct. 8. Spradling ran a 5-kilometer time of 18 minutes, 1.4 seconds, just 3.2 seconds behind Class 4A No. 1 Emmy Stubbendeck.

Julia McGraw leads Indianola volleyball past Des Moines Christian

Julia McGraw guided Class 5A No. 13 Indianola past Des Moines Christian in four sets during a Little Hawkeye Conference match on Oct. 6. McGraw finished with 14 assists, nine kills, four digs, and one block.

Hadley Michael engineers Norwalk's comeback victory

Norwalk's Hadley Michael helped Class 4A No. 1 Norwalk upset Class 5A No. 2 Dallas Center-Grimes in a dramatic five-set Little Hawkeye Conference match on Oct. 6. Michael dished out 50 assists during the 26-24, 21-25, 23-25, 25-15, 15-10 comeback win, adding eight digs, five blocks, three kills, and two aces.

How to vote for the Iowa female Athlete of the Week

Des Moines Register readers can cast their votes online at DesMoinesRegister.com. The winner will be announced at the end of the week.

Joe Randleman covers high school sports for the Ames Tribune. Contact him at jrandleman@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter at @JoeRandleman.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register.