Hagerty's Ella Verne is voted SBLive Florida Athlete of the Week

Congratulations to Ella Verne, the winner of SBLive Florida's Athlete of Week award as voted by Florida high school sports fans.

Verne, a pitcher for Hagerty, earned 36.93% of the 76,136 votes in a state-wide poll. Though Oxley of Bartow had arguably the top pitching performance of the week, Verne might have one that could rival it. Verne went six innings, allowed one hit and fanned seven in a 1-0 win over Windermere.

Voting is now open for this week’s SBLive Florida Athlete of the Week. Click here to see the candidates and cast your vote.

Here are all the other athletes that were nominated for Apr. 17-Apr. 22:

Franklin Francisco, Columbus, Baseball: In a slugfest against West Broward, Columbus was able to come out on top because of its bats. Can thank Francisco for coming up with a big hit of his own, blasting a grand slam in a 12-6 win for the Explorers.

Vince Decarlo, Jesuit, Baseball: When Jesuit and Clearwater Calvary Christian met last week, they combined for 22 hits, 6 doubles, a triple and four home runs. Decarlo belted two of those home runs in the 14-9 victory over the Warriors.

Jose Garcia, Lakeland, Baseball: Going into Brooksville and beating the Hernando Leopards is no easy task. For Garcia and the Dreadnaughts last week, they did it and also shut out the Leopards. Garcia pitched a complete game and yielded just four hits and fanned eight batters.

Michael Torres, Doral Academy, Baseball: Doral Academy head coach Ralph Suarez has an immense amount of talent at his disposal and Torres came in with three RBIs that proved to be the difference. Torres’ three runs batted in helped lift the Firebirds to a 7-5 win over Plantation American Heritage.

Paul Abolafia, Pembroke Pines Charter, Baseball: Needing a win down the final stretch of the regular season gets tough, but Abolafia made it happen for Pembroke Pines Charter when they needed it. The pitcher went the distance, going seven innings, striking out four in a 3-2 win over University.

Robert Satin, Plant, Baseball: Shutting down a talented lineup like Jefferson's is not easy. Plant ace Robert Satin was sent to the mound and he made it look effortless. Satin pitched seven innings, striking out eight and allowing two hits in a 5-0 win over the Dragons.

Wade Johnson, East Lake, Baseball: Johnson is back as a top performer, but this time dialed it up against a rival: Palm Harbor University. The senior hurler went six strong innings, allowed one hit and fanned eight in a 3-2 win over the Hurricanes.

Red Oxley, Bartow, Softball: One of the top softball pitching performances out of the Sunshine State was from Oxley, who pitched a perfect game against Lake Region after losing to them 10-0 back on Feb. 28. Oxley pitched seven innings and struck out 12 batters and had a perfect game versus the Thunder.

Heather Robertson, Coral Springs Charter, Softball: The sophomore was crucial in helping turn the balance in an 8-2 victory against Palm Beach Gardens. She had a 2-run single that turned the tide and helped lead the Panthers to victory over the Gators.

Ariana Lara, Windermere, Softball: Lara had a big hand in the Wolverines' 12-0 victory over Olympia last week. The game ended early with the 10-run rule, with Lara nabbing two hits and driving in three runs.

Riley Johnson, Bishop Moore, Softball: The freshman accounted for nearly half of the Hornets' runs in a 12-0 victory over Timber Creek last week. Johnson had three hits, a home run and drove in five runs in the win for Bishop Moore.

Yasmin Elaraj, Liberty, Softball: The junior infielder accounted for four RBIs, two doubles and scored three times in Liberty's 29-11 victory over Celebration. Elaraj helped fuel Liberty's highest-scoring output of the season.

Malia Connelly, Clearwater Central Catholic, Softball: When Connelly has it going on, she can be difficult to get a hit off of. That was the scene last Wednesday when she allowed just one hit through five innings, striking out nine in a 5-2 win over Cardinal Mooney.

Hali Horvath, Lake Highland Prep, Girls Lacrosse: The freshman scored a career-high four goals as the Highlanders breezed by All Saints Academy 24-4 in a Class 1A region quarterfinal matchup.

Ar’nayshia Griffin, Bradford, Girls Flag Football: Bradford has started to really turn it up at the right time. Griffin rushed for nearly 100 yards and notched her 18th and 19th interceptions of the season in a 28-12 Class 1A, District 2 semifinal win over Suwanee.

Chase Atterbury, Community School of Naples, Boys Lacrosse: In a Class 1A regional quarterfinal matchup, Atterbury helped his team cruise past Canterbury. The senior scored five goals en route to the win.

Andy Villamarzo can be reached at andyvillamarzo@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @Andy_Villamarzo.