When we here at the Times envisioned the Athletes of the Week section as a place to highlight positive achievements on the court and field of play by the best local WIAA athletes.

Last week, we had an array of negative comments in our online voting section that led us to take some action. We were embarrassed that parents and students would partake in such attitudes on our Web site.

In order for a vote for Athlete of the Week to count, all we ask is a voter's first and last names and hometown. The dozens of e-mails and phone calls I get each day follow the rules perfectly.

Therefore, starting with this week's vote, in an effort to only allow true votes, as well as to crack down on the unnecessary and negative comments regarding players, coaches and fans, we will only accept proper votes posted in the Athletes of the Week story comment field on the Times' Web site. We will not accept votes with additional comments, even if the voter correctly provided his or her first and last names and hometown. If those three pieces of information are filled in correctly, we will accept your vote.

If you have thoughts to share, let them out elsewhere and not in this forum.

- Adam Krebs is the Monroe Times Sports Editor and can be reached at sportseditor@themonroetimes.com or at 328-4202 extension 33.