Nico Torres, North County football: Ran back an interception for a touchdown and returned a punt 45 yards for six as the Condors improved to 3-1 on the season.
Honorable mention: Mario Avila, King City cross country; Treyvon Campbell, Seaside football; Wade Rianda, Palma water polo; Johan Mendez, King City football; Jordan Kim, Monterey water polo; Drew Aber, Carmel water polo; Isaiah Orozco, North Salinas football; Michael Jillian, York cross country; Josh Elmore, Monterey football; Ricardo Diaz, King City cross country; Jose Lopez, Gonzales football; Moises Benito, Palma cross country; Carl Richardson, Salinas football; Nassier Miller, Marina football; Ezequiel Rodriguez, Alisal football.
.
Girls
Iliana Baldwin, North Salinas field hockey: Recorded 18 saves between the pipes in the Vikings win over nemesis and section power Gilroy.
Honorable mention: Madisyn Schweitzer, Gonzales volleyball; Samantha Reich, Salinas water polo; Makenna Hertsh, Monterey field hockey; Sophia Sanico, York water polo; Brenna Ozel, Carmel golf; Sydney Hill, Pacific Grove water polo; Maddie Fisher, Carmel water polo; Aria Adams, Monterey volleyball; Laure Vetter, Notre Dame water polo; Makenzi Laporte, Salinas golf; Logan Riggenbach, Notre Dame volleyball; Kylee Moore, Salinas volleyball; Emma Crabbe, Carmel volleyball; Laura Dean, Santa Catalina field hockey; Aeja Brooks, North Salinas volleyball; Jasmine Lopez, Alvarez volleyball; Audrey Goldsmith, Stevenson volleyball; Ashley Ochoa, Gonzales cross
Going to be MIA for about 28 days, at least that's what I'm being told. In the meantime, if you have something you want tweeted out, just text me. The 50 spring athletes in 50 days will continue on twitter. Stay safe.
All County basketball
Daeja Hollands, North Salinas: The most electric player in the county, Hollands set a North Salinas freshman record for points with 529.
Holland tore up opposing defenses, averaging a county leading 20.84 points a night. She also led the Gabilan in champions in assists at 5.1 and steals at 3.2.
Holland tore up opposing defenses, averaging a county leading 20.84 points a night. She also led the Gabilan in champions in assists at 5.1 and steals at 3.2.
Nathalie Morales, North Salinas: Having beaten cancer last year as a sophomore, Morales made up for lost time this year, averaging 13.8 and 5.1 assists a night.
A sharpshooter on the outside, Morales was arguably one of the best defenders in the county, often asked to guard the opponents best offensive threat. She also averaged 2.3 steals a game.
Leslie Jauregui, North Salinas: The heart of the Vikings defense in the paint Jauregui pulled down over 13 rebounds a game for the league champions.
Jauregui also led North Salinas in block shots at 3.1 a night, disrupting opponents who dared to come inside on the post. The junior chipped in offensively averaging 8.1 points a game.
A sharpshooter on the outside, Morales was arguably one of the best defenders in the county, often asked to guard the opponents best offensive threat. She also averaged 2.3 steals a game.
Leslie Jauregui, North Salinas: The heart of the Vikings defense in the paint Jauregui pulled down over 13 rebounds a game for the league champions.
Jauregui also led North Salinas in block shots at 3.1 a night, disrupting opponents who dared to come inside on the post. The junior chipped in offensively averaging 8.1 points a game.
Makenzi Laporte, Salinas: Sharing Gabilan Division Most Valuable Player honors this past season, Laporte is a two-time member of The Herald's All-County team.
The junior forward made a habit of producing double-doubles all season, averaging 18 points and 12 rebounds a game. Laporte also averaged 5.1 assists and 3.0 steals for Salinas.
Jenika Zurita, Salinas: One of two sophomore named to the team, Zurita ran the Cowboys attack at the point, leading the team in assists at 5.2.
Zurita also gave Salinas another weapon offensively as a shooter, averaging 18 points a game. She was demon defense, compiling 4.3 steals a night.
Zurita also gave Salinas another weapon offensively as a shooter, averaging 18 points a game. She was demon defense, compiling 4.3 steals a night.
Mariah Schlapfer, Notre Dame: A fireball for a point guard, Schlapfer was also asked to guard the opponents top shooting threat, compiling 3.5 steals a game.
Schlapfer provided the offense with a spark, dropping in nine points a night for Notre Dame. Despite being 5-feet tall, the senior also pulled down 3.5 rebounds.
Schlapfer provided the offense with a spark, dropping in nine points a night for Notre Dame. Despite being 5-feet tall, the senior also pulled down 3.5 rebounds.
Natalie Acuna, Notre Dame: Once the transfer was cleared to play, Acuna gave the Spirits offense a shot in the arm, averaging 13.1 points a game for the Division V finalists.
Acuna also handed out 3.2 assists a game and 3.1 rebounds for Notre Dame, who went from one win in the Gabilan to seven this year. She her season with a 22 point effort in the NorCal playoffs.
Acuna also handed out 3.2 assists a game and 3.1 rebounds for Notre Dame, who went from one win in the Gabilan to seven this year. She her season with a 22 point effort in the NorCal playoffs.
Kailey Clymo, Stevenson: The Cypress Division's co Most Valuable Player, Clymo led the Pirates in assists (88) and rebounds (185) this past fall.
The junior guard also averaged 11 points a game and compiled 62 steals for Stevenson, who won 21 games and reached the CCS Division V semifinals.
Lyndsay Llantero, Pacific Grove: One of four repeaters on The Herald's All-County team, Llantero was a double-double machine for the Breakers.
The senior averaged 14.5 points and 10.1 rebounds a game for Pacific Grove. She also lead the team in steals at 4.5 and averaged 4.1 assists a game.
Mikaela Arista, Alisal: Having carried the Trojans to a share of the Mission Division title, the senior guard averaged 19.4 points a game this past season.
Arista scored 20 or more points times, including a season high 35 in one game. She also recorded 83 rebounds, 26 steals and eight block shots.
Arista scored 20 or more points times, including a season high 35 in one game. She also recorded 83 rebounds, 26 steals and eight block shots.
Daja Scott Mitchell, Seaside: A three-time member of The Herald's All-County basketball team, the senior produced 412 points and 238 rebounds this past season
Often double-teamed in the paint, the 6-foot Scott Mitchell averaged 20.6 points and 11.9 rebounds a night for Seaside. She also had 24 steals.
Jason Dennis, Marina: The second year head coach took the Mariners into uncharted waters, taking them to the programs first league title and a school record for wins.
Honorable mention: Elle Bohlman, Carmel; Rhea Cosand, Stevenson; Corrine Sargenti, Notre Dame; Nevaeh Black, North Salinas; Sharrell McDowell, Monterey; Kaitlin Manley, Monterey; Linda Ornelas, Greenfield; Sarai Wheeler, Seaside; Mikayla Villanueva, North County; Kiley Rea, Alvarez; Wendy Porzig, Pacific Grove; Briana Mejia, Alisal; Jordyn Johnson, Marina; Isabella Soto, Alvarez; Theresa Chavez, Soledad; Julianna Alizo, North County; Molly Momberger, Pacific Grove; Kelly Kinion, Notre Dame; Gaby Perez, Stevenson; Erin Trotter, Carmel.
Honorable mention: Elle Bohlman, Carmel; Rhea Cosand, Stevenson; Corrine Sargenti, Notre Dame; Nevaeh Black, North Salinas; Sharrell McDowell, Monterey; Kaitlin Manley, Monterey; Linda Ornelas, Greenfield; Sarai Wheeler, Seaside; Mikayla Villanueva, North County; Kiley Rea, Alvarez; Wendy Porzig, Pacific Grove; Briana Mejia, Alisal; Jordyn Johnson, Marina; Isabella Soto, Alvarez; Theresa Chavez, Soledad; Julianna Alizo, North County; Molly Momberger, Pacific Grove; Kelly Kinion, Notre Dame; Gaby Perez, Stevenson; Erin Trotter, Carmel.
MVP: Hollands, NS.
Darren Jackson, North Salinas.
"Once I saw here there, I knew was a good athlete. She listens, she is a bonafide athletes. She changes the gmae. She oves to compete.''
"She has the green light to shoot the ball. She's very coachable. She finds ways to score. When she got the jumpber goian it was lights out."
"Im telling she'd get that ball out. She's my point guard. She was a devastating point guard. She was to handle that ball and bring it donw court. She can break presses.
5-foot-6. There are time we have come her down. That' because she's young. She gets along so well with her teammates. She's always smiling. But when game comes, she come sto play..
Daeja Hollands at North Salinas
Darren Jackson, North Salinas.
"Once I saw here there, I knew was a good athlete. She listens, she is a bonafide athletes. She changes the gmae. She oves to compete.''
"She has the green light to shoot the ball. She's very coachable. She finds ways to score. When she got the jumpber goian it was lights out."
"Im telling she'd get that ball out. She's my point guard. She was a devastating point guard. She was to handle that ball and bring it donw court. She can break presses.
5-foot-6. There are time we have come her down. That' because she's young. She gets along so well with her teammates. She's always smiling. But when game comes, she come sto play..
Daeja Hollands at North Salinas
Boys
Kai Lee, Carmel:
J.T. Byrne, Carmel:
Aaron Garibay, Palma: The Gabilan Division's Most Valuable Player, Garibay came off the bench as the Chieftains sixth man all season.
The junior guard embraced the role, leading Palma in scoring at 12.2 points a night. He shot 43.3 percent from beyond the 3-point arc, and was among the leaders in assists
Joey Finley, Palma: The sophomore post put together a lot of highlights, leading the Chieftains in rebounds at 6.8, as well as block shots.
The 6-foot-6 Finley also averaged 11.9 points a game and had a knack for the dramatic, hitting the game winning basket against Carmel, en route to a undefeated league season.
Luke Driscoll, Stevenson: The Mission Division Most Valuable Player, Driscoll took the Pirates to a share of their first league title in 11 years.
The 6-foot guard averaged a county high 24.2 points a game, shooting 45 percent from the field. He also averaged 6.1 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 3.1 steals for Stevenson.
Ryan McKinley, Salinas: The 5-foot-9 junior became one of the area top outside shooters, knocking down 73 shots from beyond the 3-point arc.
McKinley averaged 14 points a game for Salinas. He also pulled down 4.3 rebounds and compiled a team high 2.3 steals a night. In two postseason games, he averaged 14 points a game.
McKinley averaged 14 points a game for Salinas. He also pulled down 4.3 rebounds and compiled a team high 2.3 steals a night. In two postseason games, he averaged 14 points a game.
Jadan Adams, Monterey: Evolving as one of the premier guards in the county, Adams had arguably the best second half of any player in the area.
The junior raised his scoring average nearly four points in the second half of the year to 14.8 points a game, dropping in 30 in a playoff win over Burlingame. Adams also compiled 52 assists.
Suheil Ibrahim, Monterey: The senior put the team on his shoulders early in season, finishing the year averaging just under a team high 19 points a game.
The 6-foot-5 Ibrahim lead Monterey in five different categories, finishing with a team high 85 assists, 198 rebounds and 63 steals.
Jamar Howard, Pacific Grove: Just a freshman, Howard opened eyes in the preseason with a 37-point night against North County -- scoring 20 or more points five times.
The 6-foot guard finished the year averaging 16.5 points a night for the Breakers. He also compiled 4.3 rebounds 1.7 assists and 1.4 steals
The 6-foot guard finished the year averaging 16.5 points a night for the Breakers. He also compiled 4.3 rebounds 1.7 assists and 1.4 steals
Cyrus Coffelt, North County: The senior forward came into his own this year on the hardwood for the Condors, averaging a team high 15.5 points a game.
A multi-sport standout at North County, the 6-foot-1 Coffelt also pulled down over five rebounds a night, as well as 2.3 assists and 1.1 steals.
A multi-sport standout at North County, the 6-foot-1 Coffelt also pulled down over five rebounds a night, as well as 2.3 assists and 1.1 steals.
Nate Jean Pierre, Palma: One of two sophomore named to the team, Jean-Pierre finished among the team leaders in assists and steals for the Gabilan Division champions.
The guard averaged 10 points a game, and was a factor on defense, pulling down nearly five rebounds a nigh for Palma.
Despite being bumped to Division III for the State Northern California tournament, the Padres became just fifth team in Monterey County to play for a NorCal title.
Honorable mention: AJ Suniga, Palma; Ethan Fletcher, Carmel; Reed Samuels, Pacific Grove; Brandon Ducusin, North County; Oscar Villagomez, Greenfield; Andrew Almazan, North Salinas; Hector Perez, Salinas; Xavier Cervantez, Gonzales; Benjamin Soria, Stevenson; Max Carr, Carmel; Elijah Wells, Alisal; Zach Lewis, Pacific Grove; Eric Green, Alvarez; Angel Trujillo, King City; Jeremie Banuelos, Gonzales; Devin Morales, King City; Jeter Olivares, Seaside, Zach Thompson, Monterey; Jason Mellin, North County
By John Devine
SALINAS -- Hartnell College track and field coach Chris Zepeda met with his athletes Friday and keep things upbeat with an opportunist approach.
Unlike the NCAA, the CCCAA didn't cancel spring sports' season. It has suspended them, although no time is giving on the potential return because of the coronavirus pandemic.
"We're pretty close to hitting rock bottom," Zepeda said. "We've taken every sporting event and kind of thrown to the side. But I feel fortunate that I still get to meet with my kids."
The California Community College Athletics Association made the decision Friday morning to shut down practices and events for all sprint sports until further notice.
For Hartnell, that includes track and field, swimming, baseball and softball. MPC has track and field, baseball and softball.
Because track and field is a class at Hartnell, Zepeda will be able to conduct practices, with hopes of the season returning in April.
"The CCCAA has not give up," Zepeda said. "So neither have we. Our season hasn't been canceled. What we're trying to figure out is at what level will that be if it returns.
While the Panthers men's and women's track and field program has among the best in the state over the last 40 years, the MPC softball is currently ranked No. 2 in the state at 16-1.
Having come off three straight 30 plus wins season, the Lobos got off to a school record 15-0 start with what head coach Keith Berg called the best assembled squad he's ever had.
"It's a feeling of being deflated," Berg said. "I'm trying to get the energy up and encourage them. But it's hard when athletes are telling you I've worked so hard for this and it's over."
Berg already has two scholarship bound players in Alexia Torculas and Juliette Guerra, who signed on Thursday.
"We had a signing for Juliette and it was totally overshadowed," Berg said. "We're trying to provide some normalcy to life and therapy for all involved. But it's hard. These are college kids. They are aware of the situation."
Torculas, who is headed to the University of San Diego, is among the state leaders, hitting .596 with nine home runs and 34 runs batted in over 17 games.
Berg was expected to meet with recruitors from the University of New Mexico on Thursday over a pair of players for the Lobos.
That was canceled earlier in the week when the New Mexico officials told their recruitors to return immediately.
"It's hard to look at these kids' faces right now," Berg said. "We feel we've established ourselves as 'Last chance U'. Kids that come here, there chances of succeeding and progressing are strong."
That holds true for the Panthers track and field program. Daniela Salazar is currently ranked No. 1 in the state in the 1,500 and 5,000. She coming off an All-American season in cross country.
"She was starting to get a lot inquiries for colleges," Zepeda said. "My heart hurts for these kids. But this is more than just about our kids. Most understand that."
As opportunist as Zepeda has remained, he's concern about the mental state of athletes more than the physical nature of the postponement.
"I worry about the mental health of these kids over the next 14 days," Zepeda said. "When you pull things from kids, you wonder where our youth will channel that energy."
Zepeda is always anxious to see if the NCAA changes its rules and allows senior athletes to have an extra year of eligibility, as has already been brought up.
Would that pertain to a junior college kid that is sophomore, but has had just a couple of meets under their belt this spring.
"Will the NCAA be symnathic to our kids," Zepeda said. "Will some of our kids get an opportunity to return and fulfill their second season if we don't resume the year? Not everyone is going to run beyond this level."
Unlike the NCAA, the CCCAA didn't cancel spring sports' season. It has suspended them, although no time is giving on the potential return because of the coronavirus pandemic.
"We're pretty close to hitting rock bottom," Zepeda said. "We've taken every sporting event and kind of thrown to the side. But I feel fortunate that I still get to meet with my kids."
The California Community College Athletics Association made the decision Friday morning to shut down practices and events for all sprint sports until further notice.
For Hartnell, that includes track and field, swimming, baseball and softball. MPC has track and field, baseball and softball.
Because track and field is a class at Hartnell, Zepeda will be able to conduct practices, with hopes of the season returning in April.
"The CCCAA has not give up," Zepeda said. "So neither have we. Our season hasn't been canceled. What we're trying to figure out is at what level will that be if it returns.
While the Panthers men's and women's track and field program has among the best in the state over the last 40 years, the MPC softball is currently ranked No. 2 in the state at 16-1.
Having come off three straight 30 plus wins season, the Lobos got off to a school record 15-0 start with what head coach Keith Berg called the best assembled squad he's ever had.
"It's a feeling of being deflated," Berg said. "I'm trying to get the energy up and encourage them. But it's hard when athletes are telling you I've worked so hard for this and it's over."
Berg already has two scholarship bound players in Alexia Torculas and Juliette Guerra, who signed on Thursday.
"We had a signing for Juliette and it was totally overshadowed," Berg said. "We're trying to provide some normalcy to life and therapy for all involved. But it's hard. These are college kids. They are aware of the situation."
Torculas, who is headed to the University of San Diego, is among the state leaders, hitting .596 with nine home runs and 34 runs batted in over 17 games.
Berg was expected to meet with recruitors from the University of New Mexico on Thursday over a pair of players for the Lobos.
That was canceled earlier in the week when the New Mexico officials told their recruitors to return immediately.
"It's hard to look at these kids' faces right now," Berg said. "We feel we've established ourselves as 'Last chance U'. Kids that come here, there chances of succeeding and progressing are strong."
That holds true for the Panthers track and field program. Daniela Salazar is currently ranked No. 1 in the state in the 1,500 and 5,000. She coming off an All-American season in cross country.
"She was starting to get a lot inquiries for colleges," Zepeda said. "My heart hurts for these kids. But this is more than just about our kids. Most understand that."
As opportunist as Zepeda has remained, he's concern about the mental state of athletes more than the physical nature of the postponement.
"I worry about the mental health of these kids over the next 14 days," Zepeda said. "When you pull things from kids, you wonder where our youth will channel that energy."
Zepeda is always anxious to see if the NCAA changes its rules and allows senior athletes to have an extra year of eligibility, as has already been brought up.
Would that pertain to a junior college kid that is sophomore, but has had just a couple of meets under their belt this spring.
"Will the NCAA be symnathic to our kids," Zepeda said. "Will some of our kids get an opportunity to return and fulfill their second season if we don't resume the year? Not everyone is going to run beyond this level."
WEEK IN REVIEW
By John Devine
So what do we do now?
These are unsettling times for America, not just high school sports.
Yet, prep sports is such an integral part of our society, for kids that participate and parents and alum that support their programs.
And now it has been taken away from us. We do not know for all long because we've never been hit in our lifetimes with this type of situation where a virus has threatened the world with a pandemic.
Suspending all sports was the absolute right call. No one is happy about it. But it's understood the severity of what is transpiring throughout the globe.
Still, sports is often the outlet kids need in their lives. It motivates, provides confidence and builds character in a teenager. Sports is an extension of the classroom.
Teams become families for three months. You often hear about the brotherhood or sisterhood that sports provides. Unless you've competed or coached a sport, you don't understand.
We don't have that right now. Instead, we have baron baseball field, vacant track facilities and pools and gyms with no competitors.
We have to be prepared for the fact that the spring season might have ended. We have to hope that this will have a different ending.
"There are circumstances we don't know," Pacific Grove baseball coach Gil Ruiz said. "There is no clear direction. But you can't overthink things. Everyone will have to play by the rules."
If you're a senior, it could be the end of the road. There are no redshirt years in high school sports. Fewer than 15 percent of high school athletes move on and play in college.
And that's what hurts if you're a senior that has worked for four years for this moment. It's your time to shine in the spotlight.
Right now athletes, coaches and parents are in limbo. The hope is the shut downs of all sports and other activities around the nation will help with the containment of the coronavirus pandemic.
But there are no guarantees.
"It's out of our control," Palma track and field coach Jason Smith said. "It's life lessons."
In the meantime, athletes at public schools can hold their own practices. But coaches are not allowed to be part of the practice until the district decides if the spring sports seasons will resume.
Some schools are locked down, meaning the sports facilities are also off limits. Stevenson has even told its borders they have to leave the dorms.
Bottom line.
You can only practice for so long before kids show a disinterest.
"We had a team meeting when this broke," Ruiz said. "These kids are smart enough to know this is the right action to take. The next action is how do we stay sharp."
Because there's still hope that there will be a season, albeit shorter. If the season does resume, the CIF will decide -- committee meets on Tuesday - if there are any postseason events.
That will likely be decided at a later date, depending on if or when the regulars for most schools in California resume activities sometime in April.
Spring sports like baseball and softball might find it a little easier to throw or find a batting cage. The same hold true for a golfer or tennis player.
Yet, sports like track and field and swimming, where the athlete have to push themselves to keep that stamina and maintain a high level, can get cumbersome when alone.
"It comes down to the individual," said Smith, who has been at Palma for 20 years. "This is a place we've never been before. Maybe we can hold an all-comers meet for kids."
Because, without the motivation of a coach, or competition, the interest for athletes is bound to fade as some wears on and the wait is extended. Inspirational speeches only go so far.
"The kids have to find a way to stay involved and ready," Ruiz said. "No one is set up for this. You don't want to have to start from zero again if it resumes."
Smith believes if track resumes, it's possible the dual meet season will be a wash and the focus will turn solely to the league finals, which is where athletes advance.
"I think we're already at the point that if we get back into the season in mid April, it will be preparing for the league finals," Smith said. "Marks will be down. But at least it's something to cling to hope."
These are unsettling times for America, not just high school sports.
Yet, prep sports is such an integral part of our society, for kids that participate and parents and alum that support their programs.
And now it has been taken away from us. We do not know for all long because we've never been hit in our lifetimes with this type of situation where a virus has threatened the world with a pandemic.
Suspending all sports was the absolute right call. No one is happy about it. But it's understood the severity of what is transpiring throughout the globe.
Still, sports is often the outlet kids need in their lives. It motivates, provides confidence and builds character in a teenager. Sports is an extension of the classroom.
Teams become families for three months. You often hear about the brotherhood or sisterhood that sports provides. Unless you've competed or coached a sport, you don't understand.
We don't have that right now. Instead, we have baron baseball field, vacant track facilities and pools and gyms with no competitors.
We have to be prepared for the fact that the spring season might have ended. We have to hope that this will have a different ending.
"There are circumstances we don't know," Pacific Grove baseball coach Gil Ruiz said. "There is no clear direction. But you can't overthink things. Everyone will have to play by the rules."
If you're a senior, it could be the end of the road. There are no redshirt years in high school sports. Fewer than 15 percent of high school athletes move on and play in college.
And that's what hurts if you're a senior that has worked for four years for this moment. It's your time to shine in the spotlight.
Right now athletes, coaches and parents are in limbo. The hope is the shut downs of all sports and other activities around the nation will help with the containment of the coronavirus pandemic.
But there are no guarantees.
"It's out of our control," Palma track and field coach Jason Smith said. "It's life lessons."
In the meantime, athletes at public schools can hold their own practices. But coaches are not allowed to be part of the practice until the district decides if the spring sports seasons will resume.
Some schools are locked down, meaning the sports facilities are also off limits. Stevenson has even told its borders they have to leave the dorms.
Bottom line.
You can only practice for so long before kids show a disinterest.
"We had a team meeting when this broke," Ruiz said. "These kids are smart enough to know this is the right action to take. The next action is how do we stay sharp."
Because there's still hope that there will be a season, albeit shorter. If the season does resume, the CIF will decide -- committee meets on Tuesday - if there are any postseason events.
That will likely be decided at a later date, depending on if or when the regulars for most schools in California resume activities sometime in April.
Spring sports like baseball and softball might find it a little easier to throw or find a batting cage. The same hold true for a golfer or tennis player.
Yet, sports like track and field and swimming, where the athlete have to push themselves to keep that stamina and maintain a high level, can get cumbersome when alone.
"It comes down to the individual," said Smith, who has been at Palma for 20 years. "This is a place we've never been before. Maybe we can hold an all-comers meet for kids."
Because, without the motivation of a coach, or competition, the interest for athletes is bound to fade as some wears on and the wait is extended. Inspirational speeches only go so far.
"The kids have to find a way to stay involved and ready," Ruiz said. "No one is set up for this. You don't want to have to start from zero again if it resumes."
Smith believes if track resumes, it's possible the dual meet season will be a wash and the focus will turn solely to the league finals, which is where athletes advance.
"I think we're already at the point that if we get back into the season in mid April, it will be preparing for the league finals," Smith said. "Marks will be down. But at least it's something to cling to hope."
By John Devine
SAN FRANCISCO -- Only four basketball programs in the county have ever reached this plateau.
Make it five.
Carmel has put itself in rarified company with its historical season.
The Padres are headed to the State Northern California Division III semifinals after going into St. Ignatius Thursday and erupting for a 59-42 win.
With it comes a home game Saturday, when No. 7 Carmel host No. 11 Foothill - 67-58 winners over Sequoia.
Foothill opened the tournament with a 17-point win at Palma on Tuesday.
"The seniors have taken leadership of the team," Carmel coach Kurt Grahl said. "Those players have to take charge on the floor to make a run. We're playing at a higher level."
SAN FRANCISCO -- Only four basketball programs in the county have ever reached this plateau.
Make it five.
Carmel has put itself in rarified company with its historical season.
The Padres are headed to the State Northern California Division III semifinals after going into St. Ignatius Thursday and erupting for a 59-42 win.
With it comes a home game Saturday, when No. 7 Carmel host No. 11 Foothill - 67-58 winners over Sequoia.
Foothill opened the tournament with a 17-point win at Palma on Tuesday.
"The seniors have taken leadership of the team," Carmel coach Kurt Grahl said. "Those players have to take charge on the floor to make a run. We're playing at a higher level."
The only boys programs to get this far have been Palma, Pacific Grove and Seaside. The lone girls program was Notre Dame.
The reigning two-time Central Coast Section Division IV champions have won a school record 25 wins this season.
"The kids really have full belief in the system we're running," Grahl said. "That's been evident the last two weeks."
"We have been working together for seven years," said Kai Lee, in reference to the seniors on the roster. "Put it on the floor. Empty the tank."
The Padres are 5-0 in the postseason, having won a pair of nailbitters, while blowing out Santa Cruz in the CCS title game, and humbling No. 2 seed St. Ignatius.
"We didn't ask to move up a division," Grahl said. "We just control what we can. We are playing at a high level."
Having fallen to just three teams all season, the Padres will face Foothill team that Grahl is familiar with -- at least the head coach.
The two coached against each other when both were in the Sacramento area a decade ago.
"I know about how he coached in 2010," said Grahl, who has remained friends with Foothill coach Bill Elliott. "This will be a fundamentally sound and well prepared team."
The Cougars are 27-5 this season, having fallen to Pleasant Valley in the Central Section title game seven days ago.
"Foothill won't beat themselves," Grahl said. "Which is really important when you get to this level. This will be out toughest opponent to this point."
What the Padres have done well in the postseason is play defense. In the CCS title game, it held Santa Cruz 31 points.
When St. Ignatius got to within five to open the fourth quarter, the defense clamped down, holding them to five point in the fourth quarter.
"The game plan was to put pressure on them, smart pressure," Grahl said. "We made sure we kept it out of the middle. If we could funnel them to the sidelines, we kept them to one side of the floor."
With J.T. Byrne picking up points in the paint and Lee and Max Carr finding their shoot, Carmel opened up seven point halftime lead, extending it to 11with 4:23 left in the third.
"Offensively we ran the floor and passed," Grahl said. "We were able to get a few easy baskets and get the a lead."
Yet, much like the Padres Northern California opener, in which it watched a 13-point lead over Marin Catholic evaporate, St. Ignatius climbed back to within five going to the fourth.
"Protect the ball and defend," Lee told his teammates to open the fourth quarter.
Message sent.
"Protect the ball and defend," Lee told his teammates to open the fourth quarter.
Message sent.
The Padres held St. Ignatius to three points over the next eight minutes, building as much as a 19 point cushion with 19 seconds left in the game.
"We want our best players on the floor making plays in the fourth quarter," Grahl said. "But they have to have fresh legs. The guys on the bench are giving up quality minutes to make that happen."
And while his name rarely shows up in the scoring column, point guard Ethan Fletcher is ignites the Padres attack with his ball handling and crisp passes.
"He has to handle the pressure," Grahl said. ".He makes the right play ad gets into the right peoples hands or splits the trap. Ethan is the unsung guy."
Hill reunites love of basketball at MPC at 33
By John Devine
MONTEREY -- Being a mother five changes your priorities. It pushes ambitions back, grounds your personal visions, alters your mindset.
What it didn't stop Tenisha Hill from doing was having a dream of returning to the hardwood, albeit 15 years after playing her last high school basketball game.
A return to basketball remained in the back of her mind, even as the 33-year-old Monterey Peninsula College freshman went another year without stepping on the court in a competitive environment.
"I had to put it on the back burner," Hill said. "Having kids taught me to let my selfishness go. But I couldn't get athletes out of my system."
An understanding husband, the willingness to commute each day from Soledad, and an inner drive to squash self doubts has turned Hill into arguably the Lobos Most Valuable Player this year.
The 5-foot-11 forward is averaging a team high 15.3 points and nearly 12 rebounds a game for the Lobos, who close their season Friday, hosting Gavilan.
"We're getting calls from four year colleges about her," MPC women's coach Wendy Bates said. "No one realizes she's 33.
Hill's kids, who range from 16 months to 13 years old, quiz her each time she comes home from a game or practice.
"My kids ask me if I'm headed to the WNBA?" Hill said. "Am I gonna dunk? Mom did you make it on twitter? I get to share a different part of my life with them."
It wasn't Hill's intention to wait until she was 33 to return to play her first college game. Originally, she had considering come out in 2016.
In fact, the multi-sport standout ran track at MPC in 2017, reaching the state meet in the 100 hurdles and high jump.
"There wasn't a women's coach on this campus that didn't talk to her," Bates said. "I knew she was a phenomenal athlete watching her participate in track."
Yet, the tole it took on her body saw her suffer a knee injury that required surgery after the season, all but taking her out of the mix of returning to basketball that falling winter.
"I wrenched my knee long jumping," Hill said. "At that point, I was thinking maybe this isn't for me. I had to have surgery and go through the rebab process."
At the same time, Hill began to do more research her body, how to train better, strengthened herself, maximize her energy, getting into the best shape of her life.
"I realized that my body can get through these trials and tribulations," said Hill, who hadn't played in a game since her senior year at Westside High in Augusta, Georgia.
Of course, Hill was forced to put her return on hold one more season after she became pregnant with her fifth child.
Hill initiated talk with Bates when she walked into the gym in 2017, expressing an interest in wanting to play basketball. But she didn't see her again until last fall.
"Two years later she got the green light and just kind of reappeared," Bates said. "I didn't know she had another baby. She was in great shape."
Having played basketball since she was five years old, and spreading her knowledge to her children only made the itch to get back on the court more pressing.
"I couldn't let basketball go, not yet," Hill said. "I kept saying to myself I'd like to do it again. I felt I could still play at a high level. I needed the opportunity to be right."
Hill, who erupted for a 31 points and 20 rebounds in an upset over Mission last week, is shooting over 46 percent from the field, and a team high 1.6 blocks a night.
"It's been hard juggling my kids' sports as well as myself," Hill said. "This only works because of my coaches support and my husband. He said I'll do what I can on this side."
No question, the transition of playing with teammates that are 18-19 years old was an adjustment for Hill. She is not one to old back on her emotions.
"It was had at first mixing in with a bunch kids," Hill said. "I felt I needed to take on a mothers role. I give advice when it was needed and when it wasn't -- on an off the court."
There's a drive in Hill that she hoped would get contagious. She's passionate about the game. Seeing the season end Friday wasn't not her expectation when he season began.
"Sometimes I feel they don't understand the game," Hill said. "There's a difference between being a basketball player and loving it. It comes back to heart and work ethics."
Hill passion has never swayed during a 7-19 season. She pushes her teammate is practice, attempts to motivate them through difficult stretches.
"She leads by example on the court," Bates said. "She's willing to do the dirty work. As her confidence grew, she's played longer stretched without giving her a blow and playing at a high level."
If the close the season is an indication, the Lobos are pointed in the right direction, having won three of its last four games, avenging a pair of 30-point losses this year.
"I want to be that players that motivates and has my teammates piggybacking of what we want to do as a team," Hill said.
For as demanding as it is raising kids, going to school and juggling basketball, Hill felt the season went by so fast.
"I blinked and its ending," Hill said. "I'm said that it's ending. I wish it wasn't ending. We're playing so much better. I believe I exceeded my own expectations. I have to put this wish into next year."
Meaning Hill's intentions are to return to MPC next season, providing a big piece to Bates rebuilding process.
"Oh, I'm coming back," Hill said. "I made a decision that I was going to play two years. I'll just add to my goals. My body held up well. There is a great support system here with the coaches."
A left-handed shooter, Hill is explosive in the open court, penetrating to the basket, who setting up shop in the paint and dominating opponents 15 years younger than her.
Yet, what Hill takes pride in his her defense, especially her rebounding, where she has averaged nearly 20 in her last three games.
"That's my specialty, Hill said. "I take a lot of pride in rebounding. I can be a slasher or rim runner on offense. But I feel like rebounds get points.
While the Lobos struggled this year, Hill, who will be one of four returning players, doesn't feel the program is that far from competing for supremacy in the Coast Conference.
"What has to happen, the players that come in have to dictate themselves," Hill said. "Being focused, listening and fix things in practice, not games."
By John Devine
Tom Tebbs, who spent 27 years covering sports for the Monterey Herald, before retiring in 2001, passed away Wednesday from complications from diabestes at the age 77.
The long time sports writer and sports editor helped build the Herald Sports Department in mid 1980's, expanding its local coverage beyond the Monterey peninsula.
Tebbs was The Heralds beat writer for the Raiders in 1980 when they won the Super Bowl, and became the papers 49ers beat writer in 1981, when they won the Super Bowl.
Yet, his passion and love for high school and junior college sports was evident in the relationships he built with athlete and coaches for nearly three decades.
"I think what he will be best remember for was how much he cherished covering local sports," said his son Steve. "He built relationships that went beyond sports."
Tebbs covered some of the county greatest athletes, including Mike Aldrete, Pete O'Brien, Chris Dalman, Herm Edwards, Ron Rivera, Anthony Toney, Del Rodgers and Pete Incaviglia.
"I kept in touch with a lot of these athletes after high school," Steve Tebbs said. "I remember as a kid he took me to watch Mike Aldrete play at Stanford, Ron Rivera aa Cal. "He followed them on their paths."
While Tebbs covered the 49ers for nearly two decades, including all five Super Bowls wins, his son remembered him telling him that his real came covering a high school event or golf tournament.
"I remember him telling me I'd much rather talk to a high school athletes than stand around with 100 media members in a locker room trying to talk to Joe Montana," Steve Tebbs said. "He just felt more comfortable talking with local athletes."
Tebbs, who lived in Oak Hills, spent his last year at The Herald working in the business department before retiring.
Tebbs has a passion for golf, spending a lot of his retirement on the links until he became ill.
"He loved the peninsula and golf," Steve Tebbs said. "The golf community was such a large part of his life. He loved to golf."
His last sports assignment for The Herald was covering the U.S. Open in 2000 in Pebble Beach, where Tiger Woods won.
"I got hired as a stringer to cover it as well," Steve Tebbs said. "I got to work alongside my dad for seven days. It will always be very special to me."
Tebbs is survived by his wife of 53 years Sandy, his son Steve Tebbs and two grandchildren.
By John Devine
Five years ago I got the most unsettling answer about a question I presented to my son about sports as a then nine-year-old.
Sports didn't seem to be of interest to him at all. Not participating, not watching, not reading it, not even a photo with Michael Irvin in downtown Houston during one of my 15 Super Bowls.
So on his ninth birthday, while we were playing catch, I simply asked him 'James, how come you don't like sports?"
His answer was immediate with no thought involved. He was prepared. 'Because it takes you away from me.'
Speechless, I began to question my values. Was I spending too much time carrying about other kids instead of my own?
Over time, he has learned that sports can have some value and provide a shot in the arm, such as the time he sank a game winning free throw against his teachers in a seventh grade basketball game.
It was the only shot me made. It was probably a prayer. But it went in and his teammates mobbed him.
Competing in track and field this spring as a high school freshman was a wake up call. It took more than a handful of inspirational speeches to convince him to finish the first week.
Two weeks into the season and he still wasn't convinced this was fun. All this running for what? One or two races.
The reminder was the reward of improvement each meet. Winning wasn't the criteria. Keep working and the results will follow.
How about both?
In his first official meet, James shot out of the blocks like a animal running scared, floated over eight hurdles like a freshman in a 300 meter race and won the event by 15 yards.
The look in his eye was priceless. He was excited. I was emotional. He had teammates coming over and high fiving him.
At that point, he understood the camaraderie that sports provides as an individual, that sense of self-satisfaction that accompanies hard work.
His times wasn't spectacular. He has a ways to go to catch up to his old man. But it was a starting point in a race he was sure to improve upon as his hurdle technique slowly got better.
Or so we all envisioned.
With sports of all levels in this country having come to an halt because of the coronavirus pandemic, all that momentum generated is in a holding pattern.
Once again the inspirational speeches are resurfacing, the importance of staying in shape in case the season resumes.
Kids know what's going on. There is no magic potion that is going to make this virus vanish anytime soon.
So now the questioned has been presented to me by my son. "What's the purpose in going over five hurdles four times in a workout if the season is over?"
My response was simple. "Hope."
We have to hope that spring sports at the high school level will resume at some point this year. Yet, as each day passes and the coronavirus cases increase, hope is being tested.
It's tough to ask a kid, whether it's yours or someone you coach, to follow this workout program over the course of -- well we don't know how long.
Because the minimal time before any school reopens is three weeks. I don't even know if five weeks is realistic as this point.
Instead of spending time on his phone playing games, my son often checking the count of cases and telling me we're up another 300 or 400 coronavirus cases.
"My season is over, isn't it," he asked.
"I don't know," was my answer.
For now, he's going grind, get some use out of those track spikes, spend more time perfecting the art of clearing a 36 inch barrier on a 5-foot-9 frame.
If there's a silver lining, he will have more time to work on his technique with fresh legs, since we have a hurdle in the house.
Yet, the longer this absence from competition goes, that he's asked to train without a team, the further he and other kids are going to drift from their sports.
"Deep down inside, I don't think the season is going to resume," my son said. "I'm not sad. But I feel bad for the seniors. I can come back next year if I want. The experience was different."
All County basketball
1. Luke Driscoll, Stevenson
2. J.T. Byrne, Carmel
3. Kai Lee, Carmel
4. Aaron Garibay, Palma
5. Joey Finley, Palma
6. Ishreim Ibrahim, Monterey
7. Jaden Adams, Monterey
8. Jamar Howard, Pacific Grove
9. Cyrus Coffelt, North County
10. Ryan McKinley, Salinas
Honorable mention: Nate Jean-Pierre, Palma; AJ Suniga, Palma; Ethan Fletcher, Carmel; Reed Samuels, Pacific Grove; Brandon Ducusin, North County; Oscar Villagomez, Greenfield; Andrew Almazan, North Salinas; Hector Perez, Salinas; Xaver Cervantez, Gonzales basketball; Benjamin Soria, Stevenson basketball; Max Carr, Carmel; Elijah Wells, Alisal basketball; Zach Lewis, Pacific Grove; Eric Green, Alvarez; Angel Trujillo, King City.
All County girls basketball
1. Daeja Hollands, North Salinas
2. Nathalie Morales, North Salinas
3. Makenzi Laporte, Salinas:
4. Jenika Zurita, Salinas:
5. Daja Scott Mitchell, Seaside:
6. Kailey Clymo, Stevenson;
7. Mariah Schalpfer, Notre Dame
8. Kelly Kinion, Notre Dame:
9. Lyndsey, Llantero, Pacific Grove
10. Makela Artista, Alisal
Honorable mention: Elle Bohlman, Carmel; Rhea Cosand, Stevenson; Corrine Sargenti, Notre Dame; Nevah Black, North Salinas; Sharrell McDowell, Monterey; Kaitlin Manley, Monterey; Linda Ornelas, Greenfield; Sarai Wheeler, Seaside; Mikayla Villanueva, North County; Kiley Rea, Alvarez; Isabella Soto, Alvarez; Wendy Porzig, Pacific Grove; Briana Mejia, Alisal; Leslie Jauregui, North Salinas; Jordyn Johnson, Marina; Theresa Chavez, Soledad
MONTEREY -- From fighting back tears to a smile that lite up a gym.
Kai Lee has seen both ends of the spectrum over two sports in a span of three months.
"This is history in the making" the Carmel senior sharpshooter said.
Lee was referring to the Padres defending their Central Coast Section Division IV boys basketball title Saturday after a 64-31 decision over Santa Cruz at Monterey Peninsula College.
"It's just a great feeling," Lee said. "I'm so happy we as a team, were able to leave our mark on the program."
Clutching the CCS trophy, the 6-foot-4 Lee held high like the Stanley Cup, with his teammates and student reaching for a feel.
"It's going to take a couple of days to sink in," Lee said.
As joyous as the celebration was, it didn't take long for talk to turn to the State Northern California playoffs, which being on Tuesday.
Carmel will go into the tournament with the same identical 23-4 overall record as last year, when it was bumped to Division II.
"Regardless of where we are put, I hope we get home game," Carmel coach Kurt Grahl. "It did not feel like much of a reward last year being bumped two divisions and going on the road."
The Padres have fallen to just three teams all season, whose combined record is 75-13. Two of those teams will be in the Northern California tournament.
"State is something we have talked about since day one," said J.T. Byrne, who led the Padres with 17 points and 12 rebounds. "I'm excited for it. We're excited for it."
While Carmel and Santa Cruz were meeting for the second straight year in the section finals, that's where the similarities ended.
The Padres jumped out to an 8-0 lead and were command the entire game, building as much as a 35 point cushion in the third quarter.
"When I came here three years ago, I felt Carmel needed an edge," Grahl said. "We needed to get the kids out of their comfort zone to compete at a higher level."
In Grahl's four years at Carmel, the program has delievered a pair of league titles and back-to-back CCS championships.
"If you're going to beat teams you're not suppose to beat, you need to play with focus, toughness and a chip on your shoulder," Grahl said.
Of course, it doesn't hurt to be unselfish as well. Lee, who is averaging over 17 points a game, was asked to be a defensive demon and contain the Cardinals Scotty Pramuk.
"Kai's floor leadership was huge," Grahl said. "He sacrificed his own points to shut down their top scorer and distribute."
Lee has his moment as shooter as well, hitting 3-point goal just before the buzzer to give Carmel a 18-11 first quarter.
With Lee and Ethan Fletcher moving the ball and flow of game, Hunter Heger and Max Carr got wide open looks for 3-point goals.
"Without Ethan, the success isn't happening," Byrne said. "He makes it where teams can't pressure us. He makes you play when you overplay things. He has such great vision on the court."
The options Carmel presented were endless. Sophomore Amir Brown came of the bench and was a beast in the paint, with eight points in the first half, helping extend the lead to 15 at the half.
"One of the benefits having a group like this a kid like Amir had to up against J.T. everyday," Grahl said. "Amir has grown as a player and in his confidence in what we're trying to do."
Brown and Byrne dominated the point with puts back, or open looks off passes from Fletcher. Before Santa Cruz cold slow momentum, it was staring at a 31-point deficit in the third quarter.
"Defense," Lee said. "We were super aggressive. They struggled with it. This was our best all-around game of the year."
That defense held Santa Cruz 20 points after the first quarter.
"We told ourselves at halftime this game is not over," said Byrne, who is averaging 23 points a game this year, dropping in a career high 42 earlier in the season.
Byrne, who has a offers on the table from Oregon State and Cornell to play football, stood outside the gym and paused for a moment.
"Oh my gosh, it feels so surreal," Byrne said. "We did such a good job at a group. We were united and played as one."
Olandis Mathes
By John Devine
CARMEL -- His birth date is littered with two's, even down to the time Olandis Mathes was born at 9:02 p.m. in 2002.
So it only seemed fitting that becoming just the second Carmel High wrestler to win a Central Coast Section title would come on his birthday - 2/22/20, where he wrestled at 9:22 p.m.
"It's kind of freakish," Mathes said. "I don't know if it's coincidental. Two has always been a favorite number of mine."
Mathes, who watched the state meet from the stands last season, will be on the mats Thursday in the first day of what he hopes will stretch of four days in Bakersfield.
"No one from Carmel has ever captured a match at state," Mathes said. "That's the goal. The ultimate goal is to podium."
Mathes kept rolling out two's at the CCS finals, beating his opponent in the finals for the second time this season.
"He beat me in the first tournament this year," Mathes said. "But when I beat him four weeks later, I knew I made the right decision to drop a weight class."
In a sport where athletes often jump a weight class as they get older and stronger, Mathes vacated the 220 pound division this winter, dropping down to 195.
As superstitious as the 18-year-old figures that have the number two in them, wrestling at the weight never felt right.
"I thought I'd do better at a heavier class," Mathes said. "But I did not like how I felt. I felt slow and out of shape."
So Mathes trained in the off season with both the track and basketball teams, dropped 20 pounds and got quicker in the circle, without losing an ounce of strength.
"I started running six miles twice a week," Mathes said "I changed my eating habits. I felt 195 would be a better fit. I made the cut."
The off-season regiment is where Mathes evolved. The Sunday runs, a change in eating habits helped him cut weight and chisel him out.
"He made a different kind of commitment to his wrestling," Carmel coach Russ Shugar said. "He did some extra running to drop weight. He was fat and happy last year."
It wasn't that Mathes was struggling at 220 pound. In fact, last year he won a league title and missed a spot in the state meet by one spot, placing fourth at the CCS finals.
"It left me heartbroken," Mathes said. "I did not achieve my goals. At the same time, it fueled me to work even harder in the off season. I used it as motivation to push harder.
Yet, finishing second in his first tournament this year at 195 pounds wasn't the result he had hoped for, leaving some doubts in his mind.
"Not in my abilities," Mathes said. "It did question if dropping a class was the right move. But when I beat that same guy four weeks later, I knew this was the smart decision."
Despite a torn muscle in his right shoulder that may require surgery at some point, Mathes has been a beast on the mats, posting a 28-1 in the CCS.
"I feel a lot quicker," Mathes said. "My stamina is a lot better. My technique is better. Roberto Dixon really helped me with my moves with the Monterey Wrestling Club."
While he no longer wears a brace for his shoulder, he did tweak it at the sections finals, although it didn't effect his performance in a 11-8 win.
"The brace slowed my mobility," Mathes said. "It ended up hurting me more. My shoulder will come out of its socket. I get treatment each day. I have to be smart and don't overextend it."
Considering a thrower when wrestling, opponents began to catch on to Mathes' strengths last year as a junior. With Dixon, he began to change his style, utilizing his quickness.
"Over the summer, I worked on shooting more," Mathes said. "Meaning instead of just throwing my opponents, is started taking them down by going after the legs."
That style of wrestling has made Mathes a more well-rounded wrestling, according to Shugar, who has coached both of Carmel's CCS champions.
"He expanded his wrestling package by attaching legs," Shugar said. "When you attack legs, it opens up throws. He's worked extremely hard to put himself in this position."
Being a CCS champions didn't quite sink in until the following day for Mathes. Even has he left the podium, he was in a fog.
"I remember looking into the crowd and seeing people cheering," Mathes said. "It was super surreal. "I didn't hit me when I left the gym. The next day I was thinking 'I won CCS."
It didn't take long for Mathes to turn his thoughts towards the state tournament, which is often an overwhelming experience for first time competitors.
Over the summer, Mathes experienced a similar state when he competed in the Junior Nationals in Fargo, North Dakota.
"That was overwhelming," Mathes said. "I lost my two matches. I didn't do as well as I wanted. But was a good learning experience that I will use going into the state tournament."
With plans to attend the University of Oregon next year - who doesn't have a wrestling program, the future is uncertain in terms of continuing his wrestling. The present is all that matters.
"State is an amazing atmosphere," Mathes said. "I'd love to place. But the goal is to win at least one match. It would be a big accomplishment for my school. I'm just there to wrestle."
By John Devine
MONTEREY -- The California Collegiate Athletic Association announced Thursday afternoon that has suspended play for all sports because of fears of the coronavirus pandemic.
CSU Monterey Bay learned of the conferences decision just before the baseball team was set to leave for Cal State San Marcos.
"I'm not sure how to react right now," CSUMB coach Walt White said. "I'm having a hard time with the finality of it. It's understandable and probably necessary. But I don't see a silver lining."
After the CCAA made its announcement, the NCAA sent out a press release shortly after that it was cancelling its winter and spring sports championships, meaning the Otters season is over."
"Information is coming is coming in quickly," White said. "Things are changing rapidly. As of now, we're done."
The Otters practiced Thursday morning, and had expected to play this weekend. White hadn't had a chance to tell his players when the news broke.
"Some teams were in vans when the word came out," White said. "We had not left yet because of a weather related issue in San Diego with San Marcos' field."
The Otters were playing their best baseball, having rattled off seven straight wins, having scored 67 runs during the streak.
The suspension of play also effects CSUMB's softball team, women's track and field team, men's and women's golf teams and the women's water polo teams.
"There can be no practices, no activities," sports information director Kevin Gilmore sad. "That also includes recruiting. We don't know how long it will last. You want everyone relatively safe."
If the season is halted, will seniors athletes be given another year of eligibility? Will all athletes receiver another year, being that teams are barely of quarter of the way into their spring seasons.
"All these subjects will have to be brought up at some point," White said. "Right now it about the safety of our students and our spectators."
As of know, Monterey Peninsula College will continue with its sports programs, but it will not allow spectators for their home games in baseball, softball and track and field.
"The college has determined that spectators will not be allowed to attend contests at MPC," athletic director Lyndon Schutzler said.
Cabrillo College implemented the same procedure on Wednesday. Hartnell College has said it will continue to allow spectators to attend for now.
The effect has trickled down to the high school level where the California Interscholastic Federation announced that the State basketball championship games have been canceled.
The last time a state championship event was canceled was in 1993 when rain in southern California shut down the state track and field finals.
After an outcry, the meet was rescheduled two weeks later, but was missing several state qualifiers. North Salinas won a share of the boys team title behind future Olympians Alvin and Calvin Harrison.
Monte Vista Christian will suspended all practices and games for all sports beginning Monday and lasting until April 14.
"There are more schools that have come out since," Pacific Coast Athletic League commissioner Tim McCarthy said. "And I anticipate there will be even more school over the next 48 hours."
The West Catholic Athlete League has suspended play for all spring sports until April.
"The question is when we or if get back into action, how much time will be left," said McCarthy, who oversees 32 high schools. "It's a very fluid situation that changes by the minute."
At the PCAL athletic directors meeting Tuesday, two athletic directors didn't attended because their district would not let them for fears of the coronavirus.
If league schedules are suspended as suspected in the coming hours, all sports programs will likely not be allowed to practice for the period.
"No league action has been taken," McCarthy said. "Something is probably going to happen. If we get back into action, how do we get back in action.
Pacific Grove's District prohibited the baseball team from playing a road game in Sunnyvale last Saturday.
Monterey High elected not to go to Thursday's track meet at North County after it learned that family and spectators would not be allowed to attend.
Watsonville canceled its annual relay track and field invitational, which was set for Saturday. The Avis Kelly Invitational in Gilroy, set for March 23 was also canceled.
If league play resumes in the Central Coast Section in mid April, will there be a postseason.
"We don't know how long this will last," CCS assistant commisioner Steve Filios said. "It's premature to make decision now. We're hopeful that things might work out.
The CCS has never had to cancel the playoffs for any sport, although the fires that burned throughout California in 2018 nearly canceled the cross country finals, before it was moved to Toro Park.
On this day in 2019 (April 6)
Volleyball
Charlie DeLapa had 38 assists in four games, while Ben Ariola compiled 20 kills as Carmel won a pair of matches in a tournament at Bellarmine.
On this day in 2011 (April 6)
Baseball
Stephen Ventimilia racked up three hits, stole three bases, scored two runs and drove in a run in Monterey's 4-1 win over Christopher for its 11th straight win.
Daniel Edwards struck out eight in tossing a four-hitter . He also had two his and drove in a run for the Toreadores.
On this day in 2019 (April 7)
Softball
Hayley Fein tossed a complete game six hitter, striking out four in CSUMB's 6-2 win over Chico State in Game 1. She also scored a run.
Fein entered Game 2 in the circle in the sixth inning and hurled 1 1/3 innings of scoreless relief in a 3-1 win for a sweep of Chico State.
On this day in 2016 (April 7)
Softball
Lauren Salvati homered and drove in five runs in Carmel's 15-1 win over King City. Danielle Caoili had four hits, while Kristin Cardinalli added three. Jessica Pavloff got the win in the circle.
On this day in 2019 (April 8)
Baseball
Mayo Rubalcava struck out six as Palma shut out Gilroy 11-0.
San Jose State bound Michael Carnazzo homered and doubled twice, driving in three runs in Monterey's 8-7 win over Monte Vista. Joey Pinto and Joe Grammatico each knocked in a pair.
On this day in 2013 (April 8)
Baseball
Joe Bifano had three hits and drove in four runs in Carmel's 19-5 win over Gonzales. Tavern Tapson added three hits and scored three runs, while Dominic Bifano collected two hits and two RBI.
On this day in 2019 (April 9)
Softball
Nina Franklin had three hits and drove in three runs in Carmel's 9-4. Quinci Cox collected three hits and knocked in two runs. Jessica Pavloff struck out eight to get the win.
On this day in 2003 (April 9)
Softball
Ohio State bound hurler Kim Reeder of Notre Dame outdueled future Tennessee Hall of Fame pitcher Monica Abbott of North Salinas 1-0.
Reeder also drove in the games only run while Linday Schtuzler, who went on to play with Abbott at Tennessee, scored the games only run
On this day in 2019 (April 10)
Softball
Emma James drove in two runs while Abby Gunter, Jessica Clements and Grace Atkins all had two hits in Santa Catalina's 6-4 loss to Salinas.
Baseball
Joe Grammatico collected three hits, including a home run, driving in three runs in Monterey's 5-2 win over Monte Vista. Zac Heffington added two hits and scored two runs, while Justin Deal got the final out for the save.
On this day in 2015 (April 10)
Baseball
Jared Rivera had two hits, drove in two runs and scored three runs in Soledad's 10-0 win over Alisal. Nathaniel Villareal added two hits and two RBI, and tossed two innings of scoreless relief.
On this day in 2019 (April 11)
Baseball
Jae Young Chee hits two homers and drives in five runs in Carmel's 16-2 win over King City. Rowan Trosky and Chris Sanchez each have two hits and two RBI. J.T. Byrne homers.
On this day in 2017 (April 11)
Softball
Jessica Stewart strikes out 11 in Salinas' 11-1 1in over Pajaro Valley. Neveah Pinon compiled two hits and two RBI, while Leslie Romero and Adalena Infante each have two hits.
On this day in 2019 (April 12)
Nathan Wood turned two hits into four runs batted in as Pacific Grove beats Watsonville 11-1. Chianti Carter added two hits and two RBI, while Zach Lewis collected two hits.
On this day in 2011 (April 12)
Volleyball
Royce Redira had 27 assists in Monterey sweep of Gonzales. Sam Abraham and Nate Malone combined for 15 kills.
Spring sport standouts
A look at athletes in the county that had gotten off to strong starts in their spring sports this year before play was halted because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Azjani McGill
The Monterey sprinter blistered the track in his first dual meet, clocking 22.33, which is the second fastest time in the Central Coast Section.
Last year the Fullerton State bound sprinter set school records in the 100 and 200, reaching the state finals in the 200 in 21.40.
Angel Rocha
While it was early in the season, the Carmel thrower made a statement in a dual meet, uncorking the shot put 50-feet-3 inches to take over the Central Coast Section lead.
Dual meets normally don't bring out big marks. But Rocha found himself in the ring against one of the top throwers in the section in King City's Ashton Headley, who heaved the shot 50-2.
Last year the 6-foot-8 Headley, who won the Mission Division title, was 10th in the section in the shot.
Vicentejordan Vanderlipe
A state meet qualifier last year with a school record clearance of 16-feet in the pole vault, the Alvarez senior opened the season with mark of 15-feet-8.
Vanderlipe, who broke the Alvarez school record three times last years, shares the county record in the pole vault with Salinas' John Prader at 16-feet.
Micah Olivas
Setting a personal best by two-tenths of a second in his first race, Olivas ran the third fastest time in the 100 meters in 11.23 -- and finished second to San Benito's Ivan Mendoza (10.84).
Olivas is also won of the Gabilan Division's top long jumpers, having sailed 20-8 1/4 earlier in the season.
Lauren Pritchard
The Carmel junior opened the season with a career best clearance of 5-feet-5 in the high jump, which gave her the Central Coast Section lead.
Pritchard qualified for the state meet last season as a sophomore with a modest mark of 5-2. She is currently ranked third in the state.
Sarah Graessley
The multi-dimensional track and field standout had an auspicious start to the season, setting a school record in the pole vault for Carmel, clearing 12-feet.
Graessley also took over the Central Coast Section lead with the clearance, and moved to No. 4 in the state with the mark.
Cosima Cristofalo
A week out for track after an extended soccer team at Carmel, Cristofalo soared 17-feet-6 in the long jump to move into third overall in the Central Coast Section.
The mark was a 12-improvement from her first jump this season. She also posted to the top marks in the Gabilan Division in the 300 low hurdles.
Isabella Reimann
Chasing her own shadow, the Notre Dame hurdler opened the season by clocking the fastest time in the Central Coast Section in the 100 hurdles a 15.54.
Last year Reimann ran 17.22 at the PCAL Masters Meet. She was also part of a 400 relay team that blistered the track in 50.79, which is the third fastest time in the section.
Baseball
The King City infielder had gotten off to a sizzling start at the plate, hitting .525 in the teams first four games.
Mendez, the Mustangs starting quarterback, had 11 hits in teams 4-0 start with four doubles and a handful of runs batted in.
Trey Salcido
Billed as King City's closer, Salcido was an old school reliever, coming into the game to get more than one out.
In two outings, Salcido had thrown two innings in one appearance, and three innings in another for the Mustangs to earn a pair of saves.
Mayo Rubalcava
What a start for the Palma slugger, who has homered and knocked in eight runs in the teams first six games this year.
Rubalcava has team leading eight hits for the 6-0 Chieftains. He's also tossed a gem in one start, and earned a save in another
Joe Castaneda
The right-handed hurler has been outstanding in his first two outing this season, allowing two runs in 13 innings of work for Palma.
Castaneda struck out a career high 12 in a seven inning start, and handcuffed another opponent with eight strikeouts in six shutout innings.
No one had gotten off to a hotter start at the plate than Lemus, who opened the season 7-for-7 for Salinas.
When play was halted, Lemus had reached base in every game, and was 9-for-10 at the plate with seven runs batted in and three runs scored in four games.
Evan Maldonado
In his first two starts, the Salinas hurler has yet to allow a run, throwing seven shutout innings, while striking out nine, allowing just three hits.
At the plate, Maldonado was hitting .429, with a homer. He had reached base in nine of his 17 atbats, scoring five runs.
Charlie McMahon
Having reached base in seven of his first 11 plate appearances, McMahon was sporting a .638 on base percentage for Pacific Grove.
Hitting .430 at the plate, McMahon had scored four runs and driven in three runs in the teams first three games.
Spring sport standouts
A look at athletes in the county that had gotten off to strong starts in their spring sports this year before play was halted because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Daniel Rosas
A four-year starter, the senior catcher opened the season hitting .375 for Pacific Grove, having driven in three runs in three games.
Rosas had not committed an error in the field behind the dish, having thrown out a pair of runners on the base paths.
Fabian Cabrerra
The junior slugger has made a dent in the Soledad lineup, hitting a team high .468 through their first five games.
Cabrerra has hit safely in all five games for the Aztecs, having drive in two runs on a pair of doubles. He has show patience at the plate with five walks, sporting a .619 on base percentage.
Jonathan Ramirez
The hurler has been lights out on the bump, having yet to allow a run in four appearances and 9 2/3 innings of work. Ramirez has seven strikeouts, and has allowed just six hits.
At the plate, Ramirez is hitting .333 with four of his six hits being doubles. He driven in three runs and scored three runs.
Michael Mugan
Bound for Santa Clara University on a baseball scholarship, Mugan was a bright spot in the lineup for the defending Gabilan Division champion Toreadores, hitting .358.
Mugan has scored five runs in Monterey's first six games, sporting a .480 on base percentage. On the bump, the senior was 1-1 with 2.00 earned run average, striking out 10 in 14 innings.
Angelo Kelly
Since allowing a run in his first outing, Kelly has been untouchable in his last three appearances for Monterey, having not allowed a run in six straight innings.
Kelly sports a 1.00 earned run average for the Toreadores, having allowed just one hit in his last six innings on the mound. At the plate, he has a double and an RBI.
Chris Sanchez
Raised his average to .449 after a two-hit effort in Carmel's last game. Sanchez sported a .500 on base percentage, having reached base in every game.
The senior also homered in the Padres opener and driven in two runs. Sanchez has more extra base hits than singles. In 3 2/3 innings on the mound, he had yet to allow a run.
Jesus Soto
Open the season hitting .375 in Greenfield's first four games, ripping three hits on one game, while stealing a base.
On the mound, Soto picked up one of the Bruins wins against Coalinga, leaving them at 2-2 before play was halted.
Andrew Simon
What a promising start Simon had at the plate for Alvarez, hitting .455 in the teams first four games, driving in four runs.
Simon was finding ways to get on base, compiling a .600 on base percentage with four walks. He is among the county leaders in steals with five.
Braden Arriaga-Lopez
Following up on his all county effort in football, Arriaga-Lopez was hitting .625 with a team high five runs batted in for Alvarez.
Even more impressive was Arriaga-Lopez's .738 on base percentage and six runs scored in Alvarez's first five games, leading the county with seven steals.
Cristian Luna
Sharing the team lead with a .333 batting average, Luna posted a .579 on base percentage, having walked a county high seven times in North Salinas' first six games.
The junior has scored two runs and drive in a pair for the Vikings. while stealing four bases. Luna has been flawless in the field, handling 29 of 30 chances.
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Softball
Kayla Stone
The college bound slugger got off to an historical start for Salinas, hitting .778 through the teams first five games, with three home runs.
Stone has driven in nine runs, with seven of her 14 hits going for extra bases. She has also scored 12 runs and has four steals.Olivia Robledo
In seven plate appearances, Robledo has hit three home runs with six runs batted in, hitting .600 for Salinas.
The junior has also walked twice, sporting a .714 on base percentage for the Cowboys, and has yet to commit an error in the field.
Logan Riggenbach
While it just one game, the four-year starter was four-for-four in with four runs batted in during the reiging Gabilan Division champion Spirits season opening win.
A two-time member of The Herald's All-County softball team, Riggenbach doubled twice and scored two runs for Notre Dame.
Alondra Navarro
What a start for the senior slugger, who was hitting .545 through Alvarez's first four games, with six hits and six runs batted in.
Navarro had a pair of doubles, scored two runs and walked twice, compiling a 1.310 OPS and .728 slugging percentage.
Celeste Meza
In two starts in the circle, Meza was lights out, posting an 0.00 earned run average for Alvarez. In 14 innings, she had 12 strikeouts.
Through four games at the plate, Meza was hitting .500 for the Eagles with a pair of doubles, having driven in six runs.
Kendra Hyles
Hyles couldn't have asked for a better start to her senior season, hitting .728 in the teams first three games this spring. The senior doubled and tripled, while scoring three runs.
Hyles has reached base safely in all three games, with a pair of multiple hit games. She compiled a 2.000 OPS.
Bekah Bueno
Having had at least one hit in all four games the resurgent Condors had played, Bueno was hitting .786 this spring, sporting an .800 on base percentage.
Bueno had four doubles and four runs batted in for North County, scoring seven runs. She sported a 1.000 fielding percentage, handling all 20 chances.
Amelia Visesio
The freshman proved her value in the first four games for North County, hitting .583 with eight runs batted in. She had scored seven runs and stole three bases.
Visesio was flawless in the field on defense for North County, and tossed a complete game win over Gonzales, allowing one run.
Gaby Perez
The sophomore homered in her two games for Stevenson, driving in five runs while scoring four runs in a 2-0 start.
A three-sport standout, three of Perez's first five hits were for extra bases. She was also flawless in th field for Stevenson.
Rhea Cosand
The Most Valuable Player from the Cypress Division last year as a freshman, Cosand took off right from where she left off, hitting .728 for Stevenson.
A Division I lacrosse prospects, who moonlights in softball, Cosand had homered and tripled twice this year. She had driven in four runs and scored three.
Abby Hostetter
Another freshman that splashed onto the scene, Hostetter was hitting .714 for Marina with four runs batted in over the teams first two games.
Hostetter also gave Marina a live arm in the circle, having struck out 10 in six innings of work with one win.
Fia Atalima
Clutch is what Atalima was in Marina's first two games, homering while driving in six runs, hitting .375.
Atalima has scored six runs, stole a base and earn walk, and posted a .445 on base percentage and a .900 field percentage at first base.
Alexia Torculas
The former Notre Dame High slugger was tearing it up at MPC this spring, hitting .596 with nine homers and 34 runs batted in.
Torculas, who will play next year at the University of San Diego, had 15 extra base hits among her 31 total. She had 31 hits and 31 runs scored in 17 games.
Honor Siuauelua
A freshman catcher at Monterey Peninsula College, Siuauelua made an immediate impact, hitting .511 in the teams first 17 games.
Siuauelua had ripped six homers and driven in 22 runs for the Lobos, who were 16-1 and ranked No. 2 in the state. She had scored 20 runs and sported a 1.000 slugging perentage.
Jesse Dupuis
The ace of a deep pitching staff, the returning all-conference hurler was 3-0 this year for MPC with an earned run average of 0.53, striking out 29 in 21 innings.
Dupuis was also productive at the plate for the state ranked Lobos, hitting .408 with 11 runs batted in. She sported a 1.000 fielding percentage.
Megan Flores
A former four-sport standout at King City, Flores was hitting .430 for the Hartnell softball team, with 24 hits and eight runs scored.
Flores, who also started on the Panthers volleyball team last fall, also walked six times, sporting an on base percentage just under .500.
Ella Wedderburn
The junior hurler was off to a blistering start in the circle for Monterey, tossing a pair of complete games.
In 17 innings of work, Wedderburn has seven strikeouts, compiling an earned run average of 1.59.
Mia Henson
The freshman and an immediate impression at the plate for Monterey, hitting .700 with seven hits in 10 official trips to the plate.
Henson had sprayed the ball around the field with four doubles and a triple for the Toreadores. She also drove in four runs and scored three.
Chase Lindemann
The former Hartnell College slugger is hitting .342 for the CSUMB baseball team, scoring 17 runs while stealing a pair of bases.
Lindemann has 25 hits, eight for extra bases. He's driven in 10 runs and walked 10 times, sporting a .425 on base percentage.
Kokko Figueiredo
The senior outfielder had gotten off to a blistering start at the plate for CSUMB, hitting .368 in the team first 22 games.
He's also scored 23 runs with 32 hits, sharing the team lead in doubles with six and walks with 19, sporting a .481 on base percentage.
Ayokemi Popoola
The sophomore tied a CSUMB track and field record in the long jump, soaring 15-feet-9. She came within two-hundredths of a second of breaking her 100 meter hurdle mark.
Popoola also qualified for the CCAA conference, along with Jade Murray in the high jump and triple jump, Miranda Quevedo in the discus and Nia Howard in the javelin.
Hayley Fein
The senior hurler and one-time all-conference selection was hitting .328 with three home runs and 19 runs batted in. She also had nine walks, sporting a .428 on base percentage.
One of two aces in the circle for the Otters, Fein is 4-7 on the season, with 70 strikeouts in 69 innings of work this year.
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Curren Mandon
While it was small sample size, setter Curren Mandon was establishing himself as one of the areas top volleyball players, averaging nearly 30 assists a match -- all but one of which as just three sets.
Mandon produced a season high 32 in one straight set sweep for Salinas. Defensively, the senior averaged over 15 digs a match.
Ivor Myers
Overshadowed last year as a hitter, Myers had evolved early this season, averaging 14 kills a match for reigning four-time Gabilan Division volleyball champion Carmel.
Myers was still among the area top defenders on rotation, averaging 12 plus digs a match for Carmel, who had won their last two matches.
Curtis DaSilva
What an sensational debut for the freshman golfer, who won the prestigious De La Salle Classic for Stevenson, shooting a two-under.
DaSilva also shared medalist honors in another tournament for the Pirates, and recorded one of the top scores in the Gabilan Division tournament.
Harriett Meyer
The sniper put together a strong start to the lacrosse season for Santa Catalina, produced five goals in four games this year, recording 25 goals
Meyer compiled a season high seven goals in one game. She was a distributor, assisting on at least one goal in every game.
Laura Vetter
The water polo standout showed off her speed and verstality in the pool, winning four different individual events and two relays in two meets for Notre Dame.
Vetter captured the 200 individual medley and 100 back in one meet, and the 200 free and 100 fly in another. She also swam legs on two different winning relay teams for the Spirits.
My body has absorbed so much soap and disinfectant lately that when I pee it cleans the toilet
Jensen Main.
By John Devine
SEASIDE -- The grieving process has begun for Jensen Main.
Up until Wednesday, the Sacramento State hurler clinged to hope her softball season would resume -- at least in conference at some point.
That ended when the former Stevenson four-sport standout was informed at her home in Seaside in an email that the Big Sky Conference was officially canceling the rest of the season.
"I'm in a total state of shock," Jensen said. "I didn't ever think this would happen, that a virus was as serious as it is. I didn't want to believe the email."
For the senior hurler, she may have thrown her last pitch as a collegiate athlete.
"The hope was play was going to be suspended until April," Jensen said. "We as a team were holding out hope. It's been a rough journey. I'm still processing this. I'm heartbroken."
While the NCAA canceled all spring postseason events, several conference had just suspended play, choosing to wait before making a final decision.
Jensen was having a career year for the Hornets, sporting a 5-4 mark with a 2.75 earned run average. She had 38 strikeouts in 51 innings of work, with for complete games in the circle.
The right-hander pitcher had already surpassed her strikeout totals and wins from 2019 in half the appearances this spring.
"Yeah, I was having a pretty good year," Jensen said. "This year as a dream. This was the most fun I've had in college. At least I have the memories."
Jensen, who will finish her spring semester taking classes on line at home, was in her second season at Sacramento State, after spending her first two years pitching at the University of New Mexico.
After the announcement, she spent most of Wednesday evening talking with her teammates either on the phone or through texts.
"A lot of my teammates have been texting and telling me how sorry they are that its ending like this," Main said. "A lot of them were telling me how they appreciate playing with me."
Among her teammates at Sacramento State included Alvarez High graduate Aliyah Robles, Salinas product Nevaeh Pinon and former San Benito slugger Amber Rodriguez.
But the trio are all freshman.
The Hornets had not practiced since the NCAA made the decision last Thursday to cancel all winter and spring championship events.
Main isn't the only local senior playing Division I softball that may have played her last game. Notre Dame graduate Marisa Given is at UC Davis while Marissa Bruno is playing at Portland State.
"As of now, I'm just trying to digest tis and pray that I'll have closure for the sport I've been playing for the last 15 years," Main said. "There's a lot of answered questions."
One being the possibility that the NCAA is looking into giving seniors that play spring sports a fifth season.
Main, who expects to graduate and become a special education teacher, hasn't thought to deeply into playing again in 2021 if she was granted another season.
"That's a very complicated question," Main said. "I can't make that decision at this time. I would like to think I'd take advantage of a fifth year. I'd love to finish this part of my life on a high note."
A lot would likely depend on if she's still on an atheltic scholarship. That would enable the 21-year-old to pursue her masters while playing one final season.
"I'm going to try and stay in shape and see how this unfolds," Main said.
That should be to hard to do, considering her dad Thomas was her softball coach at Stevenson, while her older sister Caroline, is a former collegiate hurler as well.
"When the NCAA figures this out, we will sit down and talk," said her father Thomas. "We don't have all the information yet. In the meantime, I'm trying to find positives and just love her."
Main was a four-year starting pitcher at Stevenson, earning Mission Trail Athletic League Most Valuable Player honors her junior and senior seasons.
An all-leaguer in water polo and soccer, Main was The Herald's Female Athlete of the Year in 2016, winning 60 games in the circle while at Stevenson.
Jensen is the only family member dealing with the sudden turn of events in sports. She has two twin cousins in high school, that had their seasons and careers likely come to a halt.
"One played volleyball and the other was running track down south," Main said. "I can't imagine how both are feeling. They're not even going to have a graduation."
If Main did throw her last pitch, it will be one to remember, as it was a pitch she has made a living with -- well since she began pitching.
"My last outing was solid," Main said. "It was against Nevada. I went out with strikeout on a change up."
COLLEGE CONCERNS ON CORONVIRUS
Walt White
By John Devine
SEASIDE -- The finality of it has set in. The players have vanished. The equipment is in storage. A silent sound around the CSU Monterey Bay baseball field is eerie.
It's spring time. The sound of bats rocketing balls into orbit and balls popping mitts is missing, along with 50 players head coach Walt White had assembled for a program.
The one-on-one exit meetings with his players wasn't allowed, forcing White to send out an email to his players for the final time in 2020.
"Reality is finally setting in," White said. "It's a bundle of emotions wrapped into one. I can't fill the void I have right now."
For the last 27 years, White has spent his spring coaching baseball, the last 10 at CSUMB, where he was approaching 300 wins before the year was shut down because of the Coronavirus pandemic.
"Things aren't normal right now," White said. "Our meeting with the athletic department was a Zoom meeting. I didn't even know what Zoom was."
The Otters were the hottest team in the California Collegiate Athletic Association when their season was abruptly canceled by the NCAA two weeks ago, having rattled off seven straight wins.
"Two weeks ago we had a scheduled morning practice," White said. "Instead we had a meeting. We were playing so well. I didn't have answers for them. There was a lot of confusion."
And there still is.
With the NCAA proposing to allow seniors for spring sports in all divisions the opportunity to play a fifth season next year, finding the finances to help his players could be a challenge at CSUMB.
Players that are graduating would have to reapply for admission. Several of the Otters players rely on financial aid and grants, which disappear after a student gets their degree.
"You can reapply for admission for a masters," White said. "But now student-athletes are looking at a student loan instead of a grant. We have a limited budget for scholarships that is spread out."
White had 17 seniors on his roster this spring. Prior to being shut down, he had been in touch with 12 recruits -- two of which had already committed.
"The kids have a whole lot of questions," White said. "I don't have a whole lot of answers. None of us were prepared for this situation. I don't know how this is going to work out."
While White believes the seniors will get their final year back, he is unsure the move will go across the board for freshman, sophomore and juniors getting their year back.
In addition, talk of not having a Major League Baseball Amateur Draft this June, or limiting the total rounds could mean over 1,000 potential players could be enrolling or returning to college.
"How can you have 40 rounds of a draft with no information?" White said. "Kids mature a whole lot from when the season starts to the end. There are no workouts going on to evaluate personnel."
That could have a trickling down effect at the community college level, where players can be drafted after two years, instead of waiting until their junior year at a four-year program.
The CCCAA has already ensured that all athletes in all spring sports will get their year of eligibility back next spring.
"This is a crisis were dealing with that's much bigger than baseball," Hartnell baseball coach Travis Babin said. "Some of these kids won't move on. It enables them to have one more season."
The CCCAA officially canceled spring sports for community colleges. Monterey Peninsula track and field coach Marcus Carroll has already spoken to his sophomores about returning next spring.
"Half have said they would definitely come back to finish another semester of coursework," Carroll said. "Others have already told me they would most likely transfer to a four year school."
While it's possible that White could be looking at a roster of 60 plus players in 2021 -- 10 redshirted this past season -- he could also see it shrink to 28 if he's unable to recruit.
"I do my best work when I sit down and meet with the parents and kids," White said. "We don't have the ability to do that right now. Right now I can't recruit. I have to rely on people I trust."
White is unsure how many seniors would return among the 17. Some will likely return home. Others, like San Benito grad Greg Steinbeck, could be back for a seventh year.
Steinbeck has red shirted and been given a medical redshirt year. The right-hander was 3-0 with 21 strikeouts in 31 innings this year, compiling a 3.98 earned run average.
In addition, senior Parker Fokken sported a 2.02 ERA with a team high fours saves. Outfielder Kyle Dean was hitting .368 before an injury likely was going to shelve him for the season.
"I think some kids that have graduated will probably move on with their life's," White said. "There's a handful that might choose to come back. Each individuals situation is different."
White thought about some of the more horrific events in his lifetime, such as Ronald Reagan getting shot, the space shuttle challenger and 911. None of them shut down sports for a lengthy period.
"When you lose sports in America, you lose some hope," White said. "We don't have that right now. We don't know where to put our thoughts and energy into. The problem is no one knows the ending."
Stories
March 30-April 3
College dealing with ending an fifth year
MPC has a signee to New Mexico.
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Michael Groves
Monica Abbott
While all football programs in the tri-region area and nation for that matter are in uncharted waters, Pacific Grove and Soledad are still without head coaches.
And with the Coronavirus pandemic keeping schools out at least until May 4, the hirings are on hold, likely until mid May at the earliest.
While no program is allowed to hold off-season workouts as a group, coaches can still have contact with their players through email or phone, providing workout ideas.
That leaves players for the Santa Lucia Division champion Breakers and Soledad in limbo, in terms of what direction to take.
Will the systems employed last year by their former coaches remain in place? I would not count on spring practices taking place in May for any school.
Once the nation gets through this pandemic and the social distancing is waved, the continued search for a new coach will heat up.
What's ironic about this situation for both programs is the last time Pacific Grove and Soledad were looking for a new head coach, the hirings for both didn't come until June.
The Breakers went 1-9 in that first season while Soledad dropped its first seven games before going on a three-game winning streak to close the season.
Monica Abbott
By John Devine
SALINAS -- Confined to where it all started nearly 30 years ago in her parents home, Monica Abbott is training alone, almost in a throwback mold with her methods to remain sharp.
Until the social distancing protocol is lifted from the Coronavirus pandemic, Abbott will remain in Salinas until she can return to Team USA for softball and chase a gold medal in the Olympics.
For now, the return of softball as an Olympic sport after a 12 year hiatus is on hold after the Summer Games, slated for this summer in Japan, have been postponed until July of 2021.
"I don't have a timetable on when my career will end," the 34-year-old Abbott said. "Obviously I am closer to the end than beginning. You don't recover like you did at 22. But I'm a smarter athlete."
Had the games been canceled -- as was discussed -- rather than postponed, the former North Salinas High hurlers quest to pitch in another Olympics would have been squelched.
"I'm thinking please don't cancel, please don't cancel," Abbott said. "Softball is not in the Olympics in 2024. So this would have been a big thing for me."
Exhaling after learning that the Summer Games will go on -- albeit 12 months later -- Abbott took on an approach with a softball like attitude, while the world battles its worse pandemic in 108 years.
"What's another year?" the 6-foot-3 left-hander said. "I'm treating it like a rain delay. I feel good. I'd like to play another three years. It will give us another year to make the game even stronger."
A silver medalist for Team USA at the 2008 Summer Olympics, Abbott has been a part of numerous committees trying to bring the sport back to the Olympics.
The sport is being brought back on a trial basis, in part because softball it is a popular sport in Japan. In fact, Abbott is one of their biggest stars in the sport, having pitched their for 12 years.
While softball won't be in the 2024 games, it is expected to return in 2028, when Abbott would be the same age as Tom Brady at 42.
"I've been around for a while," Abbott said "I don't feel I have aged much. I'm still pitching at a high level. I could still be pitching in eight years. But at what level? It likely won't happen."
While Abbott had hoped the Olympic Committee would have delayed their decision, she understands the reasons, particularly for other sports and countries that haven't even decided their teams.
While Team USA for softball was decided in 2018, the U.S. track and field and swimming teams had not even held their trials meets to make the Olympic team.
"It comes down to athletes having the ability to train and prepare," Abbott said. "If you can not train, how can you be prepared. What's going on is serious. That's something I understand and respect."
When Abbott wasn't throwing darts in Japan, she was pitching in the National Pro Fastpitch League in the United States, where she became the first female to earn a million dollar contract.
With a rise pitch that has reached 73 mph -- equivalent to a baseball traveling 95 mph -- Abbott has been regarded as one of the best softball pitchers in the world over the last decade.
Haddan won't be returning for 15th season at Alvarez
By John Devine
SALINAS -- Mark Haddan made it clear he isn't retiring, that the second longest tenured basketball coach in the county wants to coach again.
It just won't be at Alvarez any longer.
After 14 seasons -- 12 playoff appearances, one league title and 174 wins, Haddan and Alvarez have parted ways.
"I'm not to sure how to answer this," Haddan said. "You have a new athletic director and I was on my third principal. Things happen."
The school decided last month not to rehire Haddon, who holds the school record for wins as a coach and tenure in the program.
"We're moving in a new direction," Alvarez athletic director Brian Vazquez said. "I give him a lot of credit for what he's done here. He's had a phenomenal run."
Injuries riddled the Eagles last year. The loss of three starters, including their leading scorer, saw the program finish with just six wins - one in the Gabilan Division.
"I am not an athletic director that looks at wins and losses and makes you disappear," Vazquez said. "But I think someone could and should take us in another direction."
Haddan inherited a program in 2005 that won just two games. Over the course of the next 14 years, Alvarez won 14 or more games eight times, including a school record 18 in 2019.
"Sometimes you get stale in one place I suppose," Haddan said. "Yes, I was surprised. I did not get a good evaluation. They felt it was time to go in another direction."
When Haddan arrived at Alvarez, the program had registered the worst five year run among county schools, having gone 9-97 with three winless league season.
"My wife told me you build programs," Haddan said. "If there is a program that needs to be rebuilt, there's a coach out there that knows how to do it."
Prior to his arrival at Alvarez, Haddan spent five years at King City, taking them to their first league title in 31 years in 2002.
In his first season at Monte Vista in 2004, he took over a team that lost four starters -- including two scholarship bound players, and guided them to the State Northern California playoffs.
Yet, for the first time in 22 years, the 65-year-old -- owner of over 250 career wins -- is a basketball coach without a job.
"I have no bad feelings," said Haddan, who teaches at Mt. Toro School. "Sometimes it's good to step away for a while and reenergize yourself. I can tell you I still have the fire."
Initially, Haddan kept the news to himself. Once the shock wore off, he told a couple of his players, who had contacted him, asking while Alvarez was being moved to the Mission Division.
"I kind of kept it quite," Haddan said. "A lot of them have since reached out. One player asked what's going on? I said 'I'm sorry. I've been removed as the head coach'."
The only coaches in the county that have been in one place longer than Haddan are Monterey coach Greg Daniels (18 years) and Pacific Grove coach Dan Powers (16).
Coming off a school record 18 win season, and a 21-3 junior varsity team to pick from, Haddan had high expectations coming into last season.
A pair of ACL injuries to two potential starters over the summer, along with a player moving was the start of a series of mishaps that crippled the program.
Losing leading scorer Jalen Brown two games into the Gabilan Division season left Haddan with a lineup that didn't resemble his summer league unit.
"Out of that 21-3 JV team, three players ended up finishing the season," Haddan said. "I have never seen this many injuries in one season. This team will challenge next year in the Mission."
Haddan, who scored a then CCS record 65 points in one game in 1971 at Alisal, and later played four years at Fresno State, has already had one school inquire about coming on as an assistant.
Meanwhile the search for a new coach is already underway at Alvarez, despite the state of California requiring social distancing for the month of April because of the Coronavirus pandemic.
"We can set up Zoom meetings to start the interview process," Vazquez said. "This is something we do not want to hold back on."
MPC softball hurler Guindon signs with New Mexico
By John Devine
MONTEREY - Finishing up her spring semester classes nearly 2,000 miles away on-line in Houston, Emma Guindon's time at Monterey was brief, but refreshing.
With the season coming to an immediate halt because of the Coronavirus pandemic, it didn't end like Guindon and her Monterey Peninsula College softball teammate envisioned.
Yet, for the sophomore slugger/hurler, she made enough of an impression over 18 games to warrant a full ride scholarship to play next spring at the University of New Mexico.
"I had to make a decision on some unusual circumstances," Guindon said. "But there is no part of me that doesn't think this wasn't the right decision."
Recruiters for New Mexico had flown out to meet Guindon and watch her pitch. Yet, the day before MPC was slated to face Cabrillo, they were told to come back because of the pandemic.
"She was well recruited," MPC coach Keith Berg said. "But Emma was very specific with schools on what she wanted. She wouldn't settle for less."
Berg was speaking about Guindon's intentions to pitch and play in the field and hit at the Division I level.
"I don't like to say I'm just a pitcher or a specific position player," Guindon said. "I just want to be on the field. Hitting and pitching are an equal love. If I can't do both, I'm not loving it as much."
The 5-foot-9 Guindon was filthy as a hurler in the circle for the Lobos this past spring, posting a 4-1 record with an 0.63 earned run average, striking out 48 in 31 innings of work.
"We felt we could win the state with this pitching staff," Berg said. "We didn't give up an earned run until the 12th game. Emma was a big part of this staff."
She also sported a live bat on a team loaded with hitters in a 17-1 season, hitting .381 with a homer and 14 runs batted in. Guidon struck out just four times in 48 at bats.
"A lot of coaches don't want their pitcher to hit," Guindon said. "I'm not a stranger to spending more time in the bullpen or the batting cage. Being a hitter has made me a better pitcher."
Not being allowed to hit extensively during her freshman season at Houston Baptist led to Guindon giving up her scholarship and enrolling at MPC.
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Leslie Romero hitting .220 at New Mexco, three RBI and four runs scored in 12 starts. 980 fielding percentage. sophomore outfielder.
Virtual training for football coaches
By John Devine
Distance learning won't be just for academics over the next two months.
With high school campuses closed for the remainder of the school year in Monterey County, football coaches are turning towards virtual learning to replace off-season workouts and spring ball.
There's no other option for coaches that had their off-season training halted in mid March, and likely won't have contact with their players in person until June -- at the earliest.
"Our staff had a meeting recently on Zoom," Monterey coach Henry Lusk said. "Our next move will be having groups of kids on Zoom and giving them responsibilities to study the playbook."
Of course, that won't replace the off-season workouts or the camaraderie that is built with the 6 a.m. weight training sessions, as well as the repetitions you get in the spring.
"We have sent workouts out to players to do at home," Seaside coach Al Avila said. "It's not the same as we'd do at school. A lot of our kids don't have access to weights."
Which has forced Avila, who has been coaching for 36 years at Seaside, to be creative and perhaps delve into the past -- well before programs were essentially year around.
"Some are using bamboo sticks and putting water buckets on each side for squads," Avila said. "It's not the same. But it's something. We were just starting our second phase of our off-season plan."
While all programs in the state will be in the same situation, football will likely look different in the first few weeks of the season as teams get reacclimated to each other.
There is a good chance that campuses won't reopen until July, meaning nearly four months of the off-season programs were lost.
"I think we can get the football part in two weeks," Salinas coach Steve Zenk said. "But as far as the physical aspect and level we're accustomed too, we're not going to be able to do that right away."
Meaning players aren't going to have the strength or growth that often comes from an off-season of being in the weight room and building strength and stamina with drills and speed training.
"I'm sending players our weekly workouts," Palma coach Jeff Carnazzo said. "I'm also sending them exercises they can do if they don't have access to weights. I stay in constant contact."
Yet, it's not necessary just about football. Carnazzo and other coaches continue to reach out to their players to check their health, and see how their handling the mental state of this pandemic.
"I'm having a hard time putting too much emphasis and preparation on football right now," Carnazzo said. "What we're dealing with is small potatoes to what other people are dealing with."
Not all schools have year around programs. Because so many athletes at Carmel play multiple sports, it doesn't have an off-season, other than two weeks of spring ball in May.
"We have spring ball and then normally do not return until July 4," Carmel coach Golden Anderson said. "Spring ball doesn't always include everyone because guys are in spring sports."
As a result, Anderson, who is the winningest coach in the county over the last decade with 93 wins, has no current plans to change what has worked for 11 years.
"We're going to lose out on eight days of field stuff," Anderson said. "Coaches are going to have to coach. We're in contact with our kids to make sure they're safe. It has nothing to do with football."
Zenk echoed similar sentiments. While he believes from a physicality standout, Salinas will climbing up a hill, he's more concerned with his players emotional well being through this ordeal.
"I'm checking in on them daily," Zenk said. "Our focus right now is making sure these kids are okay socially. I worry about depression setting in. I urge them to pay attention to what's going on."
Nearly 100 players tuned into an on-line meeting last week with Zenk, using their school accounts to listen to an upbeat coach keeping a positive frame of mind.
"I'm just encouraging them to take care of their school stuff and providing dates I feel are important," Zenk said. "Everything is in pause right now. But June will be here before you know it."
Carnazzo compared players being away from campus much like the 1987 NFL strike, where players missed the first three weeks of the season before returning and playing the following week.
"Who will be the most prepared team when we can all come back," Carnazzo said. "Who has the best plan coming out when this pandemic is over. Zoom has been a godsend for us."
Zoom is serving as a tool to communicate for several coaches, with their staffs and players. As many as 100 people can interact on line for 40 minutes in a meeting type setting.
"Spring football is out," said Carnazzo, who has taken Palma to four CCS titles. "So well use Zoom to install plays, go over film with groups, just like we were in a meeting room."
Zenk, who has guided Salinas to three straight Gabilan Division crowns, believes virtual learning on line for football will enhance his staff in being better prepared in breaking down film.
"I just feel it's something we as a staff can be better at," Zenk said. "It's a chance for us as coaches to get better with our classroom preparation."
Not being able to meet with coaches, other than on Zoom, Avila worries about falling behind when it comes to implicating systems -- often done over the course of off-season at Seaside.
"We usually have 12 hours of defense installed by spring ball," Avila said. "Right now we only have four completed. We need to make sure we're on the same page and doing the same things."
One of Lusk's biggest concerns, particularly for programs that may have rosters hovering around 40 or under -- is remaining healthy with no off-season to build strength.
Some players won't be able to get into a weight room until the summer. Finding a place to do agility drills and run on a track can be a tall task with all the closures and stay home in order.
"You don't know what the kids are doing when they're not around," Lusk said. "We're in contact with them. But it's not the same as being together. The learning curve will definitely be different."
If coaches are given clearance to get back on the field in June, Zenk cautioned about going to hard too soon.
"You can't replace 12 weeks of training," Zenk said. "We won't be able to bulk up like we normally do. That's the staple of Salinas football. It may not be in Week 1 or 2, but we'll get there."
"A lot of teams might look different the first couple of weeks," Lusk said. "It might be basic football. But at least we're back on the field."
We can do virtual learning with football. We'll break down plays with film. Its a chance to for as coaches to get better with our classroom preparation.''
Lusk, who gook Monterey to a 10-2 record two years ago, feels coaches may have to alter
I'm concerned with injuries. Don't know what athe kids are doing when they're not around. A lot of these kids don't have weights at home. But its the same for everyone. It might be basic football. It could look different the first couple of weeks.
COLLEGE CONCERNS ON CORONVIRUS
Walt White
By John Devine
SEASIDE -- The finality of it has set in. The players have vanished. The equipment is in storage. A silent sound around the CSU Monterey Bay baseball field is eerie.
It's spring time. The sound of bats rocketing balls into orbit and balls popping mitts is missing, along with 50 players head coach Walt White had assembled for a program.
The one-on-one exit meetings with his players wasn't allowed, forcing White to send out an email to his players for the final time in 2020.
"Reality is finally setting in," White said. "It's a bundle of emotions wrapped into one. I can't fill the void I have right now."
For the last 27 years, White has spent his spring coaching baseball, the last 10 at CSUMB, where he was approaching 300 wins before the year was shut down because of the Coronavirus pandemic.
"Things aren't normal right now," White said. "Our meeting with the athletic department was a Zoom meeting. I didn't even know what Zoom was."
The Otters were the hottest team in the California Collegiate Athletic Association when their season was abruptly canceled by the NCAA two weeks ago, having rattled off seven straight wins.
"Two weeks ago we had a scheduled morning practice," White said. "Instead we had a meeting. We were playing so well. I didn't have answers for them. There was a lot of confusion."
And there still is.
With the NCAA proposing to allow seniors for spring sports in all divisions the opportunity to play a fifth season next year, finding the finances to help his players could be a challenge at CSUMB.
Players that are graduating would have to reapply for admission. Several of the Otters players rely on financial aid and grants, which disappear after a student gets their degree.
"You can reapply for admission for a masters," White said. "But now student-athletes are looking at a student loan instead of a grant. We have a limited budget for scholarships that is spread out."
White had 17 seniors on his roster this spring. Prior to being shut down, he had been in touch with 12 recruits -- two of which had already committed.
"The kids have a whole lot of questions," White said. "I don't have a whole lot of answers. None of us were prepared for this situation. I don't know how this is going to work out."
While White believes the seniors will get their final year back, he is unsure the move will go across the board for freshman, sophomore and juniors getting their year back.
In addition, talk of not having a Major League Baseball Amateur Draft this June, or limiting the total rounds could mean over 1,000 potential players could be enrolling or returning to college.
"How can you have 40 rounds of a draft with no information?" White said. "Kids mature a whole lot from when the season starts to the end. There are no workouts going on to evaluate personnel."
That could have a trickling down effect at the community college level, where players can be drafted after two years, instead of waiting until their junior year at a four-year program.
The CCCAA has already ensured that all athletes in all spring sports will get their year of eligibility back next spring.
"This is a crisis were dealing with that's much bigger than baseball," Hartnell baseball coach Travis Babin said. "Some of these kids won't move on. It enables them to have one more season."
The CCCAA officially canceled spring sports for community colleges. Monterey Peninsula track and field coach Marcus Carroll has already spoken to his sophomores about returning next spring.
"Half have said they would definitely come back to finish another semester of coursework," Carroll said. "Others have already told me they would most likely transfer to a four year school."
While it's possible that White could be looking at a roster of 60 plus players in 2021 -- 10 redshirted this past season -- he could also see it shrink to 28 if he's unable to recruit.
"I do my best work when I sit down and meet with the parents and kids," White said. "We don't have the ability to do that right now. Right now I can't recruit. I have to rely on people I trust."
White is unsure how many seniors would return among the 17. Some will likely return home. Others, like San Benito grad Greg Steinbeck, could be back for a seventh year.
Steinbeck has red shirted and been given a medical redshirt year. The right-hander was 3-0 with 21 strikeouts in 31 innings this year, compiling a 3.98 earned run average.
In addition, senior Parker Fokken sported a 2.02 ERA with a team high fours saves. Outfielder Kyle Dean was hitting .368 before an injury likely was going to shelve him for the season.
"I think some kids that have graduated will probably move on with their life's," White said. "There's a handful that might choose to come back. Each individuals situation is different."
White thought about some of the more horrific events in his lifetime, such as Ronald Reagan getting shot, the space shuttle challenger and 911. None of them shut down sports for a lengthy period.
"When you lose sports in America, you lose some hope," White said. "We don't have that right now. We don't know where to put our thoughts and energy into. The problem is no one knows the ending."
Stories
March 30-April 3
College dealing with ending an fifth year
MPC has a signee to New Mexico.
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Michael Groves
Monica Abbott
While all football programs in the tri-region area and nation for that matter are in uncharted waters, Pacific Grove and Soledad are still without head coaches.
And with the Coronavirus pandemic keeping schools out at least until May 4, the hirings are on hold, likely until mid May at the earliest.
While no program is allowed to hold off-season workouts as a group, coaches can still have contact with their players through email or phone, providing workout ideas.
That leaves players for the Santa Lucia Division champion Breakers and Soledad in limbo, in terms of what direction to take.
Will the systems employed last year by their former coaches remain in place? I would not count on spring practices taking place in May for any school.
Once the nation gets through this pandemic and the social distancing is waved, the continued search for a new coach will heat up.
What's ironic about this situation for both programs is the last time Pacific Grove and Soledad were looking for a new head coach, the hirings for both didn't come until June.
The Breakers went 1-9 in that first season while Soledad dropped its first seven games before going on a three-game winning streak to close the season.
Monica Abbott
By John Devine
SALINAS -- Confined to where it all started nearly 30 years ago in her parents home, Monica Abbott is training alone, almost in a throwback mold with her methods to remain sharp.
Until the social distancing protocol is lifted from the Coronavirus pandemic, Abbott will remain in Salinas until she can return to Team USA for softball and chase a gold medal in the Olympics.
For now, the return of softball as an Olympic sport after a 12 year hiatus is on hold after the Summer Games, slated for this summer in Japan, have been postponed until July of 2021.
"I don't have a timetable on when my career will end," the 34-year-old Abbott said. "Obviously I am closer to the end than beginning. You don't recover like you did at 22. But I'm a smarter athlete."
Had the games been canceled -- as was discussed -- rather than postponed, the former North Salinas High hurlers quest to pitch in another Olympics would have been squelched.
"I'm thinking please don't cancel, please don't cancel," Abbott said. "Softball is not in the Olympics in 2024. So this would have been a big thing for me."
Exhaling after learning that the Summer Games will go on -- albeit 12 months later -- Abbott took on an approach with a softball like attitude, while the world battles its worse pandemic in 108 years.
"What's another year?" the 6-foot-3 left-hander said. "I'm treating it like a rain delay. I feel good. I'd like to play another three years. It will give us another year to make the game even stronger."
A silver medalist for Team USA at the 2008 Summer Olympics, Abbott has been a part of numerous committees trying to bring the sport back to the Olympics.
The sport is being brought back on a trial basis, in part because softball it is a popular sport in Japan. In fact, Abbott is one of their biggest stars in the sport, having pitched their for 12 years.
While softball won't be in the 2024 games, it is expected to return in 2028, when Abbott would be the same age as Tom Brady at 42.
"I've been around for a while," Abbott said "I don't feel I have aged much. I'm still pitching at a high level. I could still be pitching in eight years. But at what level? It likely won't happen."
While Abbott had hoped the Olympic Committee would have delayed their decision, she understands the reasons, particularly for other sports and countries that haven't even decided their teams.
While Team USA for softball was decided in 2018, the U.S. track and field and swimming teams had not even held their trials meets to make the Olympic team.
"It comes down to athletes having the ability to train and prepare," Abbott said. "If you can not train, how can you be prepared. What's going on is serious. That's something I understand and respect."
When Abbott wasn't throwing darts in Japan, she was pitching in the National Pro Fastpitch League in the United States, where she became the first female to earn a million dollar contract.
With a rise pitch that has reached 73 mph -- equivalent to a baseball traveling 95 mph -- Abbott has been regarded as one of the best softball pitchers in the world over the last decade.
"I've been training at home," Abbott said. "I felt a little uneasy when the decision was being made. I'm doing the best I can with what I have. I feel a little stir crazy.''
Abbott is no stranger to catastrophic events during her career. She was playing professional in Japan in 2011 when an Earthquake and Tsunai killed over 20,000 people.
She was pitching in the NPFL in Houston in 2017 when Hurricane Harvey swept through Texas and Louisiana, causing $125 billion in damage.
"We have always been able to rally as a world or community through athletics," Abbott said. "Sports gives us hope. Watching or reading the news just gets you down. That's everyone's challenge."
Abbott has relied on sports since she was a youth as an avenue to release stress and build confidence and self esteem into what has become a Hall of Fame career.
Recently inducted in the Salinas Valley Hall of Fame, Abbott is also in the University of Tennessee Half of Fame, where she took the program to three World Series appearances.
A four-time All-American, Abbott was the 2007 USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Year, and still holds NCAA career records for wins (189), strikeouts (2,440) and shutouts (112).
"My life would be dramatically different if I hadn't played sports," Abbott said. "For a lot of kids in high school, when things aren't going right, athletes is their sanctuary. It was mine."
Abbott hurled North Salinas to a pair of Central Coast Section divisional softball titles, tossing six shutouts in those two postseason runs. She was The Herald's Athlete of the Year in 2003.
Ironically, Abbott's career appeared to becoming full circle as Team USA was slated to face San Jose State at the Salinas Sports Complex on May 19 before the pandemic postponed the game.
The last time Team USA played in Salinas was in 2008, during an Olympic year, when over 2,000 people showed up to watch Abbott return home.
"It was an unbelievable experience back then," Abbott said. "Hopefully we'll be able to reschedule the game. Right now, lets all get healthy and take care of each other so we can enjoy life again."
Haddan won't be returning for 15th season at Alvarez
By John Devine
SALINAS -- Mark Haddan made it clear he isn't retiring, that the second longest tenured basketball coach in the county wants to coach again.
It just won't be at Alvarez any longer.
After 14 seasons -- 12 playoff appearances, one league title and 174 wins, Haddan and Alvarez have parted ways.
"I'm not to sure how to answer this," Haddan said. "You have a new athletic director and I was on my third principal. Things happen."
The school decided last month not to rehire Haddon, who holds the school record for wins as a coach and tenure in the program.
"We're moving in a new direction," Alvarez athletic director Brian Vazquez said. "I give him a lot of credit for what he's done here. He's had a phenomenal run."
Injuries riddled the Eagles last year. The loss of three starters, including their leading scorer, saw the program finish with just six wins - one in the Gabilan Division.
"I am not an athletic director that looks at wins and losses and makes you disappear," Vazquez said. "But I think someone could and should take us in another direction."
Haddan inherited a program in 2005 that won just two games. Over the course of the next 14 years, Alvarez won 14 or more games eight times, including a school record 18 in 2019.
"Sometimes you get stale in one place I suppose," Haddan said. "Yes, I was surprised. I did not get a good evaluation. They felt it was time to go in another direction."
When Haddan arrived at Alvarez, the program had registered the worst five year run among county schools, having gone 9-97 with three winless league season.
"My wife told me you build programs," Haddan said. "If there is a program that needs to be rebuilt, there's a coach out there that knows how to do it."
Prior to his arrival at Alvarez, Haddan spent five years at King City, taking them to their first league title in 31 years in 2002.
In his first season at Monte Vista in 2004, he took over a team that lost four starters -- including two scholarship bound players, and guided them to the State Northern California playoffs.
Yet, for the first time in 22 years, the 65-year-old -- owner of over 250 career wins -- is a basketball coach without a job.
"I have no bad feelings," said Haddan, who teaches at Mt. Toro School. "Sometimes it's good to step away for a while and reenergize yourself. I can tell you I still have the fire."
Initially, Haddan kept the news to himself. Once the shock wore off, he told a couple of his players, who had contacted him, asking while Alvarez was being moved to the Mission Division.
"I kind of kept it quite," Haddan said. "A lot of them have since reached out. One player asked what's going on? I said 'I'm sorry. I've been removed as the head coach'."
The only coaches in the county that have been in one place longer than Haddan are Monterey coach Greg Daniels (18 years) and Pacific Grove coach Dan Powers (16).
Coming off a school record 18 win season, and a 21-3 junior varsity team to pick from, Haddan had high expectations coming into last season.
A pair of ACL injuries to two potential starters over the summer, along with a player moving was the start of a series of mishaps that crippled the program.
Losing leading scorer Jalen Brown two games into the Gabilan Division season left Haddan with a lineup that didn't resemble his summer league unit.
"Out of that 21-3 JV team, three players ended up finishing the season," Haddan said. "I have never seen this many injuries in one season. This team will challenge next year in the Mission."
Haddan, who scored a then CCS record 65 points in one game in 1971 at Alisal, and later played four years at Fresno State, has already had one school inquire about coming on as an assistant.
Meanwhile the search for a new coach is already underway at Alvarez, despite the state of California requiring social distancing for the month of April because of the Coronavirus pandemic.
"We can set up Zoom meetings to start the interview process," Vazquez said. "This is something we do not want to hold back on."
MPC softball hurler Guindon signs with New Mexico
By John Devine
MONTEREY - Finishing up her spring semester classes nearly 2,000 miles away on-line in Houston, Emma Guindon's time at Monterey was brief, but refreshing.
With the season coming to an immediate halt because of the Coronavirus pandemic, it didn't end like Guindon and her Monterey Peninsula College softball teammate envisioned.
Yet, for the sophomore slugger/hurler, she made enough of an impression over 18 games to warrant a full ride scholarship to play next spring at the University of New Mexico.
"I had to make a decision on some unusual circumstances," Guindon said. "But there is no part of me that doesn't think this wasn't the right decision."
Recruiters for New Mexico had flown out to meet Guindon and watch her pitch. Yet, the day before MPC was slated to face Cabrillo, they were told to come back because of the pandemic.
"She was well recruited," MPC coach Keith Berg said. "But Emma was very specific with schools on what she wanted. She wouldn't settle for less."
Berg was speaking about Guindon's intentions to pitch and play in the field and hit at the Division I level.
"I don't like to say I'm just a pitcher or a specific position player," Guindon said. "I just want to be on the field. Hitting and pitching are an equal love. If I can't do both, I'm not loving it as much."
The 5-foot-9 Guindon was filthy as a hurler in the circle for the Lobos this past spring, posting a 4-1 record with an 0.63 earned run average, striking out 48 in 31 innings of work.
"We felt we could win the state with this pitching staff," Berg said. "We didn't give up an earned run until the 12th game. Emma was a big part of this staff."
She also sported a live bat on a team loaded with hitters in a 17-1 season, hitting .381 with a homer and 14 runs batted in. Guidon struck out just four times in 48 at bats.
"A lot of coaches don't want their pitcher to hit," Guindon said. "I'm not a stranger to spending more time in the bullpen or the batting cage. Being a hitter has made me a better pitcher."
Not being allowed to hit extensively during her freshman season at Houston Baptist led to Guindon giving up her scholarship and enrolling at MPC.
Guindon posted a 9-7 record as a freshman at Houston Baptist, with 93 strikeouts in 133 innings. But she only received 23 at bats on the year.
"It was more of a team environment thing," Guindon said. "Their goals didn't line up with my goals. I decided if I wanted to grow, this wasn't the place I needed to be."
How she stumbled upon MPC came when a youth coach of hers told her about what Berg had done for his daughter several years earlier.
"I reached out to coach Berg," Guindon said. "After hearing what he wanted to accomplish, it was a real easy decision. It was an opportunity to grow and get better. And I fell in love with the area."
Of course, the plan was to remain in Monterey until late May and chase a championship. The Lobos were the No. 2 ranked team in the state until all college spring sports were shutdown.
"It still seems surreal," Guindon said. "It was heartbreaking. I have never been with a team or staff that believe in me like that. I've never been a part of that type of attitude at this level."
Guindon was also drawing attention from Boise State and UMass before she made the decision to be a little closer to home by signing with New Mexico.
"Oh, there would have been a lot more offers had the season not been cut short," said Berg, who also saw Alexia Torculas sign with the University of San Diego last fall, and Juliette Guerra sign with St. Katherine last month.
Guindon is expected to make an immediate impact at New Mexico in the circle, where the team had a combined 5.96 earned run average this spring.
Because the NCAA and CCCAA is granting everyone's year back, Guindon will be a sophomore in terms of eligibility.
And the 19-year-old will remain a Lobo, as New Mexico has the same mascot as MPC.
"I love the drive that the coaches at New Mexico have, the goals they have in mind," Guindon said. "When there is a common goal to fight and push, I thrive under that mentality."
A soon to be teammate of Guindon's will be former Salinas slugger Leslie Romero, who finished her sophomore season at New Mexico.
Before Guindon drove back to Houston, she was able to get together one last time with her MPC teammates, where there weren't a lot of dry eyes in a season unfulfilled from a team standpoint.
"This was the best team I've ever been on," Guindon said. "This group worked so hard for a common goal. Saying goodbye was very emotional. My time at MPC was short, but so special."
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Leslie Romero hitting .220 at New Mexco, three RBI and four runs scored in 12 starts. 980 fielding percentage. sophomore outfielder.
Virtual training for football coaches
By John Devine
Distance learning won't be just for academics over the next two months.
With high school campuses closed for the remainder of the school year in Monterey County, football coaches are turning towards virtual learning to replace off-season workouts and spring ball.
There's no other option for coaches that had their off-season training halted in mid March, and likely won't have contact with their players in person until June -- at the earliest.
"Our staff had a meeting recently on Zoom," Monterey coach Henry Lusk said. "Our next move will be having groups of kids on Zoom and giving them responsibilities to study the playbook."
Of course, that won't replace the off-season workouts or the camaraderie that is built with the 6 a.m. weight training sessions, as well as the repetitions you get in the spring.
"We have sent workouts out to players to do at home," Seaside coach Al Avila said. "It's not the same as we'd do at school. A lot of our kids don't have access to weights."
Which has forced Avila, who has been coaching for 36 years at Seaside, to be creative and perhaps delve into the past -- well before programs were essentially year around.
"Some are using bamboo sticks and putting water buckets on each side for squads," Avila said. "It's not the same. But it's something. We were just starting our second phase of our off-season plan."
While all programs in the state will be in the same situation, football will likely look different in the first few weeks of the season as teams get reacclimated to each other.
There is a good chance that campuses won't reopen until July, meaning nearly four months of the off-season programs were lost.
"I think we can get the football part in two weeks," Salinas coach Steve Zenk said. "But as far as the physical aspect and level we're accustomed too, we're not going to be able to do that right away."
Meaning players aren't going to have the strength or growth that often comes from an off-season of being in the weight room and building strength and stamina with drills and speed training.
"I'm sending players our weekly workouts," Palma coach Jeff Carnazzo said. "I'm also sending them exercises they can do if they don't have access to weights. I stay in constant contact."
Yet, it's not necessary just about football. Carnazzo and other coaches continue to reach out to their players to check their health, and see how their handling the mental state of this pandemic.
"I'm having a hard time putting too much emphasis and preparation on football right now," Carnazzo said. "What we're dealing with is small potatoes to what other people are dealing with."
Not all schools have year around programs. Because so many athletes at Carmel play multiple sports, it doesn't have an off-season, other than two weeks of spring ball in May.
"We have spring ball and then normally do not return until July 4," Carmel coach Golden Anderson said. "Spring ball doesn't always include everyone because guys are in spring sports."
As a result, Anderson, who is the winningest coach in the county over the last decade with 93 wins, has no current plans to change what has worked for 11 years.
"We're going to lose out on eight days of field stuff," Anderson said. "Coaches are going to have to coach. We're in contact with our kids to make sure they're safe. It has nothing to do with football."
Zenk echoed similar sentiments. While he believes from a physicality standout, Salinas will climbing up a hill, he's more concerned with his players emotional well being through this ordeal.
"I'm checking in on them daily," Zenk said. "Our focus right now is making sure these kids are okay socially. I worry about depression setting in. I urge them to pay attention to what's going on."
Nearly 100 players tuned into an on-line meeting last week with Zenk, using their school accounts to listen to an upbeat coach keeping a positive frame of mind.
"I'm just encouraging them to take care of their school stuff and providing dates I feel are important," Zenk said. "Everything is in pause right now. But June will be here before you know it."
Carnazzo compared players being away from campus much like the 1987 NFL strike, where players missed the first three weeks of the season before returning and playing the following week.
"Who will be the most prepared team when we can all come back," Carnazzo said. "Who has the best plan coming out when this pandemic is over. Zoom has been a godsend for us."
Zoom is serving as a tool to communicate for several coaches, with their staffs and players. As many as 100 people can interact on line for 40 minutes in a meeting type setting.
"Spring football is out," said Carnazzo, who has taken Palma to four CCS titles. "So well use Zoom to install plays, go over film with groups, just like we were in a meeting room."
Zenk, who has guided Salinas to three straight Gabilan Division crowns, believes virtual learning on line for football will enhance his staff in being better prepared in breaking down film.
"I just feel it's something we as a staff can be better at," Zenk said. "It's a chance for us as coaches to get better with our classroom preparation."
Not being able to meet with coaches, other than on Zoom, Avila worries about falling behind when it comes to implicating systems -- often done over the course of off-season at Seaside.
"We usually have 12 hours of defense installed by spring ball," Avila said. "Right now we only have four completed. We need to make sure we're on the same page and doing the same things."
One of Lusk's biggest concerns, particularly for programs that may have rosters hovering around 40 or under -- is remaining healthy with no off-season to build strength.
Some players won't be able to get into a weight room until the summer. Finding a place to do agility drills and run on a track can be a tall task with all the closures and stay home in order.
"You don't know what the kids are doing when they're not around," Lusk said. "We're in contact with them. But it's not the same as being together. The learning curve will definitely be different."
If coaches are given clearance to get back on the field in June, Zenk cautioned about going to hard too soon.
"You can't replace 12 weeks of training," Zenk said. "We won't be able to bulk up like we normally do. That's the staple of Salinas football. It may not be in Week 1 or 2, but we'll get there."
"A lot of teams might look different the first couple of weeks," Lusk said. "It might be basic football. But at least we're back on the field."
"I would be getting ready for spring ball, readapte kids backto the program. The learning piece with the focus."
"Our staff will meet on Zoom. We have a lot of discuss. Our next move will be kids I groups so you can hav ea class twice a week and teach them the plays, what their responsiblites and study them. It will helps move along, Our learning curve is defineately different.''
I just try and encourage them. We're sending workouts for them. Trying ot keep in contact with the. It's not he save as being on the field. That's something we'll have to address. Our first scrimmage is in August. Have to make sure the communcation
I'm concerned with injuries. Don't know what athe kids are doing when they're not around. A lot of these kids don't have weights at home. But its the same for everyone. It might be basic football. It could look different the first couple of weeks.
We can do virtual learning with football. We'll break down plays with film. Its a chance to for as coaches to get better with our classroom preparation.''
We'll Zoom with our players when it comes to spring ball. We do install with different groups. Spring football is out. We'll be lukcy to be back in June. We can accomplish a lot in the summer. We have avoid the urge going to hard in June.
Lusk, who gook Monterey to a 10-2 record two years ago, feels coaches may have to alter
I'm concerned with injuries. Don't know what athe kids are doing when they're not around. A lot of these kids don't have weights at home. But its the same for everyone. It might be basic football. It could look different the first couple of weeks.
By John Devine
Teammates on a bay area traveling basketball team in the off-season, Luke Driscoll and J.T. Byrne have spent countless hours in a car talking basketball.
There games are complete opposites, with Driscoll being a volume shooter for Stevenson, knocking downs jump shots on the perimeter, and Byrne being a bruiser in the paint for Carmel.
One is a finesse player. The other is a physical beast. Both are used to drawing double teams. Each has an instinct and inner drive in them that can't be taught.
"I can't imagine anybody in the county banked more sweat equity and intentional gym time than this kid," Stevenson coach Justin Clymo said. "As a team, we take our cues from him."
Yet, put the stats and impressive numbers aside for a moment for The Herald' All-County Co-Players of the Year in basketball. What mattered for both was winning as a team.
Stevenson grabbed a share of its first Mission Division title in 11 years. Carmel won a Central Coast Section Division IV title, coming within a game of playing for a state title.
"Nothing feels better than going on the road against a good team and crashing the party," Byrne said.
The Padres historic year included repeating at Central Coast Section Division IV champions, racking up 26 wins and becoming just the fifth program in the county to pay for a NorCal title.
"I was thinking as we were making this journey of how special it was that the community got behind us," Byrne said. "So many people were vested in this. That's what's memorable to me."
Byrne, who dropped in 28 points and had 14 rebounds to extend Carmel's season in the State Nor Cal semifinals, still sees a gym packed 30 minutes before tipoff.
"Incredible," said Byrne, an all-leaguer in three sports. "You know what made this team and season so special? No drama. It was such a great group of guys to work with."
While the 6-foot-5 Bryne had a cast of seniors he was familiar with surrounding him, Driscoll found himself running a program with a lot of new faces on the hardwood.
It was apparent before the start of league play that the Pirates were going to ride the shoulders of the 6-foot point guard, who shot 45 percent from the field.
Driscoll, who has committed to play for Baldwin Wallace University on a basketball scholarship next year, was playing with four new starter this season.
"That didn't change my goals," Driscoll said. "I wanted to win a league title. I was prepared to carry a heavy load. I worked super hard in the off season to be able to make shots and big time plays."
Being a diabetic didn't derail Driscoll chasing his dreams, while being a leader by example with his work ethics and clutch efforts.
"Being diabetic changed my life," Driscoll said. "It made me more determined. When adversity hit me, it made me stronger as a person. It translated on the court. I turned a negative into a positive."
Driscoll tore up opposing defenses this past winter, averaging a county high 24.3 points a game for the Pirates. His scoring average went up, despite his 3-point shot attempt going way down.
"My mindset was not to score 20 point a night," Driscoll said. "I believe I work harder than anyone else at my craft. With the work I put into during the off-season, this wasn't an accident."
You might get an argument from Byrne, who spent last summer juggling football and basketball as an incoming junior
While football is where Byrne is drawing a lot of attention from colleges, including Oregon State, each sport is an equal when it comes pursuing goals.
"What I really enjoy is trying to outhustle my opponent," Byrne said. "Whether that's beating them down floor, taking a charge. The unseen things translates to a lot of scoring."
Byrne was beast in paint, averaging over 21 points a game for the Padres. He also pulled down over eight rebounds and compiled nearly two steals a game.
"I don't feel pressure from the outside," Byrne said. "I put pressure on myself. That's how I perform. For the team to play well, I need to perform well."
Never was that more evident then in a game earlier I the season against Monterey, when Byrne put in a school record 47 points in a come-from-behind win for the Padres.
"I took a couple of tough shots an they fell," Byrne recalled. "You have mindset that it's going to be a good day. We had guys creating space and finding me. We were losing in the second quarter."
Byrne still remembers going to the free throw line early in the third quarter, when an opposing player approached him.
"This kid from Monterey turned to me and said 'you had 27 points at the half'," Byrne said. I said 'Oh really?'. I had no idea. I just trying to do as much as a I could to help us win."
If there was a turning point in the season for Carmel, it came after being knocked off a second time by Palma, costing them a league title.
"The expectations for us based on how we played last year, were extremely high," Byrne said. "We fell into a lowe. Losing to Palma was blessing in disguise. It woke us up. We need to execute."
The result was a six game playoff winning streak, in which Carmel defending its section title, and played to a pair of sellout crowds during three week run.
Yet, when the run ended with a loss to St. Mary's of Albany, it wasn't the season that Byrne thought about as much the friendships that have been established the last three years.
"After we shook hands, I realized that I've been playing with these seniors since my freshman year," Byrne said. "It was surreal it's the last time we'll on the court together. That was hard to shallow."
Having dropped in a pair of 34-point efforts on the season, Driscoll scored over 600 points. He also finished with a team high 75 assists and 81 steals.
"When teams started to figure me out or double me, that allowed more space for me to facilitate and get the ball to other players," Driscoll said. "It doesn't mater how the job gets done."
For all the magical nights that Driscoll put up for Stevenson over the course of the year, there is only one that stands out.
"The moment when the final buzzer sounded and we won a title," Driscoll said. "Dumping gatoraide on coach Clymo. "This was a special group of guys. I loved our team."
Honoring the seniors whose spring sport seasons were cut short
Gonzales
Softball
Mia Flores
Baseball
Andrew Funk
Thomas Lopez
Michael Madera
Joseph Valdez
Girls track and field
Maria Lopez
Veronica Rodriguez
Madisyn Schweitzer
Leslie Hernandez
Samantha Hernandez
Adriana Medina
Diandra Yebra
Danielle Javier
Marina Cerna
Boys track and field
Angel Bautista
Jerome Russell
Anthony Gonzalez
Nathan Perez
Sebastian Valladares
Christopher Espinoza
Raymond Reyes
Raymond Guzman
Julian Rodriguez
Julio Romero
Tennis
Izeah Sanchez
Oscar Zarate
Juan Jarvis Mata
Erick Gonzales
North Salinas track and field
Jair Adame Cardoso
Aliyah Annis
Sophia Camacho
Christian Cuevas
Brandon Escalante
Sinohe Hercules
Jose Macias
Sabrina Peralta
Steve Perez
Andres Reyes
Ruben Salinas
Jake Sotelo
Stevenson softball
Nisha Singh
Rachel Fadel
Courtney Bishop
Honoring the seniors whose spring sport seasons were cut short
Carmel
Boys lacrosse
Brady Charlton
Bryce Fenwick
Jake Kasper
Dakota Mornhinweg
Will Saulnier
Cole Sawyer
Chris Valdez
Spencer White
Boys volleyball
Dylan Cohan
Nathan Miglaw
Satchel Sherman
Baseball
Cole Brushert
Joe Heidtke
Avery Hubbard
Noah Marsh
Connor Reding
Nico Staehle
Rowan Trosky
Charlie Von Sund
Girls lacrosse
Adeline Carley
Haemi Chee
Amaya Gomez
Sherille Tupino
Tatiana Vargas Sandoval
Girls swiming
Sierra Brinton
Emma Crabbe
Tess Echevarria
Athena Fosler-Brazil
Sarah Movahedi
Erika Pellett
Isabel Reed
Lauren Rice
Madeleine Schmidt
Ava Weiman
Diving
Zach Brady
Ella Fenstermaker
Sam Rauh
Catherine Singler
Boys swimming
Nathan Miglaw
Robbie Paul
Sam Saulnier
Tennis
Christian Gebhardt
Softball
Quinci Cox
Ninamarie Franklin
Jaclyn Hyles
Kendra Hyles
Mira Meckel
Boys track and field
Kieren Daste
Lavar Edwards
Henry Esparza
Hunter Heger
Jeremy Martin
Michael Meheen
Jonathan Perez
Angel Cisneros
Desmond Tan
Girls track and field
Lauren Aiello
Camille Louis
Grace Parker
Golf
Duke Bartholomew
Nathan Blakely
Jack Connolly
Maxton Michie
Honoring Marina's senior spring sport athletes
Honoring Marina's senior spring sport athletes, whose seasons were cut short by the Coronavirus pandemic
Marina Swim
Lauren Kirk
Cassie Lute
Elijah Norlund
Daniel Park
Rachel Park
Track and Field
Karla Herrera
Leo Isidro
Manny Ramirez
Softball
Fia Atalima
Ahzaria Simon
Cali Solis
Kayleekai Aten
Honoring Alvarez's senior softball players
Alondra Navarro
Stephanie Vasquez
Jenn Franco
Jocelyn Torres
Savannah Patoc
Honoring Alvarez's senior volleyball players
Jesus Moreno
Kyle Nava
Josh Diaz
Honoring Marina's senior spring sport athletes
Honoring Marina's senior spring sport athletes, whose seasons were cut short by the Coronavirus pandemic
Softball
Logan Riggenbach
Lacrosse
Grace Briley
Kelly Kinion
Ashly Orozco
Karina Santiago
Swim
Mara Vera Garcia
Shaina Johnson
Abigail Ko
Elizabeth LaPlace
Abigail Milanesa
Jade Palafox
Deja Ramirez
Vouchly Ty
SreyLin Uth
Jillian Wilcox
MacKenzie Zenk
Track & Field
Sylvania Gamble
Brigid Malley
Lauren Mirassou
Isabella Reimann
Mariah Schlapfer
Angela Leavitt
Honoring Salinas' senior spring sport athletes
Honoring Salinas' senior spring sport athletes, whose seasons were cut short by the Coronavirus pandemic
Aidan Borchard
Cody Erickson
Max Farfan
Joel Fulton
Cobi Lemus
Evan Maldonado
Nico Sigala
Cade Smith
Jonathan Wasson
Ethan Ajeska, trainer
Softball
Daisy Chavez
Emily Gonzalez
Cienna Kennamore
Kayla Stone
Boys track and field
Tully Cannon
Diego Emiliano Cortez-Tena
Sonny Cruz
Jakob Evans
Darrin Kirk
Trey Livian
Fermin Moreno
Joseph Morgan
Adriel Orozco
Gabriel Panlilio
Victor Reyes
Evan Springer
Johnny Tavares
Marco Antonio Vega
Isaiah Villanueva
James Yhip
Ethan Yu
Girls track and field
Sophia Fonseca
Gabriela Gonzalez-Silva
Taylor Hibino
Mariama Indula
Hadassah Legaspi
Sarah Low
Marilyn Macias
Fiona McPherson
Stacy Orta
Gezelle Villanueva
Boys swimming and diving
Draedon Bone
Nolberto Carrillo
Jacob Cruz
Sebastian Gomez
Dante Jackson
Dylan Lacalamita
Alexander Mariscal
Alexander Martinus
Jacob Modisette
Kentrell Settles
Ismael Trejo
Francisco Verdin
Girls swimming and diving
Vanessa Calderon
Jaden Carrillo
Melanie Castro
Brenna Clester
Cayman Edria
Fionnuala Ghinn
Allison Gray
Kaylee Jimenez
Brooke Locke
Caitlynn Martinez
Karina Martinez
Aztryd Moran
Lizbeth Morelos
Brianna Ortiz
Daisy Ortiz
Fatima Palomino
Emily Rivas
Rachel Roberts
Katrina Ruiz
Evelyn Torres
Joselyn Villasenor
Maria Wilson
Golf
Jeffrey Chin
Ladon Laporte
Tennis
Brandon Gatanaga
Marco Pizarro
Quin Ross
Boys lacrosse
Joseph Arias
Kade Black
Thomas Brau
Marco Del Real
Aaron Helali
Nathan Rosales
Damien Sampaga
Tyler Onciano
Girls lacrosse
Anarosa Chairez
Leslie Cital
Emily Garcia
Jisselle Gurerro
Stephanny Martinez
Abigail Martinez
Angelica Perez
Julissa Preciado
Fatima Sanchez
Giovanna Trujillo
Volleyball
Mason Atteridge
Steve Bolanos-Sanchez
Curren Mandon
Roberto Mendoza
Javier Tisnado
Honoring Alisal's senior spring sport athletes
Honoring Alisal's senior spring sport athletes, whose seasons were cut short by the Coronavirus pandemic
Pablo Trujillo
Alex Vilchis
Adrian Sanchez
Christian Pantoja
Tennis
Aldo Saldana
Anthony Wong
Alexis Estrada
Ernesto Garcia
Ernesto Vela
Juvenal Tapia
Daniel Contreras
Boys track and field
Eduardo Castillo
Christopher Castro
Marc Guido
Luis Heredia
Bryan Hernandez
Jaime Hernandez
Mario Hernandez
Maximos Lopez
Jose Martinez
Luis Martinez
Nivardo Martinez
Alejandro Medrano
Obet Munoz
Jerome Navarro
Angel Nieto
Jose Politron
Ruben Ramirez
Alejandro Reyes
Miguel Reyes
Oscar Rodriguez
Victor Rodriguez
Adrian Ruiz
Daniel Ruiz
Christian Schreiber
Fernando Serrano
Eduardo Torres
Pablo Trujillo
Sebastian Velazquez
Girls track and field
Jovana Ahumada
Nayeli Anguiano
Yamilet Castro
Monserratt Cortez
Dulce Del Aguila
Britny Delgado
Betsy Garcia
Noemi Hernandez
Laura Huitron
Sara Marquez
Jennifer Melgoza
Eileen Miranda
Martha Morales
Arely Parra
Maria Romo
Alexandria Soto
Jacqueline Torres
Michelle Torres
Wendy Zavala
Softball
Faith Lujan
Candy Marquez
Rosemary Arreola
Kristal Obas
Honoring Alvarez's senior spring sport athletes
Honoring Alvarez's senior spring sport athletes, whose seasons were cut short by the Coronavirus pandemic
Gabriel Corona
Christian Gabudad
Gavin Geronimo
Matt Gooden
Diego Lucio
Danny Lucio
Nathan Ramirez
Ray Rodriguez
Andrew Simon
Softball
Jenessa Franco
Rosa Navarro
Savannah Patoc
Jocelyn Torres
Stephanie Vasquez
Boys swimming
Angel Ramon
Girls swimming
Jayden Lopez
Haley Alvarez
Eliana Sanchez
Ana Hernandez
Volleyball
Josh Diaz
Jesus Moreno
Kyle Nava
Girls track and field
Erika Alvarado
Valerie Cervantez
Elissa Covarrubias
Gisselle Dominguez
Angelina Fernando
Ashley Gonzales
Nancy Lara
Illiana Martinez
Beatriz Murillo
Sabrina Nazario
Karen Ochoa
Boys track and field
Ricky Alvarez
Jose Castro
Sean Estrella
Nicholas Gandalfo
Steven Garcia
Tony Llamas
Alexis Morales
Koby Pearson
Gabriel Reynoso
Julian Rodriguez
VicenteJordan Vanderlipe
Tennis
Rene Castillas
Perry Wong
Jose Romo
Honoring Seaside's senior spring sport athletes
Honoring Seaside's senior spring sport athletes, whose seasons were cut short by the Coronavirus pandemic
Softball
Sierra Gonzales
Raylisa Lualemana
Malaya Manuel
Karla Martinez
Ariana Valdes
Volleyball
Orlando Amaya
Rodrigo Alejandro Cabrera
Isaac Casillas
Jesse Hunter-Vaughn
Marcos Magallanes
Jay Mahida
James Milovale
Anthony Munoz Garcia
Christian Perez
Boys track and field
CJ De Guzman
Rusty Kamitoni
Elijah Kodad
Girls track and field
Pearl Pineda
Yadira Viscarra Diaz
Swimming
Erika Cardenas
Simone Chavez
Makayla Reyes
Eduardo Victoria
Baseball
Rusty Finona
Kefu Leander
Tristan Trotter
Brandon Villarreal
Swim
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