BY BLAKE DORFMAN, PRESIDIOSPORTS.COM
The two-minute drill is something left to a quarterback, but with a packed house at Monday’s Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table Luncheon, everyone at the podium had to give it a try.
Some failed miserably when it came to giving updates on their teams in under two minutes, while others — such as SBCC Sports Information Specialist Dave Loveton — were impressively swift-tongued.
Sure, Loveton went sixteen seconds over the limit, but he was giving updates on five Vaquero teams.
The SBCC women’s basketball team has won eight of its last nine games to close out the regular season and earned the 16th seed in the Southern Cal Regionals. The Vaqueros will host No. 17 on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
Vaquero guard Francesca DeAngelis, the top-scorer in the WSC at 20.4 per game, was named second-team All-State on Monday. DeAngelis and Jake Kelly previously earned first-team All-WSC North honors, while Sandrine Krul was named the conference’s Coach of the Year.
The men’s team finished its season at 8-18, but finished strong by winning three of their last four. Former Santa Barbara High standout Willie Reese scored a season-high 26 points on 12-16 shooting in a 77-59 win over Hancock on Wednesday. On Saturday, the 6-6 freshman missed a double-double by one rebound (12 points, 9 rebounds).
The Vaquero baseball squad is 4-3, having hit a remarkable 15 home runs in those seven games. Sophomore left-hander Joe McGrew held Solano to four hits over eight innings in a 7-3 win on Friday. He struck out five and didn’t allow an earned run. McGrew, who’s signed to play for UCSB next year, has given up zero earned runs in 17 innings this year.
The team hosts Irvine Valley at 2 p.m. on Tuesday.
The men’s tennis team is off to a 4-1 start while the women’s netters are 3-3. Both squads, however, are 2-0 in the WSC.
Bravo, Mr. Loveton.
GIRLS SOCCER
DOS PUEBLOS: Coach Molly Imel didn’t come close to keeping it under two minutes, but she’s so enthusiastic about her first year back with the Chargers that she couldn’t help it. DP’s season came to an end last week with a 2-1 first-round playoff loss at San Clemente, the top-seeded team in the Division I bracket.
Imel introduced Kristen Witchey, a defender who recently committed to play for Cal Baptist — a top-10 team in the NAIA — next season. Also present were freshman standouts Maria Solis and Rachel Smith as well as junior Amber Altavilla, who played every minute of every game this year. Last but not least was goalie Megan Bellefeuille, who notched 12 shutouts on the season.
LAGUNA BLANCA: The Owls are still alive heading into the second round of the playoffs, and will face Arroyo High School in El Monte on Wednesday. Athletic Director Mike Biermann introduced three-year starter Kelsey Douglas, a junior, and fellow defender Carolina Beltran. Should the Owls win on Wednesday, they’ll likely host top-seeded CAMS in the quarterfinals on Friday.
CARPINTERIA: No, the Warriors aren’t going to the playoffs, but their improvement from last season was impressive.
“Last year we were shutout in every (Tri-Valley League) game except for one. This year, we scored on every team in league, including two goals against Oaks Christian,” noted coach Lucy Carleton.
Having 12 seniors on the roster certainly helped this year. Along with Carleton on Monday were seniors Michelle Rivas, Ariana Martinez and Jacqueline Perez. All three are likely to continue playing at the collegiate level.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
LAGUNA BLANCA: Thanks to Female Athlete of the Week Amanda Schulenberg, the Owls are the only prep hoops team still alive in the playoffs. Schulenberg, a senior, scored 21 points Saturday in a 60-57 win at Hesperia Christian in the second round of the Division V-A playoffs. Laguna will host No. 3 Hillcrest Christian on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
Biermann also introduced last week’s Athlete of the Week, Megan McAlister, who is averaging 10 points and 12 rebounds, as well as top-defender and point guard Julia Kent.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
WESTMONT: Coach John Moore said he can now change the “Beat Biola” chant after last week’s upset win over the fourth-ranked Eagles.
“We’ve beaten Biola. We beat, beat Biola!”
The Warriors went on to take down Point Loma on Senior Night at Murchison Gym, holding the Sea Lions to just 16 field goals. Moore introduced Assistant Coach Larry Knapp as well as Athletic Director Dave O’Dell.
“Westmont athletics is on the rise because of the support Dave O’Dell has shown for our teams,” said Moore to O’Dell.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
WESTMONT: “Hope and perseverance” are the themes for Kirsten Moore’s squad, which is still holding on to hopes of a berth in the NAIA Tournament despite being depleted by injuries.
On Tuesday, the Warriors will host Fresno Pacific, which features freshman Brandi Blackwell, a graduate of Santa Barbara High. Moore said she expects Blackwell to start for the Sunbirds in the game.
After that, Westmont will have a chance to prove itself against two of the top teams in the nation, Vanguard and Azusa Pacific, before the GSAC Tournament.
UCSB: The Gauchos have struggled this year, but after a 55-43 decision over Cal State Fullerton on Saturday, hopes are still alive for UCSB to get a No. 4 seed and first-round bye in the Big West Tournament, which begins in less than two weeks.
The Gauchos set the school’s single-game blocks record with 15 against the Titans, who only made a total of 17 field goals on the day. Mekia Valentine had nine of those blocks to go along with 17 rebounds.
WRESTLING
DOS PUEBLOS: The three local wrestlers still alive in postseason competition are all Chargers, and they were all in the Ranchero Room on Monday. Speaking of three, coach Anthony Califano proudly announced that his team has a combined 3.3 GPA.
Unseeded Mario Elias defeated the top seed among the 130-pounders last weekend at the CIF Individual Championships in Oxnard, and ended up moving on to the Master’s meet with a third-place finish.
Junior Harrison Solomon, wrestling at 119 pounds, beat the buzzer to keep his season alive. The top five finishers at each weight advanced from last weekend’s meet, and Solomon scored a take-down with four seconds left in his fifth-place match to break a tie and move on.
Meanwhile, Chuy Lopez was seeded third and finished accordingly in the 135-pound class to move on to his second Master’s meet.
SAN MARCOS: A strong season for the Royals came to an end over the weekend.
“On Saturday we had a little bit of a meltdown,” said coach Tony Becerra.
He introduced senior captain Louis Giroux, who pinned the eventual third-place winner in his weight class. Becerra said Giroux is expected to play collegiate football somewhere next year.
BOYS GOLF
BISHOP DIEGO: Co-coach Pete Georgi introduced seniors Scott Grimes and Jun Hu — both of whom have GPAs over 4.3 — before making the most meaningful announcement of the day.
Lauren Ashley Herrera, the daughter of co-coach Marty Herrera, passed away at age 15 back in 2000 and the Lauren Ashley Herrera Foundation was subsequently set up. More than $100,000 has been raised by the organization since it began in 2001, and Georgi presented SBART President Catherine Manset-Morreale with a check for $2,500 to help the Round Table in its continued service in the athletic community.
Whether or not Lauren was a golfer, it was a hole-in-one gesture from the foundation that carries her name.
BASEBALL
UCSB: The Gauchos are “anxious to play anybody” according to coach Bob Brontsema, as inter-squad scrimmages and practices have left the team restless and ready to face actual opponents.
They’ll get their first taste of a real opponent when they host Westmont at 2 p.m. on Tuesday. UCSB will then go on a 7-game road trip.
Brontsema brought along former Westmont head coach John Kirkgard, who has served as his assistant at UCSB for 14 seasons.
“He was Westmont’s head coach for 13 years, and this is his 14th as a Gaucho, so I think that officially makes him a Gaucho,” said Brontsema.
John Moore would later proclaim “Once a Warrior, Always a Warrior,” but that’s a score that can be settled on the diamond Tuesday. Brontsema also introduced was new assistant Jason Lefkowitz.
WESTMONT: First-year head coach Rob Ruiz made his luncheon debut and reported on the Warriors’ 4-5 start to the season. Two standouts so far this year for the Warriors have been Tim Leary, who is hitting .387 with three homers, and Daniel Cabuling, a big lefty with a 3-0 record and 1.02 ERA.
After taking on the Gauchos, Westmont will play two GSAC games at Fresno Pacific before hosting the Sunbirds in a doubleheader Saturday at Russ Carr Field.
COLLEGE TENNIS
UCSB MEN: The Gauchos are almost halfway done with their season but have yet to play a home match. They beat Utah two weeks ago and briefly broke into the national rankings before losing to Irvine and USD.
The 4-time defending Big West champs will finally be home this weekend with matches against UC Davis on Saturday and Pacific on Sunday, with both slated for 1 p.m. Davis introduced a new addition to his staff in former Santa Barbara High and Stanford standout Blake Muller.
“The only thing that would have been better is if he’d accepted my offer to join us before he went to play at Stanford,” joked coach Marty Davis.
UCSB WOMEN: Like the Gaucho men, the women’s team has been hitting the road, having played only one home match over its first nine. Pete Kirkwood’s team is 3-6, but four of those losses have come to nationally ranked opponents.
Nine of the remaining 13 matches will be at home, including 1 p.m. matches against UC Davis on Saturday and Fresno Pacific on Sunday. Jill Damion is expected to return from injury to the top singles spot in a week, which will provide a big boost.
WESTMONT MEN: Santa Barbara native Mark Basham is the Warriors’ new coach, and the program is currently ranked No. 16 in the NAIA. The Warriors have already upset fifth-ranked Point Loma on the road, 7-2, and beat Claremont last weekend 5-4.
“We’re not very deep, but we have five really good players,” said Basham.
Three of them were at Harry’s — Mattias Neuman of Sweden, Diego Almeida of Brazil and senior captain Bryan Cox.
WESTMONT WOMEN: The No. 17 Warriors are 1-3, but who knows how different it would be if not for two players coming down with swine flu and another with tonsilitis. Regardless, everyone is healthy now, and top singles player Alyssa Matthews has shaken off the rust after spending the last semester in Europe.
Next up for the Warriors is a road match against No. 11 Azusa Pacific.
BOYS TENNIS
SAN MARCOS: Jarrod Bradley’s still coming down from a Channel League championship in boys basketball as he begins his other coaching job with the Royal netters. The team opens up at Camarillo on Tuesday. Bradley introduced Travis Enholm, a 4.5-GPA student who “is never short on words,” as well as captan Scott Messier.
DOS PUEBLOS: The Chargers graduated only one player last year and return their top player in UCSB-bound Sasha Gryaznov. While coach Liz Frech said that Gryaznov is the comedian on the team, she also introduced “rock star” Christian Edstrom. The third captain, “philosopher” Andy Silverstein, will be at later luncheons.
The Chargers, whom Frech described as deep and talented, hosted Calabasas on Monday.
BOYS VOLLEYBALL
SAN MARCOS: Roger Kuntz has added legendary Royals coach Jon Lee as an assistant, which will put Lee coaching on the court that was recently named in his honor. Kuntz said that his team features a large group of juniors this year, including setter Neil Holliday and Jackson Kunz, a returning starter at outside hitter.
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