The action heats up this week on the ballfields, the track and in the gym.
On Saturday, Carpinteria High hosts the 100th Russell Cup track and field meet, the longest running meet in the California.
In addition to the action among athletes from 45 schools, there will be a flyover of vintage military planes following the national anthem at 8:45 in the morning and a ceremony recognizing 25 Russell Cup legends during the meet’s lunch break.
Among the legends returning for the meet is Carpinteria’s Tom Grewe, an outstanding distance runner for the Warriors in the early 1980s. He won the 1982 CIF State Meet title in the 1600 and was a CIF-SS 1A champion in cross country and in the 1600 and 3200 on the track.
Another big event is the Karch Kiraly Tournament of Champions for boys volleyball at Santa Barbara High on Friday and Saturday.
Loyola of L.A., Palisades Charter, host Santa Barbara and Newbury Park are the top four seeds in the 16-team field.
Kiraly, a three-time Olympic champion and Santa Barbara alum, will be attending the tournament on Saturday, said Dons coach Chad Arneson.
“It will be fun for the boys to have Karch in the gym watching some great high school volleyball,” said Arneson.
“You’ll some of the best talent in California come to that tournament,” said San Marcos coach Roger Kuntz, whose Royals are entered. “It’s going to be a grind. A lot of tournaments you play two-out-of-three sets and the TOC is a full three out of five, so you get four full matches in two days. It’s a knock-down, drag-out.”
UCSB baseball plays a key Big West series against UC Irvine at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Both teams are ranked in the college baseball polls.
The Gauchos (23-5) took two of three from Cal State Fullerton to open Big West play two weeks ago.
“Irvine will be a big test in terms of talent and contenders in the Big West,” UCSB associate head coach Donegal Fergus said.
Also this week, Dos Pueblos and San Marcos play each other in baseball and softball, and Dos Pueblos hosts San Marcos and Santa Barbara High in a Channel League track & field meet.
Here’s a rundown of what the coaches said about the student athletes they brought to Monday’s press luncheon:
SBCC Baseball
Jeff Walker on pitcher Ian Churchill and second baseman Tommy Holguin: “Both were big with our victories this week. Ian got the save in an extra-inning game at Hancock.
“In a walk-off win at home against Hancock, Tommy got the game-winning hit.”
“Saturday at Cuesta, Ian pitched seven innings of relief. It was planned. It worked out well to get our best pitcher pitching at the end of the game.”
Santa Barbara High Baseball
Steve Schuck on junior shortstop Nick Oakley: “He just plays with heart, grit, passion and fire. He leads us in stolen us and, if you know my team, we like to run. He’s perfect in the lead-off spot.”
On senior first baseman Nick Dallow: “When I met Nick, he didn’t have a position. In the short 41/2 – 5 months I’ve been here, he’s really stepped up and taken hold of first base. He leads our team in doubles.”
On both players: “After every game, you’ll never find a clean piece of uniform on them. They are gritty, they play with passion and to be honest, if they were clean, I think they would be (upset). This is the way they play and that’s the type of ballplayer I’m looking for.”
San Marcos Volleyball
Roger Kuntz on junior outside hitter Niko Cvitanic: “Niko plays in just about every match. In our first match against Arroyo Grande, we wouldn’t have been 1-0 without him. He made a couple of incredible saves and a couple of incredible kills in game 5 and we were tied 14-all. He really got us started off the right way. He’s a great guy to have in our program.”
On junior opposite Tyler Curt: “We got to put our helmets on when he’s serving because you don’t know where it’s going to go. When it does go in, it’s pretty effective. We want to get him back (to the service line) a little bit more.”
On junior setter Ryan Fuller: “He comes in as a serving specialist. He makes us go. He’s waiting in the wings (behind senior Tanner Stevens) to be the starter next year. For a lot of other teams, he’d be a premier setter for them. We’re blessed to have a couple of those guys in our program.”
Carpinteria Tennis
From coach Charles Bryant on Carlos Castilla: “No matter where we put him, Carlos is giving his best effort, playing whatever position that gives our team the best chance to succeed. His selflessness and attitude is driving our team.”
On Soloman Nahooikaika-Anderson: “He is a four-year varsity starter and easily one of the best athletes that has come through here in the last 15 years. League MVP in water polo, first-team all-league in soccer and is currently our top doubles player. And he’s sprinting in track.”
Carpinteria Softball
Coach Deborah Wilcox on first baseman Isabel Studt and utility player Karressa Flores: “These two ladies have strong bats, they’re loud in the dugout, loud on the field and they’re both very hard working. These girls are the two I look for to get the energy going, I appreciate all that they do.”
San Marcos Baseball
Coach Jacob Pepper on Julio Perez: “He’s got a ton of energy in the dugout. He’s always happy, doing everything he can to help the team, whatever it is. He’s really accepting his role and making his role as big as possible.”
On Jeremy Vincent Matter, who comes from Switzerland and is playing baseball for the first time: “Bottom line, he’s the most improved player we have. If I had every guy who over six months spent as much time and worked as hard as he would, we’d be in really great shape. That’s a testament to where he comes from and who he is. He’s gotten some experience. He just does it all with zero exceptions and nothing but heart and commitment. It’s been great to have him.”
Dos Pueblos Tennis
Coach Laura Housinger on seniors Alex Oaten and Aaron Juan: “They are very flexible when I put them in singles or doubles. These two boys are leaders on our team. We have lefty, a righty, we have singles and doubles, we have leaders, we have good energy. It’s just a great team dynamic and they really bring it to the next level.”
Bishop Diego Softball
Coach MeLinda Matsumoto on senior Miranda Alvarez: “Miranda is really aggressive in the batter’s box. I tell her to be more patient. She had a great game against Santa Barbara.
On freshman Yvette Rosales: “She’s batting over .450 for us and her on-base percentage is over .600, She’s doing a great job in the box, especially being poised as my No. 4 batter as a freshman.”
Dos Pueblos Softball
Coach Mike Gerken on third baseman Jenny Nichols: “She’s quietly excellent. Not a lot of flash but everything is efficient and gets the job done.”
On pitcher Ali Borden: “She is a player who is just fun to watch at the plate and in the circle. She mixes up her pitches a lot and gets a lot of people on their front foot and uncomfortable. And they just don’t hit her very hard. At the plate, she makes a lot of adjustments in at-bats. She’s our No. 6 hitter and really effective for us.”
On outfielder Josy Uyesaka, the Athlete of the Week: “Josy is a player we never ever have to worry about. When she comes out to practice, it’s full speed all the time. That’s the kind of thing she brings to us in games and in practice.”
Hop Studios
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