Bishop Diego girls basketball coach Jeff Burich can’t believe how fortunate student athletes like Clara McDonald and Sonia Mancuso have been at Bishop Diego.
McDonald, a junior, has won two CIF titles, one in the shot put from last spring and the other in volleyball this fall. Mancuso, a freshman, also was a member of the CIF-champion volleyball squad.
At Monday’s Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table Press Luncheon, Burich said he joked with McDonald that he’s “been coaching for 16 years and I got my name up for one wall banner. She’s been there for three years and she’s already up there twice.”
He added that in McDonald’s freshman year, she was on his basketball team that played in a CIF championship game.
“She’s had quite the career. I’m jealous,” cracked Burich.
He congratulated Mancuso for her CIF title. “In one year, you’ve done what it’s taken me 16 years. So, good job there.”
The coach was impressed with Mancuso’s basketball skills after watching her play against McDonald during the summer.
She has become a versatile player for the Cardinals.
“She can go in for the guard if a guard needs a sub; she can go in for the post and play when the post player needs a sub,” he said.
Mancuso can also knock down free throws in a tense situation. She made 3 of 4 after a double technical foul was called against the St. Bonaventure coach during a tight game against the Seraphs in the Bird Cage Classic. The free throws pulled the Cardinals within one point and they eventually won the game by four.
“There’s nobody else out there, and she said even the whole crowd was going ‘shhhhh,’” he said. “She makes three out of four.
“She is awesome now, and it’s going to be a great future for her.
“I’m just stoked to have these two on the court.”
DOS PUEBLOS BOYS BASKETBALL
Senior Krue Court and junior Hudson Squires are providing defensive help for the Chargers.
“Krue is becoming one of our better perimeter defenders,” said assistant coach John Slavin. “And we’re going to rely on him to make an impact at both ends of the court.”
Slavin said Squires possesses beautiful form on his three-point shot and is trying to make his presence felt as a defender.
“He’s really, really improved on the defensive end and we’re expecting him to become one of our defenders to come off the bench and continue to play offense for us,” said Slavin.
The Chargers (0-3) will look for their first win Tuesday at Rio Mesa before heading to the St. Joseph Tournament.
UCSB SWIMMING
UCSB coach Jaclyn Rosen said the Gaucho men took first place at the Dixie Invite, beating BYU and UC San Diego, while the women finished third.
“We have a really competitive group,” she said. “It’s really fun every day on the pool deck, which is probably my favorite place to be.”
The Gauchos’ first home meet is not until Jan. 8 against UNLV. The conference championships are in February and the NCAAs in March.
“We have a really good chance to be there this year,” she said of the NCAA Championships.
Rosen said the first half of the season has gone as she predicted, which makes going into the second part “nerve wracking.”
She’s challenging her athletes to “make them better, so we can still keep getting faster as the season goes.”
SAN MARCOS BOYS BASKETBALL
Coach Jelani Hicks made his season debut at the luncheon and brought seniors TJ Robinson and Aidan Mandel.
On Robinson: Hick said the returning player “has done a great job being coachable. I’m on him and Aidan a lot, especially on the defense.
“Defense is something we really try to hold our hat on and make it our identity. But every year you have a new team with some returners, but not everyone is in the same role. So, they’re learning how to play defense for whole game with major minutes.”
Mandel didn’t play basketball during the pandemic-delayed season last spring because he was playing shortstop for the Channel League-champion baseball team at San Marcos
“He’s a big time baseball player as well, so it’s been great to have him back, just the talented player that he is,” said Hicks. “Highly competitive, he really gets our guys going in practice and just keeps us going. And, he’s been a force inside along with TJ.
“They really have been a big starting force for us.”
At 3-4 after completing the Bob Hawking Tournament, Hicks’ Royals play 14 games this month.
“We’re looking to have those games really prepare us for league and we’re just going to try to do our best once we get there,” said Hicks.
The Royals are at the St. Joseph Tournament this weekend. Their first two games are against Chaminade and Mission Prep.
SANTA BARBARA GIRLS WATER POLO
Coach Mark Walsh said the three-week season the CIF squeezed in for water polo last spring during the pandemic has made it a little more challenging for the sophomore varsity players getting adjusted to the higher level of competition.
Santa Barbara opened its season against Oaks Christian and Agoura, both top-8 teams in CIF Division 1, and lost both games.
“We came up a little short against Oaks Christian but battled with them and then got beat pretty bad by Agoura a couple hours later,” he said. “They had an all-senior team and we have a couple of seniors, but we have a lot of sophomores who are playing this year.”
He said the younger players are lacking game experience because their freshman season was cut to just the three weeks.
“So there’s a big difference from the kids who are seniors during Covid,” Walsh explained. “They have had two years with the program as freshmen and sophomores, and then they had their junior year that was cut short. So they’ve (still) had a lot of high school water polo compared to the sophomores.
“They had Covid training basically, where you couldn’t even touch a ball or touch another player and you couldn’t really do any sort of team concepts until all sudden it was like March. The CIF said, ‘Okay, now you have three weeks to play’ and then that was it.
“So, where they are as players is a lot different than where our seniors are. I know our sophomores can get a lot better this year. And I know they’ll be a big part of our success as those girls get caught up to speed.”
Walsh introduced his standout seniors Sophie Johnson and Allison Bartholomew.
Johnson plays defender and center and is one of the best shooters on the team.
“She kind of does everything for us,” said Walsh.
He said Johnson has several college looking at her, including a couple of Ivy League schools.
Bartholomew has signed to play at UC San Diego next year.
“Allison is one of our fastest players and she’s one of our most creative drivers,” said Walsh. “She’s a big part of our offense. Her speed and movement is one of our team’s greatest strengths, so we try to use that as much as possible.”
SAN MARCOS GIRLS WATER POLO
Senior Brooke Ingram is one of the leaders of coach Chuckie Roth’s high-powered program.
“I’m really proud of who she is and what she stands for,” he said. “She works incredibly hard. She lifts five times more than me in the weight room, and in the water just does a phenomenal job for me as my center defender.”
He was impressed with her coachability during last weeks’ games against highly ranked Laguna Beach, Oaks Christian and Agoura.
“Everytime I gave her feedback there was a lot of thank you’s and nodding of heads, acknowledging everything I just said. Brooke is an all-around great leader and a mentor to the younger girls in the program and does a great job carrying on team culture,” said Roth.
Ingram has signed to continue her career at Michigan.
Roth said junior Madison Haaland-Ford is a player who makes big plays in big moments.
“She understands her strengths and weaknesses pretty well and goes in for short amounts of time and really makes an impact,” he said. “She was pivotal in our Laguna Beach game. She had two plays that really kept us in the game.”
He called her a great ambassador to the program and a great leader in the classroom.
The Royals head to the Villa Park Tournament this weekend.
CARPINTERIA GIRLS WATER POLO
With the Southern Section-champion boys water polo team extending their season to the CIF Regional final, the Carpinteria girls water polo team got scant practice time in the pool.
“That kept the girls out of the pool pretty much or they got maybe two hours a week in the pool,” said coach Jon Otsuki. “So, as the boys wrapped up their season, we got a full week of practice and then we go right into two non-league games.”
The Warriors beat Buena and Cate.
Otzuki introduced senior Piper Clayton and junior Ainslee Alexander.
On Clayton: “She’s a leader out there. We have a lot of kids that don’t know what’s going on and Piper is always there, helping and explaining how things work,” said the coach.
Alexander also plays volleyball and runs track for the Warriors.
“She could probably do two sports in every season if she chose to,” said Otsuki. “She is a go getter. She’s also a leader on the team, a very strong athlete, and one that we’re going to depend on this year.”
Otsuki noted that the Carpinteria Community Pool is going to be closed during the last two weeks of December. He’s trying to make arrangements with other schools to share their pool for some practice time.
SANTA BARBARA HIGH BOYS BASKETBALL
Coach Corey Adam introduced Devan Stone and Blaise Winston.
Stone has been sidelined with an injury he suffered in the second game of the season.
“He’s one of our best defenders and he was that for the firs two games until he hurt his knee toward the end of our second game,” said Adam. “We’re hoping to get him back by the end of the month.”
Adam noted that Stone, the son of Dons football coach JT Stone, continues to come to practice and is “still doing his best to be part of the team, given the situation. You got to respect that. It speaks to his character and how much he loves his teammates and they love him.”
Adam said Winston is the most improved player in the program since his freshman year. He is currently the leading rebounder on the team.
Adam said Winston responded to a challenge of always bringing energy to the court.
“He’s brought that energy consistently since then,” said the coach. “It’s really a testament to his character and then the work ethic. Some players hear that and they say coach’s fault. Some players hear it as constructive criticism, which is what he did.”
The Dons are headed to the Corona del Mar Tournament, where they’ll face several teams from the Surf League.
DOS PUEBLOS WRESTLING
Coach Kenny Breaux introduced junior Cody Pearce and sophomore Samuel Ramos as two of the best guys on the team.
“Talent-wise, I know they’re not at the level they want to be and certainly not at the level I want them in,” he said. “But character-wise, they’re what we’re looking for in a wrestling athlete and a student athlete. They don’t make excuses, they show up on time and they dedicate a lot of their free time to wrestling. They’re investing back into the community of wrestling and helping out younger kids.”
Breaux noted that his wrestlers got a wake-up call at the Newbury Park Tournament, where they saw some of the top wrestlers in the state.
The Chargers open their Channel League dual meet season at Lompoc this week.
This the last year the’ll compete in the league with Lompoc, Cabrillo and Santa Ynez as those schools move to the Central Section next school year.
Breaux is expecting the league to be very competitive.
“In my personal opinion, this is going to be an epic year for the whole league because this is going to be the last time we’re together,” he said.
DOS PUEBLOS GIRLS WATER POLO
Jordan Williams made her first appearance as a coach. The former Dos Pueblos water polo star is a co-coach at her alma mater.
She introduced senior Anikka Kuhm and junior Emma Gilbert, the team captains.
She said the pair “represent what Dos Pueblos water polo stands for.”
Kuhm, a four-year varsity player, provides a vocal presence in the pool.
“We have a lot of young girls on our team this year, so having her is exceptional to the program,” said Williams.
On Gilbert: “She is just a great all-around player and probably one of the best defenders I’ve ever seen come through this program,” said Williams.
She noted the players’ acceptance of her as a new coach “has been “amazing.”
The Chargers are 2-1 as they head to the Villa Park Tournament.
LAGUNA BLANCA BOYS BASKETBALL
Coach Carlos Guerrero was thrilled to see his player, freshman Carson Stewart, win Athlete of the Week honors. In his debut, he scored 31 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in win over Orcutt Academy.
Guerrero said in his six years working under Hall of Fame coach Sal Rodriguez, Laguna Blanca basketball never had an Athlete of the Week.
“He is a special player,” he said of Stewart. “And this is a real special group.”
Guerrero has sophomore Charlie Sheldon running the offense at point guard.
“I call him the ‘Little General,’”said Guerrero. “I have four coaches on my staff and a second coach out there on the floor. The Little General is very poised as a point guard. He’s not very big in size, but he’s smooth with the ball. And that’s very cool to watch.”
The Owls (1-0) are back in action at the Ojai Classic this weekend, They open against Hueneme.
— Noozhawk sports editor Barry Punzal can be reached at bpunzal@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk Sports on Twitter: @NoozhawkSports. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
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