Soccer players Athena Bow-Graham of Santa Barbara High and Miguel Mondragon of San Marcos High School have been named the Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table’s first Athletes of the Week for 2022, after leading their respective teams to league-opening wins early last week.
They’ll be presented their awards at a future press luncheon as the Athletic Round Table canceled its Jan. 10 luncheon after the Santa Barbara Unified School District late last week put a pause on all extracurricular activities due to a surge in COVID-19 cases.
Mondragon, a defender, assisted on the first two goals and scored the third in a 5-0 San Marcos win over crosstown rival Dos Pueblos in the Channel League opener.
“On the field, there is simply no player that adds more to the attack as a defender than Miguel,” said coach Paul McLean. “He understands his defensive positioning and gets forward to provide consistent service to our attackers. It is exciting to see him scoring more as well.
“I cannot wait to see Miguel play in college. I have no doubt that he will have a similar impact at the next level.”
Bow-Graham scored all three goals for Santa Barbara in a 3-1 league-opening win over Lompoc.
“This season we have noticed the difference with Athena who came into the season fit and confident, which showed why she had the performance she did in the league opener,” said Santa Barbara coach Willie Sims.
“In the game versus Lompoc, she was on the front foot, taking players on, creating chances and getting herself in good spots to score goals. Athena showed that game what she’s all about and why she’s our captain.”
— 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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