Soccer Town Showcase brings preps into College Cup mix

Saturday Showcase Schedule

This weekend Santa Barbara will not only host the best collegiate soccer teams in the nation but the city will also play host to the best high school boys soccer teams in California. UCSB and San Marcos High School have joined forces to create the Soccer Town Showcase, an event that brings 54 of the best high schools in California to Santa Barbara to compete with each other and attend the College Cup.Every local high school will be hosting matches on Friday and Saturday, with Girsh Park … [Read more...]

Dons’ defense is a work in progress

Santa Barbara boys soccer coach Todd Heil put it straight after his team lost its second straight match to open the season.“We’ve allowed five goals in two games. Defensively, we have some work to put in.”The Dons gave up a goal in the 79th miunte and lost to St. Francis 3-2 in a battle of perennial CIF boys soccer powers in La Canada on Friday night.The Dons got off to a quick start, taking a 1-0 lead 40 seconds into the match as Alexis Carmona scored off a cross from Marco … [Read more...]

Dons, Chargers linked forever in memorable season

Dos Pueblos and Santa Barbara met at UCSB's Harder Stadium to settle the CIF Division-II championship on March 5.

Years from now, when players from the 2009-10 Santa Barbara High and Dos Pueblos boys soccer teams talk about that incredible night of March 5, people probably will think they’re making it up.Who would believe that a high school soccer match could draw a crowd of 8,000 people to a stadium?Maybe in some soccer-mad nation like Brazil, England or Mexico.But here?The CIF-Southern Section Division II championship game between crosstown and Channel League rivals Santa Barbara and … [Read more...]

Gonzalez, Alfaro haul in Player of Year awards

Former Santa Barbara Don Jesse Gonzalez just finished his first season at

The CIF-ss D-II champion Dons played as the ultimate team, dangerous from every position. That didn't stop CIF from singling out Santa Barbara's Jesse Gonzalez and Jose Alfaro as the season's Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year recipients.The pair led the Dons to their sixth southern section title and a 29-0-1 record. Santa Barbara finished up with a 31-1-1 record after losing their first and final game 1-0 to Corona del Mar in the CIF SoCal Regional Final.Gonzalez was tops on … [Read more...]

Good things come in pairs for this mad March

Did you know that there are two local basketball players who will be starting for their respective college teams heading into March Madness?Jeff Lavender quizzed the audience at Monday's Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table luncheon, and no one was able to come up with both answers. Lavender was there to talk about the Santa Barbara High boys golf team (he's an assistant coach for the team), but as a former Westmont basketball player and coach for the Dons and San Marcos, he couldn't help but … [Read more...]

Sun still shining on Dons’ perfect season

RegionalsTab

Transitioning from Friday night’s monumental CIF Championship game against Dos Pueblos to Tuesday’s Division II SoCal Regional contest against Arleta was a bit strange for Santa Barbara’s boys soccer team.One was played under the lights at Harder Stadium in front of a roaring crowd of 8,000, while the other was on a chilly, windy afternoon in front of about 500 at Peabody Stadium.“Yesterday in practice felt almost surreal to us after Friday night’s game, but luckily everybody … [Read more...]

No. 1 Dons cross into quarterfinal territory

The quest for a CIF title got a lot tougher on Tuesday for the Santa Barbara High boys soccer team as the Dons barely survived a 1-0 decision at Chino Hills to advance to the Division II quarterfinals.The top-seeded Dons (27-0-1), who won their first-round game 9-0, used a goal from Jesse Gonzalez in the 71st minute to grab the upper hand."We struggled a little in the first half," admitted Dons head coach Todd Heil. "Chino Hills was well organized, well coached."Gonzalez broke the … [Read more...]

CIF Playoffs: The strong survive

The South Coast's two undefeated prep teams are alive and well one week into the CIF playoff season, with Dos Pueblos' girls water polo team already claiming a spot in the Division I semifinals.The boys soccer postseason isn't as far along as Santa Barbara High's boys soccer team plays its second-round match on Tuesday after routing Littlerock 9-0 on Thursday.The No.  1 Chargers (29-0) travel to the Woollett's Aquatic Center in Irvine on Wednesday to face Los Alamitos. Newport … [Read more...]

CIF Polls: SB soccer, DP polo on top till beaten

Santa Barbara High's boys soccer team and Dos Pueblos' girls water polo team had little trouble holding on to their respective No. 1 CIF rankings, which were released on Monday.After two weeks of inaction, the Dons got back to action with two Channel League wins by a combined 6-1 score. Santa Barbara, unbeaten on the season at 21-0-1, is ranked No. 3 in the country by the NCSAA.Dos Pueblos water polo is also undefeated on the season at 20-0, as the defending CIF champions haven't lost … [Read more...]

Dons take three points this time from DP

Santa Barbara's Jesse Gonzalez sends a ball forward during the first half of the Dons' 2-1 victory at Peabody Stadium.

For not having played in a couple of weeks because of the rain, Santa Barbara High’s boys soccer team looked pretty sharp in the first 20 minutes of its key Channel League match against Dos Pueblos on Thursday.Running on all cylinders, the CIF Division 2 top-ranked Dons got goals from Christian Pardo and Fernando Alvarado in the first 10 minutes before cooling off and settling for a 2-1 victory over the Chargers in a rescheduled afternoon game at Peabody Stadium. (There was a problem with … [Read more...]

Dons back on winning track

Jesse Gonzalez leads the Dons with 14 goals and 10 assists on the season after scoring a goal and recording an assist on Thursday.

Santa Barbara's boys soccer team failed to win for the first time this season on Tuesday, settling for a 0-0 draw at Dos Pueblos.The Dons made sure it didn't happen again, reviving their winning ways on Thursday in a 2-0 shutout of Ventura at Peadbody Stadium.Santa Barbara, still unbeaten on the season, improves its overall record to an incredible 19-0-1. Ventura, last year's Channel League champion, falls to 3-3-6.The Dons, who were held scoreless for the first time on Tuesday, … [Read more...]

Miraculous finish lifts Santa Barbara into semis

SBHS Soccer

Coach Todd Heil was in a crouch on the sidelines, his chin resting in his hands in what appeared to be a state of semi-despair. His Santa Barbara High boys soccer team was down 2-1 in the CIF Division II quarterfinals, and the clock was frozen with two minutes on the board... Stoppage time.The Dons were praying for the equalizer and instead they got more, scoring twice in the span of a minute to break Montebello's heart, 3-2, at Peabody Stadium.You really couldn't have scripted it any … [Read more...]