San Marcos athletics has earned the distinction of being the highest ranked for academics among all schools in the CIF-Southern Section.
Six San Marcos varsity teams won CIF Academic Championships, the most of any school, public or private, in the section, and five others finished as runners-up.
The team awards, based on cumulative grade point average, are awarded in 22 sports. Grade point averages are determined by grades in college-prep or higher level classes on a 4.0 scale (non-weighted grades).
The Royals won academic championships in boys basketball (3.674), boys cross country (3.845), girls soccer (3.792), girls swimming (3.813), boys track and field (3.575), and girls water polo (3.800).
“We put a lot of hard work not only on the field but also in the classroom.” said senior soccer player Rachel Venturino, who’s been accepted to UC Berkeley, UCLA and USC. “We are very honored to be recognized for our academic achievements.”
The champions will be presented with banners to commemorate their achievement in a pre-game ceremony at a Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim game on May 9 at Angels Stadium.
“These outstanding honors are a reflection of San Marcos High School’s commitment to excellence in academics and athletics,” said Athletic Director Abe Jahadhmy.
San Marcos’ second-place finishers were in boys golf, girls track, boys volleyball, girls volleyball, and girls track.
San Marcos also had two third places, two fourth places, and a fifth place.
Dos Pueblos won five academic team championships: boys golf (3.796), softball (3.667), boys swimming (3.734), girls track and field (3.831), boys water polo (3.603). The Chargers were runners-up in boys cross country, boys soccer and girls soccer. Four teams took third place, three others finished fourth and one ranked fifth.
Santa Barbara won the academic title in boys volleyball (3.656) and Laguna Blanca captured the title in boys cross country (3.800) for schools with enrollments under 1500.
Laguna Blanca was runner-up in boys tennis.
Santa Barbara had a third place, two fourths and one fifth place.
Along with the team awards, individuals were honored as Student Athletes of the Year. The recipients must be seniors who have maintained a minimum of a 3.5 grade point average (non-weighted 4.0 scale) in college-prep or higher courses over the past three years. The athlete must have earned a letter in at least one varsity sport and participated in another extracurricular activity (music, drama, ASB, service groups, etc.)
The male winners are basketball-volleyball player Johnny Manzo of San Marcos (4.0 gpa), cross country, track runner Jacob Bartholomew of Dos Pueblos (3.97) and soccer player Kane Nania of Santa Barbara (3.97).
The female winners are water polo player, swimmer Rose Koper of San Marcos (3.98), soccer player, track performer Erin Restig of Dos Pueblos (3.89) and soccer player Kai Miller of Santa Barbara (4.0).
