Cate's Avery Schwartz
Providence Hall's Sydney Hedges
This week’s Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table Athlete of Week award winners have something in common: both have led their respective teams on successful CIF playoff runs.
Sydney Hedges of Providence Hall girls basketball was named the female winner and Avery Schwartz of Cate boys soccer was recipient of the male winner.
Schwartz has helped the defending champion Rams reach the CIF Division 7 semifinals. He scored a hat trick in a 5-2 second-round win over Coast Union and sparked the Rams to a second-half comeback in a 2-1 quarterfinal victory on the road at Don Bosco Tech in Rosemead. The Yale-bound Schwartz continually pressured Don Bosco’s backline and goalkeeper.
Schwartz and the Rams travel to Lancaster on Tuesday for a semifinal match against Paraclete.
Hedges had back-to-back games of 18 points to lead Providence Hall’s girls basketball team into the CIF Division 6 championship game on Saturday against top-seeded Orangewood Academy of Garden Grove.
Hedges had 18 points, 11 rebounds in a 37-19 quarterfinal win over L.A. Adventist and tallied 18 points again in a 70-43 rout over Santa Maria Valley Christian in the semifinals. She has led the Lions in scoring for three straight playoff games.
The Lions (18-6) are playing for a CIF title in only their second year of competition.
Because there was no press luncheon last week due to the Presidents Day holiday, the Athletes of the Week from the previous week were recognized at Monday’s SBART press luncheon.
Dos Pueblos wrestler Yaskin Solano and UCSB swimmer Andrea Ward were the winners.
Solano, in only his second year of wrestling, finished second at the CIF Individual Finals and qualified for the CIF Masters state qualifying tournament. The senior missed making the State Meet by one place.
Ward put on a dominating performance at the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championships. The Gaucho sophomore set three meet records, won three individual event titles and swam on three winning relay teams.
