The Dons basketball team (1-0) plays at home on both Friday and Saturday nights this weekend at JR Richards Gymnasium. (Presidio Sports Photo)
Winter sports season arrives like a lion this weekend for area high schools.
The first weekend of the season is heavy with boys and girls basketball games and soccer matches. Among the marquee prep events is the Bishop Diego at Carpinteria girls soccer match on Friday.
Also on Friday, the Dos Pueblos girls soccer team, featuring one of the best players in the county in USC commit Rachel Smith, opens at home against Thousand Oaks.
Santa Barbara High?s boys basketball team tips off against Oxnard. The Dons will be looking to beat the Yellowjackets for the first time in five years, said coach David Bregante.
HERE ARE SOME EVENTS WORTH CHECKING OUT:
FRIDAY
Girls basketball: Santa Barbara, Dos Pueblos at Lompoc Tournament ? Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table player of the year Ivette Gil returns to lead Andy Butcher?s Dons. Former boys coach Phil Sherman returns to the bench as coach of the Charger girls.
Girls soccer: Bishop Diego at Carpinteria, 5 p.m. ? The area rivals open the season with new coaches. Former Dos Pueblos High star Tessa Binkley takes over at Bishop Diego and Charles Bryant is the new coach at Carpinteria. Bryant, who played soccer at UCSB in the mid-1980s, coached the Warriors girls tennis team to a CIF title in the fall.
Girls soccer: Thousand Oaks at Dos Pueblos, Girsh Park, 2:30 p.m. ? With several returning players from a CIF playoff team, the Chargers have high expectations this season. The game has been moved to the turf field at Girsh Park.
Boys basketball: Oxnard at Santa Barbara, 7 p.m. ? The Dons open the season with a lot of new faces. The team has only one starter returning from team that made the CIF playoffs last year.
SATURDAY
Women?s basketball: St. Mary?s at UCSB, 2 p.m. ? Carlene Mitchell?s Gauchos take on the Gaels of the West Coast Conference. St. Mary?s, coming off a 22-win season, is picked to finish third in the WCC.
SUNDAY
Running: Santa Claus Run, 8 a.m. ? A 5k run and 1k kids fun run has moved from its previous State Street location to La Cumbre Plaza this year. Runners are encouraged to participate in Santa costumes and the first 100 registered runners will be provided with a free Santa suit, ensuring a jolly event. The race benefits?Kidz For a Cure.
