Presidio Sports’ All-City Basketball Teams were celebrated at the Santa Barbara Athletic Press Luncheon on Monday, as all 14 selections received certificates for being named to the elite local high school all-star teams.
Each of the boys and girls teams featured seven players chosen from the eight local high schools competing in the Santa Barbara area.
Headlining the boys team was Bishop Diego’s Caleb Richey as MVP. First Team selections included Santa Barbara High’s Emilio Gonzalez, Dos Pueblos’ Cruz Mertens and Zachary Shugart, San Marcos’ Bryce Ridenour and Kevin Hempy, and Providence Hall’s Nate Dutcher.
Female Athlete of the Week Kelsie Sampson
The girls team had co-MVPs in Ivette Gil and Sydney Hedges. Filling out the roster were Bishop Diego’s Greer Shull, Santa Barbara High’s Melissa Lemus and Desirea Coleman, Providence Hall’s Lacey Gonzalez, and Carpinteria’s Erin Saito.
Right after the All-City teams were introduced, SBCC’s Keia Nobles was recognized as the Vaqueros’ Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
Athletes of the Week were also announced as Westmont’s Kelsie Sampson and Santa Barbara High’s James Morton.
SBCC baseball coach Jeff Walker started the coaches’ reports. Walker and the Vaqueros, currently tied for first place in the WSC, begin the second half of their conference schedule this Friday.
Dos Pueblos tennis coach Liz Frech brought captains Joshua Yang and Caleb Franzen, commending their leadership and attitude on the courts for the Chargers.
The San Marcos swim teams are enjoying strong spring seasons so far. Jason Phreaner and Italian exchange student Simon Andreetto joined boys coach Jeff Ashton. Dasha Depew and Olivia Smith joined girls coach Chuckie Roth.
Male Athlete of the Week James Morton
Carpinteria baseball coach Pat Cooney has his team in first place at the mid-way point of the Frontier League. The contributions of David Olvera and Marcus Hutchinson were highlighted by Cooney.
The Warriors clash with rival Bishop Diego on Tuesday before hosting their alumni game on Saturday. Three fathers will be playing against their sons in that game.
Greg Tebbe and two players from the Santa Barbara High tennis team, captains Graham Maasen and Avery Chernin, shared their preseason activities. The Dons have already played four top-10 Division 1 teams in dual matches on top of two prestigious team tournaments.
San Marcos’ Aaron Solis delivered a report for Royals baseball coach Pete Stathopoulos.
“This is such a tight race for Channel League baseball, there’s no throw away games,” Solis said. “Every league game this year is a big game no matter who you’re playing.”
The Royals, 1-1 so far in league play, face Santa Barbara and Buena this week. Solis introduced players Matt Marino and Zach Pierce, who are both in the midst of hot streaks offensively.
Westmont women’s tennis coach Kathy LeSage came to Harry’s on the verge of an undefeated GSAC season. The Warriors are 9-0 with the GSAC Conference Championships in Indian Wells on the near horizon.
LeSage has already announced that this season will be her last coaching the Warriors after 28 years.
SBCC Scholar-Athlete of the Year Keia Nobles
UCSB men’s swimming coach Gregg Wilson, with senior Tim Freeman and sophomore Wade Allen, was fresh back in Santa Barbara from the NCAA Championships in Indianapolis. Coming off strong showings at the Pac-12 Championships, Freeman and Allen competed against the fastest swimmers in the country.
Also from UCSB, baseball head coach Andrew Checketts was glad to be home after dealing with a highly partisan crowd in Hawaii over the weekend. The Gauchos, who started their Big West season by dropping 2-of-3 to the Warriors, have four home games this week including a weekend series with Cal Poly.
Santa Barbara High boys golf coach James Bedard reported on the Dons and briefly talked about Athlete of the Week James Morton. Morton tied a Channel League record with a round of 63 at Buenaventura Golf Course. Santa Barbara High is 1-1 in league play and travels to the Terra Lago Invitational this week.
