Stanislaus District athletes, teams, coaches had a special year. Here are some highlights

Stanislaus District high school sports teams saw a lot of success during the 2023-24 year. Several teams won league, section, NorCal and state championships during the fall, winter and spring seasons.

There were repeat championships at the section and state levels in football, volleyball and basketball, while key league rivalries carried over into competitive postseason matchups during the spring. Teams also made school history, setting program win records and advancing deep into the postseason for the first time in years.

Here is a look at some of the year’s highlights from some of the sports The Bee covered throughout the season:

FALL

Comeback secured Hughson’s second straight blue banner: Led by Arizona-bound quarterback Robert McDaniel, the “Heart Attack Huskies” showed out in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division VI championship against Bradshaw Christian. After falling behind 31-13 in the third quarter, Hughson High scored 27 unanswered points to take home its second straight section title with a 40-39 win. The Heart Attack Huskies got their nickname for their ability to win close games last season. In the 2022 postseason, their largest victory was five points, but they pulled out five straight playoff wins en route to section and state championships. Hughson advanced to the NorCal Division 4-A Regional playoffs, where it hosted Palma but fell 31-21.

Escalon football won fourth straight section championship in dramatic fashion: Escalon’s streak of section championships dates back to before the COVID-19 pandemic. That streak was in jeopardy this year in the Division IV title game against Patterson. The Cougars led for only 36 seconds that Friday night at St. Mary’s High School, but it was all they needed to secure their fourth consecutive blue banner in a 36-35 win. Escalon powered through five touchdowns from Patterson’s Jeremiah Lugo. After falling behind 28-7, the Cougars scored 21 straight points to tie the game. After Patterson regained the lead, Escalon went on an 80-yard scoring drive to cut the lead to one point. Donovan Rozevink scored the game-winning two-point conversion on a run up the middle. Escalon advanced to play Acalanes in the Division 3-AA NorCal Regional final.

League foes play for a Division 7-A section title: Southern Athletic League foes Ripon Christian and Orestimba faced off for the second time in the 2023 season with a championship on the line. The teams played for the Division 7-A section title with the winner taking home a blue banner and a spot in the first D-VII NorCal Qualifier. The Knights fell behind 14-7 but scored 28 unanswered points to win 35-14, taking home their second straight section championship. They advanced within one game of their second NorCal berth but fell to Woodland Christian in the qualifier, finishing 12-2 overall.

Central Catholic’s Canepa earned milestone playoff victory: In Central Catholic’s 34-20 win over Edison of Stockton in the first round of the Division I section playoffs, head coach Roger Canepa reached a milestone. The veteran coach earned his 283rd career win, becoming the winningest coach in Sac-Joaquin Section history. He also had head coaching stints at Sonora and Calaveras.

“That just means you’re old and you’ve been coaching a while,” Canepa joked after the game. “You don’t win all them games unless you have great coaches, great players, people that work hard and alumni.”

Ripon Christian volleyball won fourth straight SJS title: The Knights were moved up to Division IV for this year’s section playoffs due to the SJS continued success rule, but that did not stop them from winning their fourth straight blue banner. After finishing perfect in league play for the third straight season, the Knights swept all five of their section playoff opponents. This included beating rival and defending D-IV champion Ripon, 25-21, 25-9, 25-19. Bee Volleyball Player of the Year Jordan Vander Veen finished with 11 kills and 13 digs, both team highs, in the win. Setter Megan Weststeyn led the way with 29 assists.

Ripon Christian volleyball secured back-to-back state championships: The Knights’ championship run continued at the state level, where they were surprisingly given the No. 13 seed in Division III despite being defending D-IV state champions. Playing every game on the road, the Knights dropped only one set during their state playoff run, claiming back-to-back state titles. In the 26-24, 25-19, 25-15 title game sweep of Redwood of Visalia, Leah Van Wyngarden had a team-high 13 kills. Vander Veen (20), Allison Brown (14), Weststeyn (12) and Van Wyngarden (10) each finished with double-digit digs.

MORE NOTES

▪ Downey football earned an upset win over Tracy in the Division II section playoffs on the road, 27-10. Two Knights had 10 or more tackles and two had three tackles for loss.

▪ Flag football was a hit in the Stanislaus District in its first season as an official CIF sport. Escalon’s girls made the deepest postseason push, reaching the Division II section semifinals.

WINTER

Ripon Christian boys hoops went back-to-back: Led by All-District member Jace Beidleman’s near quadruple-double, the Knights took home their second straight section championship, beating Futures High in the Division V title game, 67-47. The 6-foot-9 senior finished with 18 points, 18 rebounds, seven assists and six blocks and the Knights knocked down 10 threes at a 55% clip in the win. The Knights have won 13 section titles, second to Modesto Christian’s 22. The team was promoted two divisions for NorCals and played Justin-Siena in the D-III bracket.

Stanislaus District wrestlers won state titles: Two Stanislaus District girls wrestlers brought home state titles this winter. After strong showings at the Sac-Joaquin Section Masters Championships, Central Catholic junior Jillian Wells and Pitman sophomore Yzabella Austin won state titles. Wells won her title at 100 pounds, defeating Pitman’s Lily Dizon in a 4-1 decision. Austin captured the 130-pound title over Tamara Grace of Gilroy in a 7-0 decision. On the boys side, Pitman’s Mason Ontiveros made the state championship match at 175 pounds, but fell to Poway’s Angelo Posada.

Modesto Christian basketball three-peated: There’s not much that hasn’t been done in the Modesto Christian boys basketball program, but the 2023-24 team etched its name in school history this season. Led by All-District players Gavin Sykes, Myles Jones, Marcus Washington and Jeremiah Bernard, the Crusaders three-peated as Division I section champions for the first time in school history, beating Tri-City Athletic League rival Lincoln of Stockton 68-63 at Golden 1 Center. The Crusaders were promoted to the Open Division and advanced to the NorCal semifinals where they played a hard-fought contest against Salesian College Prep at Contra Costa College. The Crusaders cut it to single digits late, but fell 64-52.

Escalon girls hoops made history: Led by Girls Basketball Player of the Year Sammy Lang, Escalon made its deepest postseason push in school history with a 49-47 win over West Campus in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV bracket semifinals. In their first section championship appearance in school history, the Cougars faced off against the closest thing to a SJS girls hoops dynasty in Colfax. Though they put up a fight, the Cougars fell in the final. Because they reached at least the semifinals, the Cougars made their first-ever NorCal playoff appearance, falling to Notre Dame of San Jose, 47-40. Escalon finished with 28 wins and started the season 19-0.

Ceres girls basketball’s best season in nearly two decades: The Ceres girls basketball team had its best season in nearly 20 years. The Bulldogs, led by second-year head coach Megan McGill, won more than 20 games for the first time since 2004-05. But that doesn’t do it justice. In four of the past five seasons, Ceres did not win more than 10 games. Led by senior guard Marissa Renteria, the Bulldogs took second place in the Western Athletic Conference (11-3) and went an impressive 21-8 overall. They qualified for the Division II section playoffs as the No. 15 team and won their home play-in game over No. 18 Cordova 45-27. They fell to eventual D-II runner-up Vanden in the first round.

Hilmar girls soccer had a dream season: The Hilmar girls soccer team’s run in 2023-24 took it to a section title and NorCal title game appearance. Guy Bettencourt, who is in his second stint as a Hilmar soccer coach, called this year’s team “the best team that I’ve coached in my life.” The Yellowjackets won 24 games this season. No win was bigger than the 2-0 victory over Argonaut in the Division V section title. That win was part of a dominant section playoff run in which the Yellowjackets outscored their opponents 13-3 with a pair of shutouts. They went deep into the Northern California regional playoffs for the first time in program history, reaching the NorCal title game.

Oakdale girls soccer reached section title game: After falling in the 2023 Sac-Joaquin Section semifinals, the Oakdale girls soccer team reached the section title game in February after beating Valley Oak League rival Manteca in the Division III section semifinals. Led by senior captain and Modesto Bee 2023 Player of the Year Kyndra Obermeyer and star freshman Dakota Burford, the Mustangs won their second straight VOL title, qualified for the NorCal playoffs for the first time and made their first section title since 2011. They fought to the end but suffered heartbreaking losses in the section title game against Rio Americano and in the NorCal first round against University of San Francisco, losing by one goal in each game.

Riverbank girls basketball won first NorCal playoff game: For the second straight season, the Riverbank girls basketball team qualified for the Northern California regional playoffs. The Bruins last season made their first section title game since 1985 and this season made more history, reaching the NorCal playoffs for the second straight season and winning the program’s first-ever NorCal game. They advanced with a D-IV quarterfinal win over Hughson. In the Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV, semifinalists advance to NorCals. They traveled in the first round of NorCals, earning their historic win against University Prep in a dominant 70-52 outing.

MORE NOTES

▪ Bee boys basketball Player of the Year Avery Sanchez became Pitman’s all-time leading scorer. The junior has 1,345 career points and counting.

▪ All-district player Prince Major put himself in Beyer’s record books with nine threes against Davis. He set scoring career highs multiple times this season and scored 38 points in a league game.

SPRING

VOL rivals faced off in baseball semifinals series: A Valley Oak League series between rivals carried over into the Division III section playoffs when Central Catholic and Oakdale faced off in a best-of-three series in the D-III semifinals. To make things more interesting, the two teams finished as co-league champions with 11-4 league records. Oakdale was awarded the higher seed, meaning the Mustangs had a home-field advantage in the playoff series. After losing the season series 2-1, the Raiders won Game 1 and Game 2 of the postseason set, advancing to the section championship for the second straight season.

Big Valley Christian softball won two championships this season: For the second time in three years, the Big Valley Christian softball team finished the season with two championships. The Lions won 24 games this season and captured the Central California Athletic Alliance title for the first time. In the postseason, their record was a perfect 6-0. They won the Division VII section title 11-0 over Buckingham Charter and two weeks later beat Christopher 10-0 for the NorCal Division V championship. They won both games in five innings. Pitcher Ava Hernandez was the section title game star, striking out 12 of the 18 batters she faced. In the NorCal title game, Morgan Merzon hit two home runs and drove in five runs.

Baseball: Central Catholic vs Oakmont parts II and III: After beating Oakmont last season for the NorCal championship, the Central Catholic baseball team faced the Vikings twice again this season with championships on the line. The Raiders took on Oakmont at Islanders Park for the D-III section title and finished as runners-up after a competitive 3-0 loss. Central Catholic won its next two games in the NorCal tournament, beating Atascadero in the quarterfinals and Justin-Siena 1-0 in the semis. The Raiders traveled to Roseville to take on the Vikings again but fell 10-3.

Oakdale softball took home first blue banner since 2019: Led by the battery of UC Riverside-bound pitcher and Bee Player of the Year Raegen Everett and University of the Pacific-bound catcher Presley Barnes, Oakdale captured its first section championship since 2019. The Mustangs beat Capital Christian 3-2 in eight innings to add another blue banner to the program’s trophy case. After seven shutout innings, Jayci Volonte, Morgan Wright and Bailey Peterson scored runs in the top of the eighth and held the Cougars to two runs in the bottom half. Everett struck out 14 batters in the win.

MORE NOTES

▪ The Gregori softball team advanced to the Division I semifinals for just the second time in school history with a 1-0 home win over Folsom in the quarterfinals. The Jaguars came within one win of the section title game but fell to the section’s top team, Whitney.

▪ The Central Catholic softball team played in the section title game for the third straight season. The Raiders competed in 2022 and 2023 in the D-III final and in 2024 played in the D-IV championship. They jumped to a 6-0 lead but gave up seven unanswered runs to Dixon.

▪ The Ripon Christian baseball team looked to defend its Division VII section championship game this spring, taking on Leroy Greene Academy in what became a shootout. The teams scored a combined 23 runs, but the Knights’ repeat fell short, 12-11.