Ceres High’s Tayden Galton, Raymond Cortez Jr. and Cashton Almeida, and Central Valley’s Parteek Sohal, Xavier Manor and Silas Rodriguez were recognized during the Western Athletic Conference year-end head coaches’ meeting for boys basketball earlier this month at Grace Davis High School.
“It was well-deserved,” Bulldogs’ head coach Darae Taylor said. “All the coaches had good things to say about our guys. I’m super proud of them.”
“For what we did, I thought we got what we deserved,” Hawks’ leader Mike Rodriguez said. “We had a solid year.”
Galton, Cortez Jr. and Sohal were named to the WAC Second Team.
Galton, a junior guard/team captain, averaged 11.6 points, 2.4 assists, 1.8 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game.
“He made some major improvements in his game this year,” Taylor said. “The biggest thing was being more selfless. He saw the importance of the other guys around him. He learned to be more vocal. Being consistent is going to be a big thing for him next year.”
Cortez Jr., a senior guard, averaged 13.4 points, 2.5 steals and 1.7 rebounds per game.
He also shot 37 percent (25 of 67) from 3-point range.
“He had some really big games for us,” Taylor said. “He carried us, offensively, for stretches in league. The first half of the season, he came off the bench.”
Taylor coached Cortez Jr. for three seasons.
“He’s one of my favorite kids I’ve coached,” Taylor said. “He’s really passionate about the game. We had some ups and downs. That’s just part of the growth we go through as people. I was able to become a better coach because of him.”
Sohal, a sophomore forward/guard, averaged 10.2 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.0 assists per game.
“He was our sixth man most of the year,” coach Rodriguez said. “He started more games down the stretch. He put the ball in the basket.”
Almeida, Manor and Silas Rodriguez were honorable-mention selections.
Almeida, a junior forward, averaged 10.1 points and 5.4 rebounds per game.
“He’s a really hard-working kid,” Taylor said. “He’s one of our more physical kids on the team. There’s no backing down from him.”
Manor, a sophomore guard, averaged 9.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, 1.8 steals and 1.3 assists per game.
“Xavier can do a lot of different things on the court,” coach Rodriguez said. “He’s a very good offensive rebounder. He can get to the basket and shoot the 3.”
Silas Rodriguez, a senior forward, averaged 4.5 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.4 steals per game.
“He was our glue guy,” coach Rodriguez said. “Defensively, he’s very smart. He’s a willing passer. He can also shoot.”
Silas Rodriguez was a two-year varsity player.
“He worked really hard in the weight room,” coach Rodriguez said. “He worked on his shooting. He was always there for the offseason stuff. He turned himself into a solid varsity starter.”
Central Valley (6-8) and Ceres High (4-10) finished fourth and sixth, respectively, in the WAC standings.
