Central Valley’s girls golf team won a pair of home matches during the final week of the Central California Conference regular season.
Ceres High competed against Pacheco and Mountain House in Western Athletic Conference play.
“I’m definitely pleased with how the girls have competed this year,” Hawks’ head coach Kelly Wheelock said. “We’re still young. Three of our six players are non-seniors.”
“We didn’t play to our potential,” Bulldogs’ leader Ron Edwards said. “I thought we could beat Pacheco.
Central Valley tied for fifth place in the CCC standings with Golden Valley.
The two teams compiled identical 5-7 records.
The Hawks topped Golden Valley once, and Merced and Patterson twice.
“It’s one of the most successful seasons we’ve had in a while,” Wheelock said. “We have a good group of girls. They work hard. They have a good time.”
Central Valley edged Merced 230-238 on Oct. 12 at St. Stanislaus Golf Course.
The Hawks accomplished a first in program history by compiling a 2-0 record versus the Bears this season.
“We’ve never swept them before,” Wheelock said.
Kendall Fleeman led the Hawks with a 13-over-par 41 during last week’s meeting.
Kali Bernal, Emily Mariani, Annalyse Perry and Elia Hernandez shot 45, 46, 47 and 51, respectively.
Central Valley cruised to a 221-263 victory over Golden Valley on Oct. 10 at St. Stanislaus.
Fleeman carded a team-best 39.
Hernandez, Bernal, Mariani and Perry posted scores of 40, 43, 49 and 50, respectively.
Fleeman and Perry are first-year players, along with fellow senior Dayanara Rosales.
“They’ve improved a lot,” Wheelock said. “They do a lot of stuff on their spare time.”
Fleeman was low-medalist during both of Central Valley’s matches last week.
“I knew she would be solid this year,” Wheelock said. “She’s a softball player. Her hand-eye coordination is already there.”
The Hawks won two of their final five matches.
Central Valley lost by forfeit three times this season due to a lack of numbers.
The Hawks had players miss matches for appointments and tests.
“I’m pretty happy,” Wheelock said. “We’ve won matches we didn’t expect to win. If we can get five girls out there every time, we’ll be competitive.”
Ceres High placed sixth with a 4-10 record in the WAC regular-season standings.
The Bulldogs forfeited four matches this year due to a thin roster.
“I’m not disappointed,” Edwards said. “We did better than last year.”
Ceres High lost to Pacheco and Mountain House on Oct. 10 at St. Stanislaus.
The Bulldogs posted a team score of 257.
Pacheco and Mountain House finished with rounds of 249 and 185.
“We could have played a lot better,” Edwards said.
Brooke Trio led Ceres High with a 13-over-par 41.
Bulldog teammate Allison Lewis fired a 42.
Trio and Lewis are third-year competitors.
“They played a lot better this year,” Edwards said.
Ceres High newcomers Kyleigh Robinson, Brooke Kiser and Makelle Selby shot 53, 59 and 62, respectively.
Robinson, Kiser and Selby are first-year golfers.
“The girls that never played before did really well,” Edwards said.
Brooke Trio led the Bulldogs with a 13-over-par 41.
Allison Lewis, Kyleigh Robinson, Makelle Selby and Brooke Kiser shot 42, 53, 59 and 62, respectively.
WATER POLO
Ceres High’s girls and boys water polo programs both played two matches in a three-day span last week.
Ceres High’s girls team lost 16-6 to Johansen on Oct. 10 in Modesto.
The third-place Vikings (8-2) eliminated the fifth-place Bulldogs (4-6) from playoff contention.
The top three teams in the Western Athletic Conference will be awarded postseason berths at the end of the regular season.
“It’s disappointing,” head coach Stephen Dias said. “But I’m not disappointed in the girls. They play hard. They never give up.”
The Vikings prevented the Bulldogs from exacting revenge.
Johansen edged Ceres High 17-15 in overtime earlier this season.
“The girls played well,” Dias said. “I thought we were going to win. We got outplayed. They just got the better of us.”
Kaylie Clindaniel led the Bulldogs in scoring with two goals during the second meeting.
Amber Hopwood, Haley Gaskill, Makynzie Hale and Isla Hore all contributed one goal.
Arleth Sanchez totaled five saves at goalkeeper.
Ceres High earned a season sweep of sixth-place Pacheco with a 12-9 home victory on Thursday.
The Bulldogs won the first meeting, 12-4.
“We beat them (again),” Dias said. “But we had to work hard. They were more competitive. They were more aggressive as well. My girls were getting frustrated.”
Sanchez had nine blocks.
Clindaniel and Lilly Blevins both scored a team-high four goals.
Hopwood, Gaskill, Hale and Jessie Blevins chipped in with one goal apiece.
Ceres High’s youth-laden boys team dropped to 0-9 in the WAC after being beaten by Johansen and Pacheco.
The Bulldogs remained upbeat in defeat.
“The boys are very driven and are like brothers to each other which I think helps keep them motivated,” head coach Angelique Huerta said. “They help educate and support each other whether it’s in academics or in the sport.”
“I don’t see coaching them as a challenge because they’ve been a great team to have."
Last-place Ceres High lost 17-2 to fourth-place Pacheco on Thursday in Ceres.
Abel Samaniego and Jesus Valdovinos led the Bulldogs in scoring with one goal apiece.
Valdovinos also made three saves at goalkeeper.
Ceres High lost 17-1 to fourth-place Johansen on Oct. 10 in Modesto.
Eli Farinha accounted for the Bulldogs’ goal.
Valdovinos and Jackson Kidd split playing time at goalie.
Kidd totaled three saves.
Valdovinos had one block.
Ceres High continues to show growth in defeat.
“They’ve done a great job at remembering plays and helping each other get to the correct spots in games and practice,” said Huerta.
GIRLS TENNIS
Central Valley’s girls tennis team battled Livingston and Atwater last week.
Ceres High faced Beyer.
Central Valley fell to 2-10 in the Central California Conference standings after suffering a 7-2 loss at Livingston on Oct. 12.
Three of the matches went three sets.
Lliria Lira won 6-4, 6-2 in No. 1 singles play.
Harkirian Sandhu won 6-3, 6-1 in No. 6 singles play.
Host Atwater shut out Central Valley 9-0 on Oct. 10.
Ceres High lost 9-0 to Beyer on Oct. 11 in Modesto.
The Bulldogs fell to 2-9 in the Western Athletic Conference standings.
