Members of Central Valley’s and Ceres High’s cross country programs hurdled bales of hay and navigated through a mud pit at the Hughson Supercross Invitational on Oct. 18.
“I loved how everything was set up,” Hawks’ first-year head coach Horacio Garcia said. “It’s something different from what we’re used to. It’s a more relaxed atmosphere. We enjoyed every minute we were there.”
Central Valley’s boys placed third in the Varsity Black Division.
The Hawks totaled 116 points.
Ceres High’s boys didn’t post a team score due to a lack of numbers.
“It’s exciting to see the results we’re getting,” Garcia said. “It’s a reflection of the work the kids have been putting in. It’s been a long season.”
Frankie Klino paced Central Valley.
He finished 15th with a time of 15 minutes, 4 seconds on Hughson High School’s 2.5-mile course.
Hawk teammates Diego Gutierrez (15:29), Armando Gutierrez (16:14), Enoc Reyes (16:38) and Alejandro Rodriguez (17:04) placed 27th, 45th, 51st and 63rd, respectively.
Sergio Torres paced the Bulldogs.
He finished 14th (15:02).
Ceres High teammates Andres Marcial (15:41), Josiah Martinez-Gontiz (16:08) and Luke Knapp (22:51) placed 30th, 43rd and 127th, respectively.
Central Valley and Ceres High had a combined five female runners race in the Varsity Division.
The Hawks and Bulldogs didn’t post team scores due to thin lineups.
Clarissa Rivera paced Ceres High.
She finished 68th with a time of 19 minutes, 53 seconds on the 2.5-mile course.
Bulldog teammates Mariana Cortez (22:08) and Marissa Pacheco (23:20) placed 112th and 125th, respectively.
Simran Bain paced Central Valley.
She finished 86th (20:50).
Hawk teammates Karen Magallon (22:26) placed 119th.
“I’m very happy with the effort they’ve put in,” Garcia said.
Central Valley and Ceres High will compete at the Western Athletic Conference Championships today at O’Neill Forebay.
WATER POLO
Ceres High’s boys and girls water polo teams played three matches in a three-day span last week.
Central Valley’s teams competed twice.
“It was definitely tiring,” said Sebastian Huerta-Alvarado, head coach of the boys squad. “But more of a mental thing.”
Ceres High’s sixth-place boys team dropped to 2-11 in the Western Athletic Conference standings after losing 15-3 to second-place Beyer on Oct. 22 in Ceres.
The Bulldogs lost 16-6 to the Patriots during the first half of the WAC season.
“We went into the game with a lot of motivation,” Huerta-Alvarado said. “We could have elevated our performance better. The kids tried their best.”
Jaxon Merrill accounted for all three of Ceres High’s goals during the rematch against Beyer.
Goalkeeper David Rodriguez totaled 10 saves.
Ceres High snapped a nine-match losing streak with an 18-2 home victory over Lathrop in a makeup game on Oct. 21.
The Bulldogs bested the last-place Spartans twice this season.
“We were clicking on all cylinders,” Huerta-Alvarado said while talking about his team’s latest performance versus Lathrop.
Eight different Ceres High players scored against Lathrop.
Merrill led the Bulldogs with four goals.
Julian Tamayo and Jesus Sanchez both had three goals.
Rowan Ramirez had two goals.
Aiden Cisneros, Jose Gomez Hernandez, Lorenzo Gradilla and Julian Hernandez all had one goal.
David Rodriguez and Elijah Rodriguez totaled seven and six saves, respectively.
Host Ceres High showed improvement in losing 11-10 to second-place Grace Davis on Oct. 20.
The Spartans won the first meeting, 15-6.
“I didn’t expect it (the rematch) to be that close,” Huerta-Alvarado said. “It shows the strides the team has taken this season.”
Merrill scored a team-high seven goals against Grace Davis.
Tamayo had three goals.
David Rodriguez made seven saves.
“It was definitely a winnable game,” Huerta-Alvarado said. “We just ran out of time.
“I really like what I’m seeing from my players,” he added. “They’re finding their identity in the pool.”
Ceres High’s fourth-place girls team dropped to 5-8 in the WAC standings after losing 13-7 to undefeated Beyer on Senior Day on Oct. 22.
“We put up a fight,” Bulldogs’ head coach Emiliano Ortega said. “It was amazing.”
Bulldog upperclassmen Layla Abraham, Jessie Blevins and Jordan Applegate competed in their home pool for the final time.
Abraham, Blevins, Applegate and senior stat keeper Emily Ivey were honored before the game.
“They’re definitely going to be missed,” Ortega said.
Abraham scored a team-high three goals against Beyer.
Blevins and Jaelyn Silva both tallied two goals.
Applegate made three saves at goalkeeper.
Ceres High ended a three-game losing streak with a 17-12 home win against last-place Lathrop on Oct. 21.
“It was a really competitive game,” Ortega said.
Blevins led the Bulldogs with seven goals.
Abraham, Silva and Heaven Vasquez had four, three and two goals, respectively.
Rhylie Houtchens added one goal.
Ceres High lost 20-10 to visiting Grace Davis on Oct. 20.
“Our strategy was to play strong defense and focus on counterattacks,” Huerta said. “We did what we could.”
Central Valley’s boys team put a halt to a five-match winless streak with a 12-4 win at Lathrop on Oct. 22.
The fifth-place Hawks improved to 3-10 in the WAC standings.
Central Valley lost 7-4 at Johansen on Oct. 20.
Central Valley’s girls team dropped to 3-10 in the WAC following its 13-11 loss at Lathrop on Oct. 22.
The Hawks fell to 3-10 in the league standings.
Central Valley lost 13-5 at Johansen on Oct. 20.
