Ceres High’s Manny Mendoza and Central Valley’s Anthony Ramirez have been named the Ceres Courier’s co-Male Athletes of the Year for the 2023 fall sports season.
Ceres High’s Marissa Renteria earned Female Athlete of the Year.
Renteria starred in girls flag football.
Mendoza and Ramirez were standouts in football.
Renteria, a senior quarterback who also filled the stat sheet at safety, was named the Western Athletic Conference’s Most Valuable Player.
The vote was unanimous.
“She set a really high standard,” said Bulldogs’ head coach Curtis Hulstine. “It’s going to be hard to find someone to replace her. We were very lucky to have her. She has a really bright future in the sport at the next level.”
“I’ve always loved football,” Renteria stated. “But I never had a chance to play it. I finally got the opportunity. I kind of surprised myself. This is the most fun I’ve had playing sports.”
A dual-threat QB, Renteria totaled 2,161 yards and 34 touchdowns.
She passed for 1,323 yards and 27 TDs.
She rushed for 838 yards and seven scores.
She totaled 16 interceptions on defense, including five versus Mariposa.
She returned two of her three picks for touchdowns against Lathrop.
“Everyone knew she was a problem to deal with when they played us,” said Hulstine. “She was a dual-threat QB and they had to game plan for that. She was dominant on both sides of the ball all season.”
Renteria originally planned to play wide receiver before switching positions.
“It was a no-brainer to put her at QB,” Hulstine said. “She was mobile and athletic. She’s such a stud. What makes her great is she’s super coachable and smart. She doesn’t want the attention. She just wanted to go out and play.”
“It took a little convincing,” commented Renteria. “In the end, playing QB was the right choice. As the season went on, I became more comfortable. My coaches and teammates helped me out a lot. I trusted them.”
Renteria filled a major role as Ceres High claimed the WAC’s inaugural girls flag football championship with a perfect 7-0 record.
“Marissa’s everything you want in an athlete,” Hulstine said. “She’s coachable. She takes criticism very well. She knows the game. Athletically, she’s fast, quick and agile. I felt comfortable putting her anywhere on the field. I took her feedback and applied it to the game plan. She was like a second coach.”
“I’m very competitive,” she said. “I love to win. I was blessed to lead the team. We made history. It was a lot of fun.”
Ramirez and Mendoza were two of the most productive wide receivers in their respective conferences.
They both set career-high marks in every statistical category.
“The work I put in during the offseason, I didn’t stop,” Mendoza said. “The little things added up to make me a better player.”
“I knew what I was capable of going into this year,” Ramirez stated. “I wanted to show out.”
Mendoza, a senior, earned second-team all-WAC honors.
He ranked first in league in receptions, yards and yards per game, and second in touchdowns.
He caught 49 passes for 785 yards and eight touchdowns.
“I wouldn’t say I was surprised by the way I played,” Mendoza stated. “Last year, I didn’t get a lot of looks. I was the main target this season. We implemented special plays for me.”
“His speed, hands and explosiveness make him a threat,” Bulldogs’ head coach Brett Johnson said. “He was a weapon for us.”
“One of my strengths is my speed,” Mendoza added. “Working on my legs in the weight room helped me explode off the ball more and break tackles.”
Opposing teams tried to minimize Mendoza’s impact on offense.
“I had some games I was double and triple covered,” he said. “That left someone else open. They knew what I was capable of. It boosted my confidence.”
Mendoza also attributed his success to tips he received from former Bulldog star receiver/teammate Verlis Smith.
“I’d call Verlis,” he said. “I told him things I was trying. He’d give me feedback. I learned a lot from him.”
“Manny learned from some good guys that were in front of him,” Johnson said. “This year, he took on that role and became our No. 1 receiver. He did what we asked him to do.”
Mendoza helped lead Ceres High to its third straight playoff berth.
Surprisingly, Ramirez did not receive any recognition during the Central California Conference’s year-end head coaches’ meeting despite ranking second in the league in yards, yards per game and touchdowns, and fourth in receptions at his position.
“Anthony was one of the top receivers in the league,” Central Valley head coach Derrick Goblirsch said. “For him to not get anything is crazy.”
“Without Anthony, we don’t have the success that we had,” he added.
Ramirez, a senior, led the Hawks in receptions, yards and touchdowns. He caught 38 passes for 873 yards and nine touchdowns. He also rushed for 125 yards and one touchdown on 20 carries.
“I couldn’t have done it without my teammates and coaches,” Ramirez said.
Ramirez’s receiving stats would have been more impressive if starting quarterback Mario Gonzalez didn’t suffer a season-ending knee injury four games into the 2023 campaign.
Six other players took snaps at the position after Gonzalez was lost for the year, including Darrius Jackson, Marcus Nichols, Isaac Garcia, Edgar Peralta, Jared Zavala and Amir Drakeford.
“He worked with a bunch of QBs and made it work,” Goblirsch said. “He still put up numbers.”
“I was pretty impressed with how I did knowing I had to change quarterbacks every play,” Ramirez added. “It was really tough. But I had trust in all the QBs. They trusted me.”
