Aptos’ girls’ volleyball team continues to show signs of improvement after splitting a pair of Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League matches this week.
The Mariners began by beating Mount Madonna in a three-set sweep on Tuesday, and then fell to defending league champion Harbor in three sets 23-25, 18-25, 23-25 on Thursday night.
Aptos head coach Hunter Zeng said it was a much better showing than the first meeting against the Pirates nearly one month ago on Sept. 9.
“I’m proud of the growth of our team and the second round of league should be an interesting one,” said Zeng in an email. “It’s anyone’s game most nights.”
Aptos stormed out to a 12-2 lead in the first set, taking Harbor by surprise. But under the leadership from Gianna Fanara, Cecile Novembre and Dylan Schutz, the Pirates fought back and won the opening frame.
Aptos senior outside hitter Kenzie Smith finished with 11 kills and one ace, while teammate sophomore middle blocker Caitlin Lavelle had four aces, three kills and three blocks.
Freshman right side hitter Ellie Hardesty added six kills and three blocks for the Mariners, who currently own a 9-8 overall record and are 3-4 in league play this season.
“Ellie [Hardesty] had an outstanding night, hitting near .600 [percent],” Zeng said.
Aptos last week began a four-match win streak following a non-league three-set loss to Pacific Grove on Sept. 22.
The Mariners bounced back the next three matches by not dropping a set for the rest of the week, beating San Lorenzo Valley, Palma and Terra Nova in sweeping fashion.
During that span, Aptos junior outside hitter Ella Dueck had six aces, 29 kills on 41 attempts and 19 digs. Teammate Kenzie Smith tallied three aces, 30 kills on 71 attempts and seven blocks.
Sophomore middle blocker Caitlin Lavelle had eight aces, 24 kills on 45 attempts and four blocks, and freshman outside hitter Emily Mumford added four kills on 14 attempts.
The sit-out period for junior transfer Isabella Briceño ended last week. The Mariner middle blocker contributed three kills and one block in the win against Terra Nova.
Other standout performers included junior Mady Reed with 53 assists on 41 percent efficiency along with nine aces and 16 digs, and senior Reve Maguire with 12 assists on 48 percent efficiency.
“We’ve got more work to do over the next few weeks,” Zeng said.
Boys’ cross country
Mustangs continue to roll through the competition: Monte Vista Christian improved to 2-0 in the Pacific Coast Athletic Coast Gabilan Division standings following another impressive team performance on Wednesday afternoon.
Gavin Beckmen, a senior, placed fourth in 16 minutes, 12 seconds on the 3-mile course at Toro Park in Salinas. The Mustangs won with a team score of 56 points, beating Alisal (70) in second and Salinas (90) in third.
Alisal senior Fernando Herrera (15:40) won the race, followed by Salinas senior Tomas Rey-Avila (15:48) in second and North Monterey County senior Leandro Montoya (16:12) in third.
MVC freshman Owen Beckmen (16:18) placed sixth, followed by senior Conor Gilliam (16:40) in ninth, freshman Joseph Palacios (16:42) in 12th and senior Dilano Lucero (17:32) in 25th.
Last week, Owen Beckmen placed sixth in 14:32 to help the Mustangs win the team title with a score of 60 in group No. 2 at the Ram Invitational at Westmoor High on Sept. 27.
They finished ahead of Bellarmine College Prep (67) in second and Nueva (81) in third.
Nueva senior Ryan Fitzpatrick won the race in 13:40, while Prospect senior Caleb Entwisle (14:28) and San Mateo senior Adwaiy Ambardekar (14:28) battled to finish second and third, respectively.
Gilliam (14:49) was right behind Beckmen in eighth, and Palacios (15:03) placed 14th in a field of 106 runners.
Pajaro Valley senior Erik Michi placed 34th in 15:51 to break his previous school record mark by four seconds, while teammate Patrick Lopez (16:26) placed 55th.
Girls’ cross country
Mustang duo continues to shine: MVC sophomore Anna Conca and junior Finley Castro had a 1-2 finish in the second PCAL Gabilan Division race of the season.
Conca won the race in 19:19, while Castro (19:44) took second for Mustangs, who placed third as a team with a score of 91.
Alivia Rivera (19:52) placed third for Marina, which won the meet with a team score of 65 points, followed by Pacific Grove (64) in second.
Other top finishers for MVC included seniors Alie Kolbach (23:48) in 20th and Nylie Joneson (24:48) in 32nd, and junior Maya Moore (25:59) in 36th.
In last week’s Ram Invitational, Conca (17:19) took third while Castro (17:29) placed fifth in the 2.7-mile race at Westmoor High on Sept. 27.
PV freshman Amairany Hernandez Delgado placed 25th out of 90 runners in the freshman/sophomore race. But, she was rewarded a 12th-place medal for finishing in the top-20 that was not on a winning team.
Flag football
Mariners remain unbeaten in SCCAL play: Aptos solidified itself as the top dog of the league following a 38-25 victory over Scotts Valley in SCCAL action Wednesday evening.
Ellia Correia and Ellie Marta each recorded one interception and four flag pulls for Aptos, while teammate Mary-Anne McCarthy had two sacks.
With the win, Aptos (5-4) improved to 4-0 in league play this season. They play at San Luis Obispo in non-league play on Saturday at noon.
Sharks rebound with back-to-back wins: St. Francis sophomore Liliana Whitmeyer tossed four touchdowns, and the Sharks crushed Palma, 39-6, in PCAL Gabilan Division play Wednesday afternoon.
Whitmeyer completed 28-of-41 pass attempts for 289 yards, while teammate Evonna Jordan hauled in eight of those receptions for 101 yards and one TD.
Cami Madrigal had three receptions for 49 yards and one touchdown, along with seven flag pulls and one sack on defense for St. Francis. Teammates Eden Findrick and Abigail Bedolla each had one touchdown reception.
Stella Zamora and Sophie Madrigal each recorded one interception for the Sharks, who improved to 9-1 in league play this season.
Whitmeyer also threw for four touchdown passes in the Sharks’ 41-31 win against Monterey in league play Monday evening. Jordan had six receptions for 85 yards and a pair of TDs, while Keira Grio finished with a team-best 10 receptions for 165 yards and one touchdown.
Findrick hauled in five receptions for 59 yards and one TD for St. Francis (16-3, 9-1), which plays at Salinas (10-5, 6-3) on Oct. 6 at 6pm.
‘Catz drop two straight: Watsonville was blanked in a 25-0 defeat to Monterey in PCAL Gabilan Division play Wednesday evening. It was the third time Watsonville’s been shut out this season.
Aaliyah Arellano tossed one touchdown to Aliah Anaya for the ‘Catz in their 12-7 loss to King City on Monday evening. Teammate freshman Yoselin Delgadillo recorded three interceptions.
Katie Slama had a pick six to seal the win for the Mustangs, who improved to 3-6 in league play.
Watsonville (5-7, 3-7) plays at Palma (6-4, 5-4) in PCAL Gabilan Division action Oct. 6 at 4pm.
Girls’ golf
‘Catz extend win-streak to 10: Watsonville finished with a team score of 284 to beat Palma (320) and Alvarez (353) in PCAL Mission Division play Tuesday afternoon.
Abigail Sanchez, a sophomore, shot a 45 to earn medalist honors for the Wildcatz, who improved to 10-0 in league matches this season.
Teammate Daniella Rodriguez shot a 53, followed by Jessie Arellano (56), Ava Jaurigi (61) and Chelsey Bravo (69).
Watsonville continues league play against Alisal and Gonzales at Spring Hills Golf Course in Watsonville on Oct. 6 at 3:30pm.
Girls’ tennis
Mariners win back-to-back to stay unbeaten in league: Aptos improved to a 4-0 record in SCCAL play following a pair of 7-0 defeats over Harbor and Santa Cruz on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively.
Kiana Safari, Coral Collins, Isabella Calderon and Natalia Calderon each won both of their singles matches in straight sets.
In doubles action, Neci Hoeptner and Julia Blevins won both matches at No. 1, while Charlotte Long and Kate Detso didn’t allow a set point en route to a pair of victories at No. 2.
Gia Arista and Sadie Chapman won their No. 3 doubles match against Harbor, and earned a victory by default against Santa Cruz.
Next up, Aptos (4-2, 4-0) plays at San Lorenzo Valley on Oct. 7 at 4pm.
