Monte Vista Christian High’s attempt at a rally fell short in a 36-30 defeat to San Lorenzo Valley High in Pacific Coast Athletic League Mission North Division football action Oct. 24.
Senior Jordan Ramirez led the Mustangs with 128 yards rushing and one touchdown that he scored in the fourth quarter that cut the deficit at 29-23.
However, senior quarterback Evan Vessey tossed a costly interception that was returned for an 80-yard touchdown by SLV senior Landon Pifer late in the game.
Teammate junior Brandon Hagen added 24 yards rushing and one TD on 10 carries, while junior wide receiver James Tipton chipped in with 32 yards on five carries for MVC, which dropped to 1-2 in the league standings this 2026 fall season.
Vessey completed 10 of 17 passes for 179 yards, two touchdowns and a pair of interceptions for the Mustangs.
Senior Emilian Tenwinkel was his top target, hauling in four passes for 98 yards and a touchdown, while Tipton caught five passes for 76 yards and a score. Junior Esam Saeb added a 5-yard reception.
Defensively, junior Zach Moran led MVC with nine tackles, followed closely by Reece Walker with eight tackles and one forced fumble.
Hagen contributed five tackles, while senior Rocco DeBernardo made his presence felt in the backfield with two sacks and two tackles for loss. Gabe Figliomeni racked up four tackles, two for a loss, and one sack.
Isaiah Ortega also recorded four tackles, one for a loss, and one sack. Kai Bergthold broke up one pass, forced one fumble and recovered the loose ball.
SLV senior quarterback Brayden Scoma had a pair of rushing touchdowns and tossed one TD pass to Braden Ramsey in the second quarter. Junior running back Jesse Fulkerson added one rushing touchdown.
The Cougar defense was anchored by Jacob Hardin, who registered eight tackles, one sack and one forced fumble.
Nico Brasuell added seven tackles and one interception, while Pifer picked off a pass and made five tackles. Carter Scarborough recovered one fumble, while Jackson Patton added six tackles for the Cougars, who improved to 2-1 in Mission North Division play.
Gabe Attia wore the traditional No. 21 jersey worn by former Cougar David Maze, who was killed in an alcohol related driving accident in 1997. Attia finished with six tackles and one sack.
The jersey is awarded prior to SLV’s final home game of the season to the player who best exemplifies the dedication and determination that was established by Maze.
Next up, MVC (5-3, 1-2) hosts St. Francis High (2-6, 0-3) in PCAL Mission North Division play on Friday at 7:30pm.
SLV (3-5, 2-1) plays at Watsonville High (3-5, 1-2) in league play, also on Friday at 7:30pm.
Aptos 49, at St. Francis 14: Seven different players reached the end zone for the Mariners in their smashing victory over the Sharks in PCAL Mission North Division play Oct. 24.
Xander Gonzalez, Jared Verdia-Moya and Parker O’Hara each scored one touchdown in the first half for Aptos, which had a 21-7 lead going into halftime.
Preston Carvalho, Caden Bogle, Johnny Stoner and Andy Jarquin each added one score in the third quarter for the Mariners, who improved to 3-0 in the league standings this season.
Aptos (5-3, 3-0) plays against Scotts Valley (5-3, 2-1) at Harbor High School on Friday at 7:30pm.
Eddie Torres and Braiden Hernandez each had one TD for St. Francis, which dropped to 0-3 in league play.
St. Francis (2-6, 0-3) plays at Monte Vista Christian (5-3, 1-2) on Friday at 7:30pm.
At Scotts Valley 29, Watsonville 14: The Wildcatz dropped to 1-2 in the PCAL Mission North Division standings following a loss to the Falcons on Oct. 23.
Next up, Watsonville (3-5, 1-2) hosts San Lorenzo Valley (3-5, 2-1) on Friday at 7:30pm.
College football
Cabrillo 54, at Gavilan 21: Desean Gomez recorded five rushing touchdowns to help lift the Seahawks past the Rams in Golden Coast Conference play Oct. 24.
The Aptos High alumnus finished with 266 yards rushing on 24 carries, while teammates Daeveon Fields and Elijah Lewis each added one rushing TD.
Cabrillo sophomore quarterback Mario Cosma completed 23 of 33 pass attempts for 248 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Fields finished with a game-best 95 yards receiving on six receptions, while Santa Cruz High alumnus Myles Reber had seven catches for 75 yards and one TD in the second quarter.
Lewis tallied 14 total tackles on defense for the Seahawks, who snapped a five game losing streak.
Cabrillo (2-6, 1-2) hosts Merced (2-6, 1-2) in Golden Coast Conference play on Saturday at 1pm.
Girls tennis
Scotts Valley 4, Santa Cruz 3: The Falcons clinched sole possession of second place in the Santa Cruz County Athletic League standings following a tight victory over the Cardinals on Wednesday afternoon.
Scotts Valley honored six graduating seniors on Senior Day prior to the final league clash, taking three singles matches and earning a thrilling third-set tiebreaker victory at No. 3 doubles to seal the team win.
In singles action, freshman Marta Nadyer Camilo outlasted Camille Lambert 6-1, 3-6, 1-0 (10-6) at the No. 1 spot.
Freshman teammate Raaga Chandiramani swept Willa Narath 6-3, 6-4 at No. 2, while senior Montserrat Burgos Saavedra notched a 6-0, 6-4 win against Zosea Hayes at No. 3.
Calla Turk earned the lone singles point for Santa Cruz, edging out a 3-6, 7-6 (7-4), 1-0 (10-6) battle at No. 4.
In doubles play, the Cardinals team of Rainey Ruf and Juliet Hekemian rolled past senior Georgia Chetcuti and Lily Flores 6-4, 6-0 at No. 1.
Natalie Wolkstein and Lauren Vermeil added a 6-4, 6-0 victory against senior Konie Lim and sophomore Polina Diaz at No. 2.
Senior Alina Charles and freshman Lillian Foss clinched the overall team triumph for the Falcons, defeating Audrey Cahill and Lu Mohamed 6-1, 1-6, 1-0 (10-6) at No. 3.
Scotts Valley head coach Scott Goodrich commended the squad’s late-season surge following a tough opening stretch.
“We started the league season a bit slow but after the first Santa Cruz win, we caught fire, played great tennis down the stretch and finished on a high note,” said Goodrich in an email. “It was a great day to recognize our seniors and an exciting afternoon of really competitive tennis.”
Scotts Valley concluded its regular season with a 7-4 overall record and finished 7-3 in league play.
Aptos (10-0) captured the unblemished SCCAL championship title, followed by Scotts Valley (7-3), Santa Cruz (6-4), Soquel (5-5), Harbor (2-8) and San Lorenzo Valley (0-10).
Up next, the SCCAL individual tournament kicks off Nov. 3 at Imperial Courts Tennis Club in Aptos. Opening round matches begin at 10 am, followed by championship contests on Nov. 4 at 3:30pm.
Individual tournament winners advance to the Central Coast Section Championships, while Aptos represents the league in the team championships set for Nov. 10.
Girls volleyball
At Harbor 3, Aptos 0: The No. 4 seed Mariners fell to the top-seeded Pirates in three sets 25-17, 26-24, 25-19 in the SCCAL tournament semifinals on Tuesday evening.
Aptos (18-10, 7-5) earned the No. 3 seed in the Central Coast Section Division III playoffs, and it has a bye in the first round. They will host the winner of Saturday’s match between No. 6 Soquel and No. 11 Notre Dame on Nov. 3 at 7pm.
At Monte Vista Christian 3, Santa Catalina 0: The Mustangs swept the Cougars in three sets 25-23, 25-17, 25-23 in PCAL Gabilan Division play Monday evening.
Junior outside hitter Jessie Ingram finished with 10 kills and five digs for MVC, while teammate senior middle blocker Amani Keller added seven kills and five blocks.
Senior setter Mayla Miller-Spahn dished out a season-best 30 assists to go along with two digs, while sophomore defensive specialist Savannah Gomez recorded four service aces and eight digs.
It marked the second meeting between the programs this season, with Santa Catalina building early advantages in every set throughout both contests.
MVC head coach Hunter Zeng said they were glad to celebrate this year’s group of seniors.
“They are a terrific group that have modeled Mustang excellence in so many ways,” said Zeng in an email. “They will be missed, but the way they’ve led will stay with our returning varsity players and our entire program for next season.”
MVC (9-14, 4-10) earned the No. 8 seed in the CCS D-IV playoffs. They will host No. 9 Half Moon Bay on Saturday at 7pm.
