St. Francis is off to a blazing start after winning its fifth consecutive game to begin the 2024-25 winter campaign.
The Sharks improved to a 6-0 overall record following a 72-34 victory over Kirby Prep in non-league action Thursday night.
Robert Gomez Jr. had 21 points and five rebounds, while fellow teammate Nash Horton added 14 points to go along with eight rebounds, eight assists and six steals. Jacob Jimenez contributed nine points, four rebounds and four steals.
And don’t forget the impressive wins over San Lorenzo Valley and Crystal Springs—a perennial powerhouse in Division V of the Central Coast Section.
Those are exactly the type of teams new head coach Robert Gomez is expecting to see in the playoffs.
“That was a huge win for us for future seeding,” Gomez said after their win against Crystal Springs. “They’re in a really tough league up in the Bay Area.”
It’s a major turnaround for St. Francis, which finished with a 2-22 overall record and went 1-13 in the Pacific Coast Athletic League Mission Division during the 2023-24 campaign. They relegated back down to the Cypress Division—the third highest tier of the four divisions within the league.
Last year’s bunch was two years removed from winning the PCAL Cypress Division crown. Seniors Mason Borrego and Horton, and juniors Gomez Jr. and Jimenez were part of the championship run.
The biggest struggle last season was not being able to give players rest because they had just two others on the bench, forcing starters such as Borrego and Gomez Jr. to play the entire 32 minutes of the game.
Gomez, who at the time was an assistant under former head coach Duncan Edwards, said it was hard to create the same environment from the previous season with all the injuries they endured. Horton was one of those players absent from the team after he suffered an injury in baseball as a sophomore.
“Last year we lost some close games early and we kind of just put our heads down, and let that take over the environment,” Gomez said. “All four of those guys (Borrego, Gomez Jr., Horton and Jimenez), they’ve been around winning programs…There’s a winning environment around here. They know what it takes.”
This winter campaign has a much healthier, deeper roster and a group of athletes that work hard, Gomez said.
Gomez took it easy during the first weeks of practice to allow the football players to heal up after a rigorous fall season. But now it seems they’re going at full capacity after the hot start.
“I think we’re more bonded this year,” Gomez Jr. said.
That’s because Gomez along with Borrego, Jimenez, Paise Gitcho, Marcus Gonzales, Nic Ibarra Jesse Navarro and Mario Zermeno are all coming off the recently finished football season that ended Nov. 9.
“We just clicked right away,” Gomez Jr. said.
Horton and fellow teammates Matthew Manalad, Gabriel Santos and Isiah Villalobos got an early jump on the season.
Gomez believes their strength, especially at the Division V level, is having 10 to 12 guys that can play quality basketball anytime they’re on the court.
Villalobos, a sophomore, is a rising star on the Sharks roster, while Navarro is seeing more playing time on the court compared to last season.
“I’m just trying to bring that fast, uptempo style where everybody feels a little bit more comfortable to get up and down and knock down shots,” Gomez said.
Horton is now the primary ball handler, and the Sharks don’t have to worry about a drop off when he comes out of the game for a breather.
“We just play as hard as we can when we get tired,” Jimenez said. “We know that there’s interchangeable players on the bench that can take us out and do an equal or better job.”
Since his return, Horton took a lot of pressure off the shoulders of Gomez Jr. and Borrego, who did most of the dribbling down the court last season.
“This year, six of us could bring it down the court,” Gomez Jr. said.
Jimenez added that Horton also brings a different level of intensity and holds his teammates accountable.
“I really like that about him. I look up to him,” Jimenez said. “I try to match his intensity and bring our team together, and make us better.”
The Sharks will face some more challenging non-league opponents with upcoming games scheduled against North Monterey County, Monte Vista Christian, Scotts Valley and Gilroy.
PCAL Cypress Division play begins at home against King City on Jan. 6 at 7pm.
The rest of the division features North Salinas, Soledad, Gonzales, Greenfield and Pacific Collegiate.
Gomez said when he got the job, his mindset was they should at least compete for a league title. He’s still not sure who the best teams are going to bet, but he’s confident they’ll be in the mix for a league championship.
“I’ve been kind of preaching don’t worry about what happens tonight because we’re getting ready for January,” Gomez said. “I’m not coming out and predicting the league title. I’m just saying I know that we should definitely be competing for a title in our league.”
St. Francis (6-0) hosts North Monterey County on Dec. 16 at 7pm.
