Sports

WATSONVILLE—On a gorgeous Monday afternoon at Pajaro Valley High School dozens of student-athletes began to partake in their daily practice routines. But among the sea of green and gray associated with the Grizzlies, a small splotch of black and gold could be seen: Layla...

A handful of clutch hits, a gritty pitching performance and a couple of lucky bounces in key moments. That was the winning formula for No. 3 Watsonville in its 5-1 triumph over No. 6 Los Gatos High in the quarterfinals of the CCS Open Division playoffs on Saturday.

M.V.C. blew a 15-point lead in the second half, but kept its cool down the stretch and made the plays when it mattered to escape with a 55-51 victory over Gilroy High in Monterey Bay League Gabilan division action.

Senior pitcher Chase Watkins tossed a complete-game one-hitter with nine strikeouts, but the Sharks offense mustered up only one hit in Tuesday’s 1-0 loss to league-leading Santa Cruz High.

Watsonville High's star distance runner, Layla Ruiz, broke a school record that stood for nearly 30 years. She will be one of the favorites to win nearly every race — 1,600 and 3,200 meters — she will participate this season.

The Mariners (8-7, 8-2) on Thursday night erased a 17-11 deficit in the fourth set and willed themselves back from down 10-7 in the winner-take-all final set to keep themselves in the title hunt and throw another hurdle in front of the Knights’ (11-5, 7-3) championship hopes.

Watsonville senior Mathew Silva had one touchdown and one interception to help lift the Wildcatz football team past North Monterey County, 25-13, in Pacific Coast Athletic League Mission Division-North action Friday evening. Junior quarterback Edwin Cornejo had a 2-yard rushing touchdown, and he connected with...