Sports

One of the young stars of last year’s Watsonville High soccer team, Valenzuela figures to be a cornerstone of the program for the next two seasons.

On its way back home following a three-game trip to Hawaii, Watsonville (9-1-3, 2-0-1) had its flight rerouted back to the island state after the plane’s cabin smelled of smoke an hour and 15 minutes into the journey.

The 6-foot-5, 315-pound St. Francis alumnus was set to become a free agent in March, but Atlanta did not allow the tackle to hit the open market. Terms of the deal were not released by the team, but reports around the NFL claimed the deal was in the $18 million range.

Damion Lee scored a team-high 28 points, Kendrick Nunn chipped in 18 points off the bench and the Santa Cruz Warriors clinched the Pacific division title with a 120-116 win over the Capital City Go-Go on Wednesday in Santa Cruz.

Monte Vista Christian’s outside hitters Mattea Romo and Cassidy Schurman were named to the Gabilan division First Team, while North Monterey County High libero Malia Garcia, Pajaro Valley High outside hitter Natalia Gallegos and Watsonville High opposite Camila Cardenas all made the Pacific division First Team.

A group of high school senior girls from both Santa Cruz and Monterey counties are set to participate in the inaugural Central Coast Flag Football All-Star Game this weekend. Aptos’ Izzy Graff and Mia Sanchez, St. Francis’ Mia Guardino, and Watsonville’s Fernanda Lazo and Brianna...

Santa Cruz (2-0) hit 12 of its 16 shots from beyond the arc over the first two quarters, and held Stockton (2-2) to just 45 points to jump out to a 34-point lead heading into the locker room.

Mother Nature hasn’t been too kind for Aptos High, which has yet to begin the 2024 softball season because of cancellations due to last month’s rainy weather.   But a little bit of rain hasn’t deterred a young, and very hungry, Mariners squad, which continues to...