St. Francis’ Junior Ibarra, MVC’s Ava Johnson, Aptos’ Luke Garvey, Watsonville’s Katelynn Ruiz named Preps of the Week | Pajaronian Sports Ticker

This week’s edition of the Pajaronian Sports Ticker highlights local prep athletes for their performances during the weeks of March 4-10 and 11-17.   

Preps of the Week (March 4-10)

Boys: St. Francis High senior Junior Ibarra batted 2-for-4 with two RBIs and pitched a complete game with nine strikeouts, allowing just two earned runs on four hits for the Sharks in a 3-2 win against Hollister High in Pacific Coast Athletic League Gabilan Division action on March 7. Ibarra batted 1-for-4 with one run scored to help St. Francis beat the Haybalers, 4-0, on March 8, giving the Sharks a 2-0 lead in the teams’ three-game regular season series. Next up, St. Francis (3-2, 2-2) will play at Salinas High (6-3, 2-2) on Tuesday at 4pm. 

Girls: Monte Vista Christian senior Ava Johnson had a total of seven goals in a pair of blowout wins for the Mustangs girls’ lacrosse team. Johnson scored a team-best four goals in a 13-3 non-league win over Aptos on March 4, and she added three more in a 14-1 crushing non-league victory over Sobrato High just four days later. Next up, MVC ( 5-3, 1-2) will play at Santa Catalina (0-2) in PCAL Gabilan Division action on March 20 at 5:30pm.     

Preps of the Week (March 11-17)

Boys: Aptos High senior Luke Garvey earned medalist honors after he shot three over par (38) to help the Mariners boys’ golf team beat Soquel High, 216-246, in Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League action at Seascape Golf Club on March 12. Garvey had another solid performance in the front nine holes and shot a 41 in a narrow 216-217 loss to San Lorenzo Valley High, also at Seascape Golf Club, on March 14. Next up, the Mariners (2-1) will play Scotts Valley High at DeLaveaga Golf Course in Santa Cruz on March 19 at 4:30pm.  

Girls: Watsonville High junior Katelynn Ruiz took 10th in a personal record-setting 5 minutes, 20.91 seconds in the mile race at the Saint Francis Invitational in Mountain View on March 16. Ruiz was coming off a strong performance at the Willow Glen Track and Field Invitational on March 9 where she took fourth in the 800 in 2:27.48 and 14th in the 400 in 1:06.44. Next up, the Wildcatz will begin PCAL Mission Division action with a dual meet at North Monterey County High on March 20 at 3:30pm.

Rising Stars

• Aptos High junior Ben Nowark shot a 40, followed by senior Andrew Cox (42), junior Colby Culbertson (46) and senior Justin Rifkin (50) for the Mariners boys’ golf team in a 216-246 win over Soquel High in SCCAL action at Seascape Golf Club on March 12. Luke English shot a team-best 42 for the Knights, followed by Luke Battey (48), Peter Robeloth (50) and Buckey Jamison (57).
• Pajaro Valley High’s David Hernandez, Patrick Lopez and Erik Michi each recorded a personal best in the 800 and 1600 meter races at the Willow Glen Track and Field Invitational on March 9. In the 800, Hernandez (2:11) put himself at No. 4 on the Grizzlies all-time list for finishes, followed by Lopez (2:18) at No. 16 and Michi (2:24) ranking at No. 19 all-time. Jesse Rodriguez (11:43) and Emmanuel Bamientos (12:13) recorded a personal best in the 3200.
• San Lorenzo Valley High’s James Dahlen earned medalist honors for the Cougars boys’ golf team after he shot at even par (35) in a 216-217 SCCAL win over Aptos High at Seascape Golf Club on March 14. SLV’s Keenan Buntz shot a 42, followed by teammates Luke Fontinell (45), Wyatt McCabe (45) and Conner Scarborough (49). Ben Nowark led Aptos with a 39, followed by Colby Culbertson (44), Andrew Cox (46) and Shawn Roschelle (47).
• St. Francis High’s Micah Cervantez, Nash Horton and Mason Barrego each scored one run for the Sharks in a 3-2 win over Hollister in PCAL Gabilan Division action on March 7. 
• St. Francis High junior Nash Horton batted 3-for-4 with two runs scored and one RBI in a 4-0 victory over the Haybalers on March 8. Fellow teammate Nicholas Fantl batted 2-for-3 with one RBI. On the mound, Trey Silva was credited with the win and Evan Dyer recorded a save for the Sharks. 
• Watsonville High girls’ distance medley relay team (Lizbeth Gomez, Jocelyn Guzman, Azucena Sandoval, Katelynn Ruiz) took ninth in 13:50.29 at the Saint Francis Invitational in Mountain View on March 16. Jayleen Arredondo finished 15th in the Girls Pole Vault (8 feet, 6 inches)
• Watsonville High senior Ruben Mora placed ninth in the 300 hurdles in 41.96 seconds at the Saint Francis Invitational in Mountain View on March 16. Giancarlo Mendo (4:35.69) finished 12th in the mile, while the boys distance medley relay team (Rodrigo Barranco, Ruben Mora, Jared Sunga, Giancarlo Mendo) took sixth in 11:13.34. Nathan Aguilar (39’-0″) finished 20th in the triple jump, Lisandro Pantoja (116′ 8″) placed second in the discus, and Alex Paniagua (11.55) took sixth in the 100.
• Watsonville High junior Jocelyn Guzman took 11th in the 200 (28.61) and 14th in the 100 (13.62) at the Willow Glen Track and Field Invitational on March 9. 
• Watsonville High senior Giancarlo Mendo took fourth in the boys 3200 (9:56.38), seventh in the 800 (2:03.10) and seventh in the 1600 (4:31.00) at the Willow Glen Track and Field Invitational on March 9. Senior Ruben Mora took third (41.90) and junior Patrick Miller-Brown took 11th (45.25) in the 300 hurdles. The Catz’s 1600m medley relay team (Patrick Miller-Brown, Ruben Mora, junior Jared Sunga, senior Jose Pena) took third in 3:45.15.
• Watsonville native Eli Montes-Alvarado won the 12U 98-pound weight class championship at the California USA Wrestling Inc. Kids Folkstyle State Championships at Selland Arena in Fresno on March 8-10. Montes-Alvarado was tied 2-2 going into overtime of the title bout and won in sudden death victory at 4-2.

Games to Watch       

1. Monte Vista Christian vs. Watsonville, softball, Tuesday at 4pm: The Wildcatz (3-0, 1-0) will attempt to keep their undefeated record intact in a PCAL Gabilan Division battle against the Mustangs (4-1), who have outscored opponents 59-14 in four wins this season.  
2. Aptos vs. Soquel, baseball, Friday at 4pm: The Mariners (2-4, 1-0) will host a hot Knights (7-2, 1-0) squad that came out swinging for the fences from the start of the regular season. 
3. Pajaro Valley vs. Monte Vista Christian, track and field, Wednesday at 4pm: The Grizzlies will host the Mustangs in the first cluster meet of the PCAL Santa Lucia Division season featuring other local schools such as St. Francis and Ceiba College Prep.  

Coaches and athletic directors are encouraged to submit scores and highlights to [email protected]. Follow sports editor Juan Reyes (@jmreyes831) on Twitter for scores and news updates.