As another great year in sports wraps up and we brace for 2007,
it undoubtedly becomes a time to reflect on some of the bet moments
of the year.
The local sports scene was bubbling in 2006. Central Coast
Section champions, state champions, near national champions and
milestone achievements. The list goes on and on.
In chronological order, here is a rundown of the 10 best moments
to remember from 2006.
As another great year in sports wraps up and we brace for 2007, it undoubtedly becomes a time to reflect on some of the bet moments of the year.
The local sports scene was bubbling in 2006. Central Coast Section champions, state champions, near national champions and milestone achievements. The list goes on and on.
In chronological order, here is a rundown of the 10 best moments to remember from 2006.
A little March Madness – Hollister style
Sports fans all over the country get excited when March Madness kicks off. That certainly was the case locally as Hollister native and former San Benito High star Kyle Sharp and the University of Montana made their way into the NCAA Tournament.
After beating Northern Arizona in the championship game of the Big Sky Conference tournament to earn the automatic bid to Big Dance, the No. 12 seed Grizzlies drew No. 5 Nevada in the first round.
In three minutes of action, Sharp netted a layup and grabbed three rebounds as Montana scored one of the upsets of the early rounds with a wire-to-wire 87-79 victory over the Wolf Pack.
The tourney run ended two days later with a 69-56 loss to No. 4 Boston College, but it was enough to provide plenty of excitement.
‘Baler softball makes history
The third time proved to be the charm for the San Benito girls softball team. After losing in the championship games in 2001 and 2003, the ‘Balers broke through when Elena Fata’s single scored Rachel Maheu in the bottom of the eight inning against Watsonville to clinch a 1-0 victory and the first CCS softball title in school history.
Pitcher Marissa Ibarra delivered a masterful performance as a freshman, hurling his sixth straight complete-game shutout and she fired a one-hitter in the victory.
The championship concluded a remarkable 29-3 season that included 7-0 playoff wins over Gilroy and Carlmont.
More history for San Benito
Less than a week after the softball team claimed the section title, three ‘Baler athletes took their place with the top athletes in the state at the CIF State Track and Field Championships in Norwalk.
For distance runner Amanda Boyd, it was a second straight trip to the state meet – in two different events as she qualified for the 1,600 meter run after advancing in the 3,200 meters as a junior.
But the historical moment came during the pole vaulting competition when Todd Merrigan and Josh Schroder both competed in the state meet. According to an extensive search dating back to 1915, it was the first time in San Benito history that two ‘Balers advanced to the state meet in the same event.
A new title for Kelsey
Local boxer Kelsey Jeffries kept herself busy with five fights in 2006, including a busy stretch from June to November where she fought four times. Through it all, the Ali’i Warrior of the South Bay won three times and earned a draw to help her hold on to one belt and add another to her resume.
The draw came in a tough fight against the bigger Melissa Hernandez and allowed her to retain the International Female Boxers Association featherweight title.
Her next fight is where she added some hardware. Take the ring against a bigger fighter again, Jeffries won a unanimous decision against Lina Ramirez in July to claim the North American Boxing Federation women’s super bantamweight title.
She also beat Ramirez in a non-title fight in November and returned to San Jose’s Fight Night at the Tank and earned a TKO victory over Stephanie Dobbs in September.
Wild ride for A.J.
Former Hollister resident A.J. Allmendinger provided race fans plenty of excitement over the summer. The former Champ Car racer was fired June 9 by his race team, RuSport.
His unemployment didn’t last long as he was hired June 14 by Forsythe Championship Racing. Four days later, Allmendinger, who became engaged during shortly after being let go by RuSport, won the Grand Prix of Portland. He went on to win his next two events and finished the Champ Car year with five wins.
Then came the news that Allmendinger was leaving Champ Car to join NASCAR. He raced in two Craftsman Truck Series events and will drive the NEXTEL Cup No. 84 Team Red Bull Toyota Camry in 2007.
Milestone victory and another Prune Bowl win
The football season ended on a disappointing note for San Benito with its first-round CCS loss to Piedmont Hills. But it was far from a season without highlights.
Among the best moments of the season came Nov. 3, when the ‘Balers held off a tough Salinas squad to win 6-3 and earn the 100th win in the coaching career of head coach Chris Cameron and assistants Tod Thatcher and Rick Dukes.
A week later, the coaching staff proved how good it is by crafting an exquisite game plan that keyed a 29-21 victory over Gilroy to key a fifth straight Prune Bowl victory.
Making a splash
The San Benito water polo team also got involved in this year’s historic run. The boys and girls teams both advanced to the Tri-County Athletic League title game, with the ‘Baler boys winning the league title.
But the big moments came on the afternoons of Nov. 7 and 8, when San Benito hosted the first two CCS playoff water polo games in school history.
The boys team kicked off the celebration with a 17-4 rout over Lynbook for the school’s first ever CCS win. A day later, the girls knocked off Presentation 11-10 to land the first CCS win in girls water polo history.
Running for recognition
The cross country team at San Benito made sure it found its way into the history book too this year. After several years of coming close, the ‘Balers girls cross country team finally broke through and advance to the state meet.
The team of Courtney Allen, Dana Balsey, Alison Meyer, Sandy Meza, Annmari Rich, Kristina Vasquez and Lauren Villasenor finished 19th at the state meet and gained plenty of experience to bring back next year.
Rigo Vasquez also wrapped up his senior year by qualifying for the state meet for the third straight time, finishing 76th with a time of 16 minutes, 23 seconds.
A breakthrough campaign
Likely the most excitement during this wonderful sporting year was providing by the San Benito girls volleyball team.
Two straight trips to the CCS title game for the ‘Balers had resulted in two straight runner-up performances in 2004 and 2005.
Entering this season, the expectations were simple – CCS title or bust!
San Benito showed signs of its strength early on with a preseason victory over defending CCS champion Carlmont. It went on a strong run through the TCAL schedule before a hiccup in its next to last game – a home loss to Salinas – prevented an outright title as the ‘Balers shared the league crown with the Cowboys.
The loss seemed to do no less than provide the necessary motivation and focus San Benito was looking for.
It coasted through the first two round of CCS with a pair of sweeps. In the finals, it won the first two games against Homestead before the Mustangs rallied to a third-game victory.
But the ‘Balers were not going to let this season fall to a similar fate of the previous two and they took control with a 25-19 victory in the decisive fourth game to kickstart a celebration that coach Dean Askanas called “the happiest moment of my life.”
Despite the jubilation of winning the school’s first volleyball section title, the run wasn’t done yet for San Benito – not even close.
The ‘Balers returned home to host Deer Valley in the first round of the CIF Northern California playoffs and easily swept the Wolverines.
That set up a tough matchup on the road against Nevada Union. Long drive, tough opponent, rowdy atmosphere – no problem. San Benito overcame deficits of 1-0 and 2-1 to earn a hard-fought five-game victory to move on to the NorCal finals.
The terrific story finally had its sad ending with the ‘Balers sitting one win away from a berth in the state title game.
Facing undefeated Foothill, San Benito had the host Falcons on the ropes. With a two games to one lead and a lead in the fourth game, the ‘Balers lost one of their stars in junior outside hitter Bri Romero. San Benito couldn’t recover and Foothill rallied to beat the ‘Balers and end their state title hopes.
Despite the painful ending, it was hard to top what the girls did during their incredible ride.
Youngsters get it done
Last but not least is a tip of the cap to all the youth teams who began laying the foundation for a terrific future in Hollister.
Most recently, the Hollister Vikings Junior Pee Wee team finished their remarkable run with a third-place finish at the national championship in Orlando, Fla. Despite a tough 13-12 loss in the national semifinal game, the Vikings responded with a 26-6 win over the Blue Spring (Miss.) Gators to take third place in the country. In the national cheerleading competition, the Pee Wee cheerleaders took fifth in the nation while the Junior Pee Wees grabbed a ninth-place finish.
The summer season also provided great moments for Hollister’s youth.
In early August, the Hollister Heat girls softball team traveled to Johnson City, Tenn., for the 14U Class A National Softball Championships. The Heat were eventually knocked out, but it was another strong run for Hollister.
The youth baseball season brought home a pair of state championships to Hollister, with the San Benito Babe Ruth 14-year-old All-Stars and the Hollister American 9-10-year-old All-Stars both taking home the billing as tops in the state.
Whew! What a year! And yet this provides only a small glimpse of what happened in the local sports scene. Here’s hoping 2007 can be even half as good.
