More than a dozen student-athletes from Santa Cruz County have been chosen to compete in the 39th annual Central Coast High School Football All-Star Game.

Standout senior student-athletes from San Benito and Monterey counties will also in the All-Star game, held at Salinas High on Feb. 1 at 7 p.m.

Soquel had six players chosen from its Pacific Coast Athletic League Gabilan Division championship team: Vaughn Bredy, Masen Coso, Luca Dasilva, TyReis Lundy, Ben Palma, and Tanner Trowbridge.

St. Francis has three players competing: Javier Fonseca Jr., Marcus Gonzalez, and Nick Paz.

Scotts Valley (Jess Ringel and Elijah Velez) and Pajaro Valley (Brian Flores and Izaak Ocampo) each have two players rostered.

Watsonville’s Iker Ponce and Monte Vista Christian’s Dmytro Bieliaiev round out the locals competing.

Juan Cuevas of North Monterey County High and Francisco Estrada of Alisal will serve as coaches.Each coach has chosen a local charity for their team to represent: CASA of Monterey County and ERA Training. The money raised will be donated to each charity after the game, and the winning team will be awarded a bonus donation for their cause.

For presale tickets, go to HSAllStars.com.

College commitments

Monte Vista Christian >> MVC School in Watsonville had four student-athletes make college commitments last week.

Nico Downie committed to play football at Valparaiso University in Indiana, which competes in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision. The record setting wide receiver helped the Mustangs (6-4) tied for third in the Pacific Coast Athletic League’s Mission North Division in the fall. The Beacons went 4-7 last season.

Kayla Fullalove-Silveira committed to play softball at University of Bridgeport in Connecticut. The first baseman helped the Mustangs (13-14) take fifth in the PCAL Mission last spring. The Purple Knights went 27-23 last season and qualified for the East Regional in the NCAA D-II Tournament.

Toby Fromm, a 6-foot-6 defender, committed to play lacrosse at Taylor University, an NAIA program located in Upland, Indiana. The Trojans went 5-10 last season.

Maia Kilinski committed to play volleyball at Springfield College in Massachusetts. She helped the Mustangs (19-8) take third in the PCAL Gabilan in the fall and reach the CCS D-IV playoffs. The Pride went 22-8 last season, reached the NEWMAC Tournament semifinals and qualified for the NCAA D-III Tournament.

MVC will hold a celebration for the athletes at the Don Price Performing Arts Chapel on campus on Feb. 5 at 3:45 p.m.

Surfing

SLO CAL Open at Pismo Beach >> Santa Cruz’s Sam Coffey won his opening round heat the World Surf League’s SLO CAL Open at Pismo Beach, a Qualifying Series 3,000-point event, on Monday.

Coffey posted a two-wave total score of 12.27 in 1- to 4-foot waves in his 20-minute heat. El Salvador’s Bryan Perez (10.77) also advanced from Heat 3 in the Round of 112, while Brazil’s Yago Ramos (7.96) and Sterling Makish (5.43) of Deerfield Beach, Florida, were eliminated.

Santa Cruz’s Adam Bartlett (7.30) took third in Heat 8 of the Round of 112, and finished tied for 97th overall.

Two other Santa Cruzans are entered in the event. In the the Round of 64, Nat Young goes in Heat 5 and John Mel goes in Heat 12.

Coffey next competes in Heat 5 of the Round of 96.

In the women’s competition, Santa Cruz’s Kaikora Nauenberg opens in Heat 2 of the Round of 32.

Santa Cruz Scholastic Surf League >> Competitors from Aptos up to Half Moon Bay took advantage of stellar conditions at the final Santa Cruz Scholastic Surf League competition of the 2024-25 season at The Hook on Sunday.

Santa Cruz’s Carson Grant took first in the boys shortboard final. Aptos’ Max St. Denis took second and Santa Cruz’s Olai Beckman-Moon was third.

Aptos’ Harper King continued his dominance with another win in the boys longboard final. His teammates, Noah Slezak and John Niswonger, finished second and third, respectively.

Aptos’ Isla Hardy took first in the girls shortboard final. Santa Cruz’s KK Nauenberg took second, and Santa Cruz’s Camille Cortazzo was third.

Santa Cruz’s Healey Skelton took first in the girls longboard final. HMB’s Aleia Keating was second, and Santa Cruz’s Elsa Espeland was third.

Men’s volleyball

At UC Santa Cruz 3, SUNY New Paltz 0 >> Junior outside hitter Riley Norman had 10 kills and five digs, and the No. 15 nationally ranked Banana Slugs earned a 25-19, 25-22, 25-17 sweep to conclude play in the Slug Slam at the West Field House on Sunday.

Freshman outside hitter AJ Contreras had nine kills and eight digs for the Banana Slugs (5-3). Junior setter Caio Valente made 23 assists, and sophomore setter Andrew Pak made 15 assists.

Freshman outside hitter Nikko Tenedorio had 13 kills, five digs, and two blocks to lead the Hawks (0-5), whose campus was closed due inclement weather.

UCSC plays at Mount Union (4-3) in Alliance, Ohio, on Friday at 4 p.m.

Boys golf

Bailey named coach >> Morgan Hill’s Jay Bailey, an account executive at Inn Foods Inc. in Watsonville, was named MVC’s new boys golf coach on Jan. 10.

The Cupertino High alum played collegiate soccer at Sacramento State and was a longtime coach on the pitch at a variety of levels.

He takes over a team that graduated six student-athletes, but is expected to return five players, including his sox, Alec, who lettered as a freshman last season.

“I love the game of golf and am very passionate about it,” said Bailey, in a release. “Golf teaches us about sportsmanship, how to be self-reliant and to believe in ourselves. There is one thing that golf reassures, like everything in life, to master any skill, you must put time and effort into it. I’m thrilled to join the MVC team and lead our boys golf program.”

Bailey believes his experience coaching soccer will transfer well to golf.

“Coaching soccer has taught me the importance of discipline, teamwork, and the mental fortitude needed to overcome challenges,” Bailey said. “These principles, while seemingly distinct from golf, are fundamentally the same. Both sports require dedication, perseverance, and a strong work ethic. My experience in building a positive and competitive environment within a team will be invaluable as I lead our golfers.”

Announcements

Celebration of Life >> Watsonville High will host a Celebration of Life for longtime football and basketball public address announcer and Little League icon Rick Stubblefield in the school’s gymnasium on Feb. 2 from 1-4 p.m.

Stubblefield, a 1969 Widcatz alum and beloved member of the community, passed away in mid-December at the age of 73.