Quarterback Sam Whelan helped the Soquel High’s football team win the CIF Division 4AA state title as a sophomore in 2023. For an encore, he accomplished an equally impressive feat: He helped the Knights become the first team from Santa Cruz County to go unbeaten in Pacific Coast Athletic League Gabilan Division play.

For his showing, Whelan was named MVP of the Gabilan, the top level of the three-tiered, equity league.

Knights coach Dwight Lowery texted Whelan a GIF, featuring a glowing graphic in school colors, letting him know of his accomplishment.

“I screamed to my dad, ‘Oh, my God. I won!’ ” Whelan said. “This is really special, not only for me, but everyone at Soquel. It represents us and what we’ve done the last couple of years. This is for the coaches, players, parents … It’s for everyone.”

Thing is, not everyone is like Whelan. He completed a whopping 71% (95 for 134) of his passes for 1,398 yards and 17 touchdowns. He threw just three interceptions all season.

Coaches eased him into his varsity role last season by calling plays that allowed him to have the greatest success. This year, he took his success to another level despite having a new crop of receivers to work with.“When he was a sophomore, we had a couple of guys on varsity and he had to catch up to them, so we leaned on the run game a lot more,” Lowery said. “This year, he had more freedom. He was also throwing to guys who did not have a lot of experience, so we mixed things up to show his strengths.”

Whelan threw three touchdown passes in a 34-14 win over six-time defending division champion Salinas at The Pit on Nov. 1.

The Knights, who played one of their most grueling nonleague schedules in school history, were thrust into the Central Coast Section’s prestigious Open/Division I bracket for the postseason and saw their season come to a close against Archbishop Riordan in San Francisco.

Whelan and other returning Knights hope to build upon their success next season. The lean quarterback, who is also an outfielder on the baseball team, stepped away from the Knights’ basketball program to focus on strength and conditioning. He hopes to add some weight to toughen up for the beating his position takes. He wants to be physically ready to run a bit more in 2025, if needed.

He used his feet to produce several big gains in key situations throughout the season. Whelan rushed for 171 yards and five touchdowns on 30 carries this season. His yardage total factors in sacks.

Whelan has shined for two seasons. Everyone in the Knights’ program is excited to see how he caps his high school career next year.

Salinas (8-3, 5-1) took second in the division, and Monterey (6-5, 4-2) was third.

Palma sophomore running back Eli Dukes rushed for 2,034 yards and 17 touchdowns and was named the Offensive Player of the Year, and Monterey senior linebacker Soaki Funaki was named the Defensive Player of the Year.

The Knights finished with seven players honored on the first team, three of whom are seniors: running back TyReis Lundy, linebacker Ben Palma, and defensive lineman Tanner Trowbridge.

In addition to Whelan, three other Knights juniors, receiver Hudson Summerrill, linebacker Adrian Lopez-Kais and defensive back Jake Escalante, also made the first team.

Aptos had one first-team pick, 6-foot-8 senior receiver/tight end Owen Warmerdam, who helped the Mariners (7-6, 2-4) tie Palma (7-6, 2-4) for fourth in the division and reach the CCS D-III title game as the No. 7 seed.

Mission North division

Monte Vista Christian senior receiver Nico Downie was named Offensive Player of the Year in the PCAL’s Mission North Division, and Scotts Valley senior linebacker Jesse Ringel was named Defensive Player of the Year.

North Monterey County’s Arnulfo Jimenez was named Lineman of the Year after helping the Condors (7-4, 5-1) win the division title.

Downie made 87 catches for a state leading 1,620 yards and 14 touchdowns. In his career, he had 193 catches for 3,332 yards and 32 TDs — all three are county records.

“There were a lot of plays I called this year that Nico scored on and people would tell me, “Coach, that was a great call.” In reality, the call was just “get the ball to Nico,” so he’s made me look like a great coach on many occasions,” Mustangs coach Spencer Ferrari-Wood said. “He deserves all the accolades and attention he’s gotten recently. He works extremely hard and earns everything. I’m thankful for him.”

St. Francis (7-3, 4-2), the Santa Cruz County’s top finisher in the division, took third place and was rewarded with five first-team selections. Two of those spots were earned by two-way senior lineman Nick Paz.

Sharks junior running back Joseph Dayritt, junior receiver Jacob Jimenez and senior linebacker/defensive end Nicolas Ibarra also made the squad.

MVC (5-5, 3-3) took fourth place and had three first-team selections: Downie, record setting senior quarterback Dominic Pierini, junior offensive lineman Jacob Wong, and senior linebacker Gunner Sorensen.

Pierini finished the regular season leading the state with a county record 3,789 passing yards, a total that broke his old mark. He finished his career with county-record 8,312 passing yards. He passed for 35 TDs this season giving him 77 in his career; both are county records. He also holds the county’s single-game passing yards mark of 486.

Fifth-place finisher Scotts Valley (3-7, 2-4) had three players, all seniors, make the first team. Ringel was honored at tight end/full back and linebacker, and Eli Velez was honored at running back and defensive back. Falcons offensive lineman Vinny Noce also made the team.

Falcons coach Louie Walters said Ringel, a three-year starter and two-time Defensive Player of the Year, had a special season and career.

“He’ll leave his legacy at Scotts Valley as one of the top players we’ve ever had,” his coach said.

Walters called Ringel up to varsity for the playoffs as a freshman. Normally, the postseason call-ups don’t see action, but a senior teammate told Walters that Ringel was better than him and deserved to play.

“He was a force in the playoff game as a freshman,” Walter said. “He works so hard, nonstop, and we’re going to miss him.”

Watsonville junior offensive lineman Lisandro Pantoja rounded out the team for the Wildcatz (4-6, 2-4), who tied the Falcons for fifth.

Mission South division

Carmel senior two-way Jackson Lloyd, committed to the University of Alabama, was named MVP of the Mission South Division, which didn’t feature any Santa Cruz County teams.

Carmel running back Ashton Rees was named Offensive Player of the Year, and North Salinas linebacker Nathan Barajas was named Defensive Player of the Year.

The Padres (15-0, 6-0) had a record setting season that included the division, CCS D-III, CIF D-5AA NorCal and state titles.

Santa Lucia division

San Lorenzo Valley two-way lineman Haden Woolworth was named MVP of the Santa Lucia Division. Stevenson junior quarterback Finn Mink was named Offensive Player of the Year, and Stevenson senior linebacker Thomas Dayton was named Defensive Player of the Year.

Woolworth, a third-year starter, protected the quarterback and helped open massive holes for the run game on offense. On defense during league play, he recorded 50 tackles, seven for a loss of yards, including three sacks, and forced two fumbles despite being double-teamed nearly every play.

In a nonleague win over South San Francisco to open the season, Woolworth recorded a forced fumble scoop and score to put the game away in the fourth quarter.

He plans to play at Cabrillo next season.

Woolworth was a first-team selection on both sides of the ball.

The Cougars (9-1, 5-1), who finished second to Stevenson (7-3, 6-0) in the division, had five other players named to the first team: senior quarterback Jack Dagan, sophomore running back Justin Griffis, senior receiver Winston Wells, sophomore linebacker Jacob Hardin, senior defensive back Dominick Aguilar.

Pajaro Valley senior offensive lineman Aron Bernabe, sophomore defensive lineman Adrian Mendoza, senior linebacker Brian Flores, and senior special teams standout Izaak Ocampo was honored on the first team for the Grizzlies (4-6, 3-3), who took fourth place.

Fifth-place finisher Santa Cruz (2-8, 2-4) had three first-team picks: junior receiver Soji Agbelekale, senior defensive lineman Matteo Aspromonte, and senior defensive back Adrian Pendergast.

Harbor senior running back Fausto Gonzalez also made the team for the Pirates (1-8, 0-6).

Special honors

Gabilan Division MVP: Sam Whelan (Soquel)

Mission North Offensive Player of the Year: Nico Downie (MVC)

Mission North Defensive Player of the Year: Jesse Ringel (Scotts Valley)

Santa Lucia MVP: Haden Woolworth (SLV)

More online: Click on this article on santacruzsentinel.com/sports to view the complete All-PCAL football team.