Mi’Cole Cayton – Junior – Basketball

The Rams’ junior guard saved her best for last in leading St. Mary’s to the Open Division Championship. In the final, Cayton scored a game-high 21 points and added seven rebounds, five assists and two steals as the Rams defeated Mater Dei-Santa Ana 76-69. 

St. Mary’s-Stockton – Junior – Basketball

   The Rams’ junior guard saved her best for last in leading St. Mary’s to the Open Division Championship. In the final, Cayton scored a game-high 21 points and added seven rebounds, five assists and two steals as the Rams defeated Mater Dei-Santa Ana 76-69. During her team’s state playoff run, Cayton stepped up her game to average nearly 16 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3 assists and 2.5 steals over three NorCal contests and the state final. In her two seasons on the roster, St. Mary’s has compiled a 59-7 record and the Rams finished this season as the top-ranked girls’ team in California and a top-three ranking nationally.

   IN HER COACH’S WORDS: “Mi’Cole carried us for a long time in that game, and then other people picked it up,” St. Mary’s coach Tom Gonsalves said following the state final.

   WORDS FROM THE OTHER BENCH: “We threw everything we had out there to try to slow Cayton down a little bit there at the top,” Mater Dei coach Kevin Kiernan said. “But she was creating a lot of havoc for us.”

Honorable Mention: 

   Justice Shelton-Mosley: The Capital Christian senior capped his season with a team-high 11 points in a narrow loss in the Div. IV state hoops final. The Harvard-bound star led the Cougars to Sac-Joaquin Section titles in football and basketball.

   Gigi Garcia: The McClatchy junior post player gave a dominant performance of 19 points, 20 rebounds and six blocks in the Lions’ 65-61 Division I State Championship victory.

   Tyler Gums: The Placer senior pitcher struck out 13 batters in a 10-1 complete-game win over Center. Gums has struck out 42 batters in 30 innings this season while compiling a 3-1 record and 0.93 ERA.