Benicia Is Arguably The Sac-Joaquin Section’s Most Complete Softball Team — Will It Equate To A Division III Title? • At times, softball can become a singular sport: One team’s ace pitcher facing off with the opponent’s big hitter and the game on the line. But the Benicia High... Read more
Folsom Junior Receiver Joe Ngata Left Every Football Scout Drooling In 2017 • Joe Ngata wasn’t wasting any time. Fresh off a 16-0 state championship season, Joe Ngata, the 6-foot-4, 210-pound Folsom High School receiver was begging to get back in the gym. “I’ve been back in the gym... Read more
SportStars All-City “V Award 2018” Denner Party
Sac-Joaquin SectionTrack & Field, Anchored by Youth RunnerXC-Track-Running May 15, 2018 0
Oak Ridge Senior Maddy Denner Has Established Herself As One Of The State’s Strongest Girls Distance Runners Winning a race often takes more than speed or an ability to quickly cover distances. Strategy, mental preparation, and conditioning are just as essential, if not more important than physical training. Oak... Read more
Taking Flight
Track & Field, Anchored by Youth Runner May 11, 2018 0
A Dominant Season In The Hurdles Has Made Aiden Jackman A Favorite To Become Clayton Valley’s First Track & Field State Champion In Two Decades • Aiden Jackman’s elevation up the high school hurdles ranks had been steady. But this spring, he’s taken a gigantic leap. At one of... Read more
Masterful Communication Aids Elk Grove High Softball
High School Baseball/SoftballSac-Joaquin Section May 10, 2018 0
21st Century Clout Coach Amanda Buck operates her Elk Grove High softball team like a finely-crafted marketing plan. The team mission adjusts pitch-by-pitch to the calls of assistant coach Jake Lively, corresponding with color-coded commands on each player’s arm band. Play is often stalled to discuss strategies with coaches,... Read more
Undaunted By Offseason Knee Surgery Or A Fourth New Coach In As Many Seasons, Jacob Cole Leads Roseville’s Push Toward A Title Defense • Injuries can be devastating for prep athletes, but timing plays a big role in their effect on the prospects of college-bound seniors. Post-commitment ACL tears,... Read more
With Talented Center Fielder Michael Dixon Leading The Charge, Berkeley Baseball Is Turning Heads In 2018 • Story By JAMES G. KANE | Photos By BERRY EVANS III Berkeley High School baseball coach Curtis Sandeford put his chin to his hand and gazed his glance downward. A few seconds... Read more
Turn It Up! Freedom High Softball Is Blasting Confidence After 11-0 Start When the going gets tough, the Freedom High softball team GETS LOUD! Really, really loud. L-O-U-D loud. The noise generated by the Falcons isn’t just the typical dugout chatter. Their April 17 Bay Valley Athletic League opener... Read more
5 Best Steps to Golf Conditioning – Part 2 of 5: Stability
High School GolfLEVELUP INSIDERS April 10, 2018 0
What is Golf Conditioning? Part 2 of 5 by SportStars INSIDER, Joe Rosenthal What else is out there to make this great game a little more enjoyable— swing lessons? New clubs? gadgets? The answer is your own body. Here are 5 Best Steps of Golf Conditioning. 5 Best Steps... Read more
All-NorCal Girls Basketball ’17-’18
High School Basketball April 6, 2018 0
Beginning With Player Of The Year, Archbishop Mitty’s Haley Jones, It Was A Banner Year For NorCal Girls Talent • CLICK HERE For All-NorCal Boys Selections NORCAL PLAYER OF THE YEAR Haley Jones, Archbishop Mitty-San Jose, Junior There’s not much Haley Jones can’t do on a basketball court. At 6-1,... Read more
West Campus Girls Basketball on a Championship Run
High School BasketballSac-Joaquin Section April 6, 2018 0
West Campus Girls Credit Their Track Coach, Conditioning Program In The Wake Of Winning A Second Consecutive State Championship • West Campus Story by MIKE WOOD | Photos by JAMES K. LEASH You might not expect to hear groans, gasps and cackles from a girls basketball team that just... Read more
Coach Brian Dietschy’s Journey To State Finals Started In Elementary School
High School BasketballNorth Coast Section April 5, 2018 0
Thirty Years After After Losing A NorCal Basketball Final As A Las Lomas Player, Brian Dietschy Coached A Serendipitous Knights Team Into The State Finals • Brian Dietschy story by CLAY KALLAM | Photos by JAMES K. LEASH The story starts on San Juan Avenue, a quiet Walnut Creek... Read more
