Sports

CAPITOLA—The Wharf to Wharf Race is back in action this weekend in Santa Cruz County for the first time since 2019. On Sunday, participants will be able to gather around Beach and Cliff streets near the Santa Cruz Wharf for the 50th running of the...

It’s been a record-setting season for the Scotts Valley High boys and girls track and field teams. The Falcons recently competed in the prestigious Arcadia Invitational in Southern California on April 8-9.   Senior distance runner Jeremy Kain, who is committed to compete at Duke next year,...

Scotts Valley High senior defensive lineman Andre Nice recorded a sack and seven tackles for the Falcons in a 28-0 shutout win over rival San Lorenzo Valley High in Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League play on March 27. The Falcons remained undefeated at 3-0 and...

After two straight failed attempts of placing atop the podium at the California Interscholastic Federation State Wrestling Championships, the third time became a charm for Danica Kelley.   The Scotts Valley High star senior wrestler turned her dream into a reality following a first place finish...

In 11 years as head baseball coach at San Lorenzo Valley High, Ross Parmenter has spent every spring pushing to rebuild the emphasis on baseball the school. What was once a mighty program for the Cougars had tapered off since he left the area.

Last year, the Scotts Valley High football team had a season full of uncertainty, not knowing if it’d get to play a game because of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. They got through a six-game season in what would’ve been the Falcons’ spring training period, and...

Jacob Pauka is the kind of kid most parents would love to call their own, and most coaches would love to recruit.  Before attending Scotts Valley High School, this student owned the baseball diamond, leading the Pony League in batting average (.700) and clocking 14...

Scotts Valley sophomore Danica Kelley wrapped up the Falcons’ wrestling season with a strong performance at the California Interscholastic Federation Wrestling Championships on Feb. 24-26. The standout wrestler competed in the 116-pound division and she finished with a 3-2 overall record at the three-day tournament...

Hell Week language is scary. The drill descriptions are strong enough to put the fear of retribution into any young football player’s heart. Found on the coach’s advisory web site are these Hell Week ‘two-a-days’ drills:Discipline: Up downs, Suicides, Running (a lot, like 2 miles non stop), Death valley bear crawl (bear crawling with someone on your back)Hard hitting: Bull in the ring, Hitting tackling dummyBlocking: Pushing the sled, One-on-ones So the lingo is often scary. If you were in some other location where the coaches might have a ‘drill-sergeant’ like attitude and a ‘what-won't-kill-you-will-make-you-stronger’ mentality, those deadly terms were often prophetic.In 2003, heat-exhaustion deaths made the National Collegiate Athletic Association prohibit ‘two-a-days’ on consecutive days during the first five days of practice. NFL eliminated them all-together.In local high schools, the first few days are without helmets and padding, to ease dehydration.Both San Lorenzo Valley and Scotts Valley high schools started football practices on Monday, August 10. Led by head coaches, respectively, Dave Poetzinger and Louie Walters, both teams prepare for the first competition – Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League's 2015 ‘FOOTBALL JAMBOREE’, to be held on Friday, August 28 at 5:30 pm at the Cabrillo College.Scotts Valley has a really ambitious preseason schedule, highlighted by the September 18 game at the 49’s Levi Stadium vs. Watsonville HS.On a sad note, it seems the Falcons’ new sports complex won't have the stadium lights as planned, due to a threatened lawsuit by the neighboring residents. In the past, Santa Cruz High School faced a similar predicament when their lights were to be installed. They solved their problem by using lower poles and special lighting with modifiers that prevent excessive light-spillage outside of the stadium. Perhaps not all is yet lost for the Falcons.

Scotts Valley senior Emma Dyc-O’Neal and sophomore Sofia Niklaus were busy this season handling business on the tennis court as two of the top singles players for the girls’ Falcons team.  However, things took a tiny twist when they paired up to compete at the...