By Daily Republic Staff

STOCKTON — The playing conditions were less than ideal, but the Rodriguez High girls golf team still made history in the Sac-Joaquin Section Masters tournament, Monday.
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With Darla May Dela Torre firing a 72 and Nikki Chindavong and Erica Villegas close behind with 74s, the Mustangs became the first city golf team – girls or boys – to advance to the Northern California Championships by placing third in the SJS Masters at The Reserve at Spanos Park.

​​With Destiny Rose Mendiola adding an 89, Noelle Concepcion a 96 and Tristiane Soto a 111, Rodriguez finished third with a team score of 405 to claim one of the three NorCal qualifying spots. The top three individuals not on the top three teams also advanced.

Granite Bay finished first at 384, followed by Pleasant Grove of Elk Grove at 393. The Mustangs needed every stroke as Lodi was a close fourth at 407, followed by Christian Brothers of Sacramento in fifth at 413.

Dela Torre’s 72 was the fourth-best overall score, while Chindavong and Villegas finished in a  three-way tie for 12th.

The Northern California Championship is Monday at Berkeley Country Club in El Cerrito. The top three teams and top nine individuals not from the top three teams move on to the CIF State Championship is Nov. 16 at Poppy Hills Golf Course in Pebble Beach.

The city’s previous NorCal participants were Armijo’s Joe Huarte and Aaron Beverly.

FAIRFIELD — Leroy Bryant ran for a touchdown and later caught a pass for another and the Rodriguez High defense tied a school record with its second shutout of the year by blanking Fairfield 44-0 at Schaefer Stadium, Friday night.
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The Mustangs (7-1, 2-1 Monticello Empire League) opened the season with a 45-0 thumping of Bear Creek of Stockton and matched the 2009 squad as the only squads in school history to have two shutouts in a season.

Jeremiah Hill opened the scoring with a 22-yard touchdown with a two-point conversion attempt failing.
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Later in the first quarter, Gerald Certeza scored on a 1-yard run with Gabriel Batres adding the two-point conversion on a play-action pass from Miles Meadows.

​In the second quarter, Bryant scored his first touchdown on a 42-yard run with Malachi Jones running in the two-point conversion to make it 22-0.

Bryant then caught a 15-yard TD pass from Meadows before Trevor Crommie returned an interception 36 yards for a touchdown with Bentley Williams adding the two-point conversion run to make it 36-0 at the half.

The lone score of the second half was a 15-yard TD toss from Kenen Jones to Donovan Trupe. Gentle Edwin ran in the two-point conversion to make the final score 44-0.

The Mustangs, who are looking to make the playoffs for the first time since 2011, host Vacaville in a key MEL game next Friday, while Fairfield travels to Wood.

​“We’ve still got to clean up the penalties,” Rodriguez coach Myles King said. “We’ve got to focus and get ready for Vacaville, that’s where our mindset is.”
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Note: Corrects to show Bentley Williams scoring a 2-point conversion

By Daily Republic Staff
FAIRFIELD — Nikki Chindavong led a heated battle for low score honors with a 1-under-par 35, with teammates Erica Villegas and Darla May Dela Torre finishing at 36 and 37, respectively, in Rodriguez High’s 203-265 Monticello Empire League victory over Vanden at Rancho Solano, Tuesday.

​Next for the Mustangs were Noelle Concepcion at 45, Tristiane Solot at 50 and Sophia Sinning at 57.

Fatum Soumahoro led the Vikings with a 41, followed by Zoe Zanassi at 52, Maggie Taylor at 55, Kara Chung at 58, Diana Borchert at 59 and Sydney Haas at 73.

​By Daily Republic Staff
FAIRFIELD — The Rodriguez High shook off a hiccup in the second set and settled down for a 25-9, 16-25, 25-10, 25-19 victory over visiting Armijo in Monticello Empire League play, Tuesday.

​Briana Davisson delivered 11 kills, three aces and two blocks; Kaili Angulo chipped in five kills  and four digs; Jhezerel Prado had 10 digs and three aces; Nyah Robinson contributed four kills and four aces; Payten Briscoe came in with 15 assists and three digs; Khaycee Jamias-Cadenas had six assists and two kills to go with solid defensive play; and Lauran Ballard contributed on the right side, middle and middle back with two aces and two blocks.

Rodriguez won both the JV and JVB matches in two sets.

Vanden 3, Wood 0: At Vanden’s Jim Boyd Gym, the Vikiings (10-2, 8-1 MEL) sailed to a 25-17, 25-18, 25-19 victory.

“It was a close match, but we prevailed connecting setter-to-hitter on several occasions. . . . The girls stayed strong tonight,” Vanden coach Cindy Scolavino said, “picking up several tough tips by our opponents. The girls are starting to work together well but we have more to go.”

Anaya Thrower had seven kills; Audrey Alexander was 6-of-8 on serves with one ace, 7-of-17 on serve receive and had 11 digs and one assist; Breanna Davis was 9-of-10 on serves with two aces, four digs and 11 assists; Francesca King was 18-of 21 on serves with two aces, two digs, three kills and 16 assists; Kelsey Wall was 8-of-10 on serves with two aces, 9-of-9 on serve receive to go with seven kills and five digs; Lauren Whyte had four kills and one dig; Soleil Sands had seven kills and two blocks; and Sumerlyn Spencer was 14-of-15 on serves with two aces, 7-of-9 on serve receive and had six six kills and five digs.

Vanden’s JV team (8-1) won 25-12, 25-12 as Maui Ascunsion was 25-of-36 with six aces and four digs, while Piper Olsen was 4-of-4 with two aces snd four assists.

​The Vikings took the JVB match, 25-12, 25-13 as Tiara Domingo served 19-of-21 with 10 aces; Ashley Daughtry served 7-of-7 with six aces and Skye Oden had one kill and two blocks.

​Vacaville 3, Fairfield 0: At Fairfield’s Ronald D. Thompson Gymnasium, the Bulldogs prevailed, 25-8, 25-12, 25-12.

Mackenzie Godden had solid defense at the net with four blocks and led the attack with eight kills; Alexa Simmons and Malia DeCelle both added seven kills; Kyra Gossett ran the offense with 16 assists, followed by Mea Todd with 14; Alexa Simmons was 17-of-19 from the service line with 10 aces, Sierra Bandy was 16-of-18 with six aces and Kyra Gossett was 12-of-13 with seven aces.
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The Bulldogs JV team got a 25-8, 25-13 victory with Sophia Stanley serving eight straight points in one set and Hannah Roderick providing solid defense.

By Nick DeCicco
FAIRFIELD — With the visiting team yards away from a game-tying touchdown in the fourth quarter Friday night at Coach Ed Hopkins Memorial Stadium, host Rodriguez High had an additional challenge – not being able to see how much time was left in the game.​

​​The Mustangs (5-0) stalled two consecutive fourth-quarter drives Friday night by Walnut Creek’s Northgate (2-2) for a 29-21 win to remain undefeated in a game where a malfunction kept the field’s scoreboard dark throughout the contest. The teams relied on officials to relay the play clock in between downs.

The inability to see the remaining time inspired a sense of urgency that Rodriguez head coach Myles King said motivated his players.

“These boys, they’ll never give up,” King said. “No matter what the situation, you’ve got to play hard, you’ve got to grind and you’ve got to continue to fight. That’s what it is.”

While the defense made crucial stops in the final quarter, Rodriguez needed every aspect of its team to secure the victory.

First, it was the offense. Trailing 21-15 near the end of the third quarter, Miles Meadows hit a wide open Jamoryon Johnson for a 27-yard touchdown to give the Mustangs a 22-21 lead they would never relinquish. The passing TD was one of two on the night between Meadows and Johnson.

Then it was the special teams. After a four-and-out by the Broncos, a long punt return by Leroy Bryant put the home team a yard shy of the red zone. Three plays later, Jeremiah Hill grabbed a pass from Meadows, danced around a Northgate defender and stepped over the goal line for the final 29-21 tally. Hill led all receivers with four catches for 96 yards.

With 10 minutes and 30 seconds left to go in the game, it was Rodriguez’s defense’s chance to shine.

A long Northgate drive chewed more than 70 yards and nearly five minutes off of the clock. Despite the Broncos getting as close as the Mustangs’ 2 yard line, it was Gabriel Batres who sacked John Pelletier on 4th-and-goal from the 7 to end Northgate’s drive.

The Broncos would get the ball back one last time, but went four-and-out after Rodriguez’s defense held them off again.

Malik Dawson added 10 points for the Mustangs with a 5-yard touchdown tote, three extra points and a rushing score for a two-point conversion.

Rodriguez opens Monticello Empire League play by hosting Armijo for homecoming on Friday.

JV: Rodriguez 16, Northgate 14 — Jayden Lewis Chandler scored a rushing touchdown and Zack Carvalho caught a game-winning TD pass from Dylan Burke to move the Mustangs’ record to 3-1-1 on the season.

​By Daily Republic Staff
​VACAVILLE — Darla May Dela Torre fired a 4-under par 69 and teammate Erica Villegas was close behind with a 72 to help lead the Rodriguez High girls golf team to victory in the first Monticello Empire League tournament of the season at Cypress Lakes, Tuesday.​

The Mustangs finished with a team score of 465, followed by Vanden at 510 and Vacaville 538.

Dela Torre shot a sizzling 32 on the front nine, followed by a 37 on the back nine. Villegas opened with a 35, finishing up with a 38.

Next for Rodriguez were Noelle Concepcion on 97, Destiny Rose Mendiola at 106 and Sophia Sinning at 120.

Vanden’s Fatum Soumahoro was third overall with an 83. For the Vikings, she was followed by Zoe Zanassi at 98, Maggie Taylor at 99, Diana Borchert at 102, Kara Chung at 128 and Erica Dennis at 154.

Vacaville’s top two players, Brooke Williams and Kelsey Hobbs, tied for fourth at 92. The Bulldogs’ other players were Alanna Castillo at 111, Rossy Gonzalez at 114, Raquel McGrath at 129 and Skyler Beverly at 153.

Vanden 252, Wood incomplete: At Cypress Lakes Golf Course, the Vikings (5-3) used balanced scoring to get the win with Fatum Soumahoro (46), Diana Borchert (47) and Zoe Zanassi (48) all breaking 50.

Next for Vanden were Maggie Taylor at 51, Kara Chung at 60, Erica Dennis at 72 and Sydney Haas at 81.

Playing for Wood (0-8) were Kylee Hawkins at 63, Kaylee Hawkins at 65 and Nadia Allen at 74.

Rodriguez 234, Vacaville 282: At Paradise Valley Golf Course, Erica Villegas shot a 37 to edge out teammate Darla May DelaTorre at 38 for best score of the day.

Next for the Mustangs (8-0) were Noelle Concepcion at 49, Tristiann Soto at 51, Sophia Sinning at 59 and Destiny Mendiola at 60.

Brooke Williams led Vacaville (3-5) with a 44, followed by Kelsey Hobbs at 48, Rossy Gonzalez at 57, Katie McMahon at 63 and Skyler Beverly and Maya Farris both at 70.

By Daily Republic Staff
VACAVILLE — Nikki Chindavong and Darla May De La Torre each shot sizzling 37s, but freshman teammate Erica Villegas did them one better with a 36 as the Rodriguez High girls golf team opened its season with a 211-387 victory over Will C. Wood at Cypress Lakes Golf Course, Tuesday.

Noelle Concepcion was next with a 44, followed by Tristianne Soto at 57 and Sophia Sinning at 59.


Playing for the Wildcats were Ella Draper with a 72, Kaydence Baptista at 75, Sophia Cuhna at 78, and Nadia Allen, Madison McCrorey and Yasmuir Gaerland at 81.

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By Daily Republic Staff
FAIRFIELD — The Vacaville High volleyball team improved to 3-0 in Monticello Empire League play with a 25-22, 25-18, 25-17 road victory over Rodriguez, Tuesday.

For the Mustangs (2-1), Khaycee Jamias-Cadenas had 10 assists and Keila Solis, Emalie Depew and Nyah Robinson each had four kills.

“We made a lot of unforced errors this evening leading to our loss,” Rodriguez coach Sherry Guzman said. “Good job, Vacaville.”

The Bulldogs rallied to win a hard-fought JV match, 26-28, 25-19, 15-5.

By Daily Republic Staff

VACAVILLE — Donovan Cheruiyot led a four-runner pack with a solid third-place finish to propel the Vacaville High boys varsity cross country team to a convincing 60-point victory in the Boys Large School Division Lagoon Valley Classic.

The largest high school invitational in Northern California, this year’s Lagoon Valley Classic featured 1,558 runners.

Cheruiyot crossed in 16 minutes, 2 seconds, 25 seconds after winner Sean Lacey of Bella Vista, and was followed by Paul Hobbs (fourth), Asher Love (fifth) and Kellen Ruiz (sixth).


The Bulldogs finished with 51 points to 111 for runner-up Bella Vista.

Anna McNatt of McClatchy won the Girls Varsity Large School Division in 17:28 with Oak Ridge taking the team title with 39 points, putting five runners in the top 17.

Top Monticello Empire League performers were Hailey Wurzbach of Vacaville (19:19, 13th), Alexa Amador Trejo of Rodriguez (19:32, 14th), Kaitlene Ofilian of Rodriguez (20:50, 30th) and Cristina Leanos of Armijo (20:47, 35th).

Will C. Wood placed third in the boys Varsity Small Schools Division, led by 14th-place finisher Jackson Hicks (18:36). Rishard Hsia (20:09, 30th), Braeden Wieser (20:27, 37th) and Zane Johnson (20:30, 28th) rounded out the medal winners for Will C. Wood.

The girls team’s fourth-place team finish was led by Tea Troche-Jones in third place (20:20). Kaydence Garrison (22:01, 13th) and Diana Luu (23:24, 22nd) won medals for the Wildcat team as well.

Addison Clinton of Oak Ridge won the Frosh-Soph Girls race with a time of 13:24 over the 2-mile course. Vacaville put three in the top 10, led by Alicia Rawdon (14:17, fifth), Reagan Fisher (14:23, sixth) and Avery Courtney (14:36.3, 10th) for an overall second place finish as a team. Gabriella Swartz from Rodriguez finished 11th in (14:36.6). Leading her team with a 21st-place sprint finish was Tania Benitez (15:07) from Vanden.

Vacaville’s Colton Walker got the day started with a dominating performance, turning in a course record time of 10:51 to win by nearly 40 seconds over the 2 mile Frosh-Soph Division.

Notable Vacaville performances and medal winners not mentioned above came from Braden Killeen (second), Maxwell Valenzuela (seventh) and Ryan Hansen (27th) in the JV Boys race; Tatianna Luna (33rd) in the JV Girls race; James Rowland (ninth), Garret Seifert (16th), and Landen Borchers (33rd), in the Freshman Boys race; Luke Wirth (20th) and Carlos Palacios (30th) in the Boys Frosh-Soph division; Whitney Archer (25th), Kelsey Collins (26th), and Caitlyn Gonzalez (32nd) in the Girls Frosh-Soph division; and Evan Mitchell (36th) in the Varsity Boys Race.