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The Journal’s top sports moments of 2024
Tyler Soderstrom farewell Oakland 1
Oakland Athletics' Tyler Soderstrom, center left, shakes hands with former baseball player Rickey Henderson, right, after a baseball game against the Texas Rangers in Oakland on Thursday. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)

2024 is in the books, and it was another year where local athletes did not disappoint, whether it came by clutch heroics that will be spoken about in local circles for generations, or heartwarming gestures that made national waves. Here are some of the top sports stories of the year, in no particular order:

 

Soderstrom grants Rickey’s wish: https://www.turlockjournal.com/sports/pro-sports/soderstrom-athletics-say-farewell-to-oakland/ 

Just days removed from the sudden passing of the great Rickey Henderson, there seems to be no better time than to revisit his iconic interaction with Turlock native Tyler Soderstrom during one of the most emotional days in Bay Area sports history.

Just moments after the A’s closed the chapter on their 57-year tenure in Oakland by beating the Texas Rangers 3-2 in their final game at the Coliseum on Sept. 26, the team convened on the pitcher’s mound to give a salute to their faithful fans. Also scurrying onto the field alongside dozens of photographers and reporters was Henderson. Just as he was a player taking a lead at first base determined to steal a base, Henderson was determined to obtain one thing and one thing only — the final out ball. 

The night before, Henderson was in the broadcast booth telling Jenny Cavnar and Dallas Braden how he would love to take home the last pitch thrown at the iconic venue, as well as third base from the final inning of that Thursday’s game. I watched the interview live, so when I was sitting front row for the final game the next day, I was curious to see who would end up with the final out and what they’d immediately do with it.

Of course, Soderstrom ended up with the ball at first base, catching the throw across the diamond from Max Schuemann. He kept in his glove as he made his way to the mound, and I saw Henderson jog onto the field, but there were so many cameras covering my view, I had no clue about interaction.

Soderstrom confirmed to me later that day that Henderson had asked for the ball, and he happily obliged. A number of Associated Press photographers captured the exchange, and it wound up as one of the most read stories published by the Turlock Journal this year.

On Dec. 20 — 65 days after that moment — Henderson passed away after a reported short bout with pneumonia, just five days short of his 66th birthday. The Turlock kid made good by the greatest player to ever wear the green and gold.


 

Baya Austin
Reality sets in for Pitman sophomore Baya Austin as she gets her hand raised after defeating Gilroy’s Tamara Grace by a 7-0 decision in the finals of the 130-pound bracket at the 2024 CIF State Wrestling Championships in Bakersfield in February (CHRIS MORA@ChrisMoraPhoto).

Austin reigns supreme: https://www.turlockjournal.com/sports/high-school-sports/pitmans-austin-reigns-supreme-at-cif-state-wrestling-championships/ 

For the second straight year, Pitman High’s wrestling program produced a state champion in Yzabella “Baya” Austin, who muscled a 7-0 decision over Gilroy’s Tamara Grace in late February in the 130-pound state finals. 

Austin, then a sophomore, became the fifth wrestler to win a California state championship in the school’s 22-year history. The others are Lilly Freitas in 2019 and 2020, Juan Mora and Alana Ontiveros in 2021 and Lilly Avalos in 2023.

Austin struck first against Grace midway through the first period with a takedown. She extended her lead to 4-0 in the second period after starting out on the bottom and working a reversal. She scored another takedown with 10 seconds to go before a discouraged Grace was penalized for stalling as time expired.

“It was definitely a shock and a huge relief hearing that final whistle blow, especially compared to last year when I heard the whistle blow and I had to lower my hand,” Austin said, in reference to getting pinned by Carissa Qureshi of Marina High just over a minute into the opening period of the 126-pound finals in 2023.

She’ll look to repeat this spring.

 

Hughson football
Senior tight end Max Mankins celebrates with teammates after securing the game-winning two-point conversion catch with 14 seconds to play in the Huskies’ 30-29 win over Sutter in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division 5 title game at Sacramento City College (ALEX MORALES/The Journal).

King’s gamble pays off as Huskies three-peat: https://www.turlockjournal.com/sports/high-school-sports/hughson-three-peats/ 

Hughson High head football coach Shaun King scoffs at the word “overtime.” He has said it’s “too much of a crapshoot,” and that he’d prefer to end games in regulation.

In late November at Hughes Stadium, under the bright Sacramento sunshine, King decided that the Sac-Joaquin Section Division 5 championship game would end on his terms. After Colt Foss punched in a 1-yard touchdown to cut Sutter’s lead to 29-28 with 14 seconds to play, King opted to go for two. Quarterback Robert McDaniel, who has committed to play at UCLA next fall, proceeded to find Air Force-bound tight end Max Mankins in the end zone to seal the victory and the program’s third straight section title.

Personally, it was one of the greatest sporting events I have ever covered in person. Turlock’s 51-50 playoff upset of St. Mary’s (Stockton) in 2022 is up there, too.

McDaniel described the moment as a dream. Mankins, meanwhile, declared themselves as one the best teams in Hughson history. It’s a strong statement, but he has an argument. The feat had never been accomplished at the century-old school.

 

Avila makes MLB dreams a reality: https://www.turlockjournal.com/sports/pro-sports/avila-makes-mlb-debut-against-dodgers/ 

Speaking of dreams coming true, a local guy got “the call” for the second straight year.

On April 1, former Turlock High standout Nick Avila was elevated to the San Francisco Giants’ major league roster and made his big league debut at Dodger Stadium. The reliever became the eighth Bulldog to play in Major League Baseball.

Unlike past local call-ups, Avila’s promotion was one I didn’t break. Instead, I was driving to the Oakland Coliseum to watch the A’s take on my childhood team, the Boston Red Sox. As soon as I parked, I ran up to Championship Plaza between the Coliseum and Oakland Arena to connect to the stadium Wi-Fi, and began writing the story on the notes app on my phone. I often joke that even when I’m on vacation (yes, I spend my time away from covering sports by going to sporting events), I can’t escape work. I’m certainly not complaining about this particular instance, though.

I eventually published the story, and our readers had more than enough time to clear their schedules to watch Avila on the biggest stage in baseball. He gave up a pair of runs on three hits, but earned his first strikeout in dramatic fashion, besting MVP Shohei Ohtani on seven pitches. 

Most of the baseball fans in our region root for the Giants, so the game recap was a favorite amongst readers and became one of the most shared stories of the year across social media platforms.

 

Hilmar volleyball win NorCal title: https://www.turlockjournal.com/sports/high-school-sports/queens-of-the-north/ 

In one of the more raucous atmospheres in the region, regardless of sport, Hilmar’s girls volleyball team kept their composure in mid-November to defeat St. Patrick - St. Vincent in straight sets and clinch just the second Northern California Regional championship in school history and first in six years.

Qualifying to the state tournament is an accomplishment in itself, but the wins they strung together could make for an extensive documentary.

After a 9-3, runner-up finish in the Trans-Valley League, the Yellowjackets also came up just short in the semifinal Sac-Joaquin Section Division 4 playoffs. They qualified to the state tournament with the semifinal appearance, and when they were named the second seed in their bracket, had to face a gauntlet of three straight section champions in University Prep (D-4 Northern Section) in the first round, Bullard (D-3 Central Section) in the quarterfinals and Fresno Christian (D-4 Central Section) in the semifinals.

“It’s kind of a flex,” said middle hitter Reese Ahlem. “We talked about it, as well. We fell short of league and sections, and we have three section belts in the way of our (state) title right now. We don't have our own, but we’ll take three of theirs to go along with this one now.”

I wrote “QUEENS OF THE NORTH” for the headline of that recap, but “Banner Snatchers” would’ve worked just as well.

 

Sanchez sets scoring mark: https://www.turlockjournal.com/sports/high-school-sports/pitman-junior-becomes-schools-all-time-leading-scorer/ 

It’s not often a school record of over a decade and a half is broken, especially by a junior. 

Pitman point guard Avery Sanchez had something to say about it, as he scored 33 points in a 72-67 overtime victory over Gregori in late January. It was enough to pass Austin Keaton’s all-time scoring mark of 1,212 points.

“I don’t pay too much attention to the stat sheet. As long as we keep winning, I’m happy,” Sanchez said at the time. “To be honest, I didn't know about (the record) until I was told after the game, so it was kind of a surprise. But it was definitely a good thing to hear knowing that when you put in a lot of time, you get rewarded through accolades.”

Sanchez is not even halfway through his senior year and has pushed his scoring total to 1,345.

 

Siebert runs wild: https://www.turlockjournal.com/sports/high-school-sports/eight-state-turlock-pitman-athletes-win-big-sjs-masters/ 

It can’t be a year-in-review without revisiting the track season that Pitman's Blayne Siebert put together. In one of the most dominant individual seasons by any high school athlete across any sport, he proudly held the title of “fastest man in the section” for the entirety of the year.

The sprinter claimed the Sac-Joaquin Section’s fastest marks in the 100- (10.46) and 200-meter (21.57) dashes early in the season. 

At Masters, he blazed to a 10.47 second finish in the 100, just .01 seconds off his own record In the 200, he came from behind on the straightaway to pass Twelve Bridges runner Anthony Gallagher en route to a 21.75 second finish, besting Gallagher by .15 seconds. 

The week prior at divisionals, Siebert posted a 10.52 in the 100, which would have been a meet record if it weren’t for wind gusting over the legal limit of 2.0 meters per second. He followed the performance up with a time of 10.56 in Friday’s finals to defend his section crown and shatter the previous meet record of 10.77 seconds. He also set a meet record by .29 seconds in the 200, punching in a time of 21.29. The 21.29 mark also set a new Pitman record, besting the mark of 21.50 set by Joey Stout last year.

“It means so much to me because this was my goal since last year,” Siebert said after qualifying to the state meet, which came amid a fractured elbow suffered after his run at divisionals.

“I didn’t even know if I could run at Masters, but I ran anyway because this is my last chance at state. It means so much because I have fought injuries all year I’m not letting them stop me,” he continued, referring to a sports hernia he has dealt with for most of the season.

He fell just short of the state finals in May, but it took nothing away from the season that rewrote the Pitman history books.


Turlock stuns Central Catholic in OT thriller: https://www.turlockjournal.com/sports/high-school-sports/bulldogs-squeak-past-central-catholic-to-move-onto-semifinals/ 

Although this moment wasn’t with a championship on the line, nor were any long standing records broken, November’s quarterfinal meeting on the gridiron between Turlock and Central Catholic will be remembered for decades.

In what is believed to be the first meeting between the two iconic programs located just 17 miles away, the Bulldogs, a classic unfolded. After three lead changes and two ties, Central Catholic took a 42-35 lead early in overtime thanks to a 14-yard burst by Joey Alcutt, and a PAT by kicker Carlos Leon York. But Turlock tied the game moments later when quarterback Scout Silva scampered in from the 14. 

Like Hughson’s King, Turlock High head coach James Peterson looked for the kill shot, opting for the two-point try. His offense executed perfectly, as Silva stepped to his right and found a wide-open Alex Ventura on the right side of the end zone for the winner.

The victory propelled the Bulldogs into the semifinals for just the third time in school history, the last coming in 2022 when, coincidentally, Turlock won the aforementioned quarterfinal matchup over parochial power St. Mary’s, 51-50, with a game-winning two-point conversion. They ended up losing to Oak Ridge, but the win over Central Catholic is a standout in the more-than 100-year history of Turlock High School.