Latest news with #ClovisWest
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Clovis West boys shine in freestyle relays, plus other Fresno-area placers in CIF meet
It was time for celebration for the Clovis West boys 200 freestyle relay team at the CIF state championships at the Clovis Olympic Swim Complex on Saturday. Starting in lane 5, the Golden Eagles were led off by Sylas Maurin who trailed, but there was never any worry because Jake Salcedo got the lead towards the back end of the relay before Stanley Oka left any doubt who were going to be the winners. Clovis West won the relay in 1:21.39 over De La Salle (1:22.49). 'Just honestly, a lot of visualization for us and a lot of focus getting to this point,' Salcedo said. 'We had a great prelim swim (Friday) yesterday and we told ourselves if we can go faster.' In the last leg, Oka made sure he wouldn't allow a swimmer to pass him up. 'Just bringing it home,' said Oka, who finished third in the 100 butterfly in 48.12. 'I had confidence in these guys to give me a good lead.' Said Tobin Reed: 'It's honestly an honor to walk around and have this feeling. I hope we can get it in our next relay. Fingers crossed, but I feel like 10 pounds lighter because of that,' he said. Reed's hope came to fruition when the Golden Eagles won the 400 freestyle relay with a time of 2:58.91 over Northwood (2:59.14). That was the same relay team that won the 200. The same group finished second in the 200 medley behind Valley Christian. Those times were close at 1:30.85-1:30.87. The Golden Eagles finished in the team standings second behind Northwood (180-161). Meanwhile, in other races, Clovis West girls 200 medley relay (sixth, 1:45.18); Clovis North boys 200 medley relay (seventh, 1:31.79); Sophia Oka-Fedder of Clovis West (fourth in 200 freestyle, 1:50.10); Jag Zwaschka of Clovis East (fourth in 50 freestyle, 20.16); Rowyn Wilber of Clovis North (third in 500 freestyle, 4:51.79); Roman Dawson of Clovis East (fifth in 500 freestyle, 4:24.54); Ethan Linville of Clovis North (sixth in 500 freestyle, 4:24.58); Clovis West 200 freestyle relay (eighth, 1:35.72); Ellie Fitzgerald of Clovis North (third in 100 breaststroke, 1:02.32); Lucas Huckabay of Kingsburg (fifth in breaststroke, 54.72); Clovis West girls 400 freestyle relay (sixth, 3:26.93); Clovis East boys 400 freestyle relay (eighth, 3:04.61).
Yahoo
04-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Bee's Best: 2024-25 girls basketball All-Stars and Players of the Year
Alexis Swillis was a big target for the Clovis West girls basketball team this season. Standing at 6-foot-3, she was an imposing figure and a force. She was continually relied on when the Golden Eagles needed short buckets. Swillis finished her career with 1,266 points, according to section historian Bob Barnett. Swillis averaged 15.2 points per game, 8.9 rebounds and was the Tri-River Athletic Conference Player of the Year. 'Coaches and teammates pushing me,' said Swillis, who acknowledged after last season she needed to be more physical. 'I'm almost probably the biggest person in the Valley (among high school girls basketball players). Just using that to my advantage.' Her leadership helped the Golden Eagles to another Tri-River Athletic Conference and Central Section Division I championship. Swillis is The Fresno Bee's Player of the Year. 'She's a 6-3 post player, but she's so much more than that,' Clovis West coach Craig Campbell said. 'She's an athlete, so coachable — I mean, there's everything. Her growth this last year has been tremendous to see when she got healthy and cleared and started playing for us now. We've really pushed her.' Despite the loss to Archbishop Mitty, where the Golden Eagles almost pulled it out, Swillis was happy that her teammates fought hard until the final buzzer sounded. The loss didn't define the season. Clovis West still finished 33-1, but she hopes the season continues to set the standard. 'We had a big senior class,' Swillis said. 'I feel like all of us stepped up and just felt like showing the freshman class how we basically do it. It was fun.' Swillis will play college basketball at UNLV. There is no denying what Campbell and Almeida have done for their respective teams. This season was historic for both. Clovis West was on an undefeated run. Caruthers had another state title on the mind. Campbell knew there was noise prior to the season that this could be a down year for Clovis West. Not even close. The Golden Eagles put up a memorable season, but still fell one game short. Campbell was still proud of his team. 'Each team has their own journey, their own path,' Campbell said. 'We lost a couple talented seniors in Athena (Tomlinson) and Ariyah (Smith) last year. We knew we were going to have a lot of senior leadership. We have four college-bound seniors in this class. The maturity, we're a little different than the past. 'I never thought we'd be 33-0 or whatever we were heading into our last game. We figure we'd have four or five losses in the process. We beat two of the top teams out of Oregon. We beat the Nevada state runner-up and one of the top teams out of Florida.' Almeida, meanwhile, wanted another state title. Her Blue Raiders won their first in 2019. Then Caruthers returned to Sacramento in 2024 and won. This year? No problem for Caruthers. The Blue Raiders defeated Rancho Bernardo 56-37 in the CIF Division II state title at the Golden 1 Center. 'They all wanted it,' Almeida said. 'It took a lot of learning curve by the girls. All of them wanted to say that they were going to be state champions.' Almeida saw a look into her players where they had 'more focus' this season than they had before. Her players answered the call. For that, she earned another Coach of the Year. 'It's a testament, to the community that supports us and all the coaches that support me,' she said. 'Not just my staff, but my coaching village who I get the opportunity to work alongside.' Sin powered the Cougars to a 25-9 overall record and 7-3 in the TRAC. She was the go-to player for the Cougars, averaging 17.5 points per game while shooting 56% from the field. Sin has always been a key player for Clovis, where she often finds a way to get to the basket with her quick awareness. Jackson led the way for the Golden Bears, averaging 14.7 points and 6.9 rebounds per game in helping Sierra Pacific to a 50-43 victory over Monache in the Central Section Division II championship. In that game, she finished with 10 points and five rebounds. Whether it's from her mom or something else, Almeida is another coach on the court for the Blue Raiders. She did that by leading by example. She helped Caruthers to back-to-back state championships, scoring 21 points in the final this year. For the season, she averaged 12.4 points and 6.9 assists per game. Apajok Ayuen, Jr., Sierra Pacific Aleeawa Badoni, Sr., Sierra Kyah Bartlett, Jr., Monache McKenzee Batemon, Sr., Hanford West Jaelyn Bourdeau, Sr., Coalinga Laniece Brinston, Jr., Hanford West Brooklyn Davis, Jr., Coalinga Rian Jones-Dillihunt, Sr., El Diamante Jalissa Espirito, Dinuba Sienna Evans, Sr., San Joaquin Memorial Janessa Garza, Sr., Farmersville Jennifer Gonzalez, Sr., Strathmore Nyleigh Gregory, Soph., Roosevelt Sanai Herod, Jr., Bullard Jadyn Johnson, Sr., Yosemite Bethany Mendoza, Sr., Firebaugh Lali Maciel, Jr., Coalinga Keegan Medeiros, Sr., Clovis West Natalie Membreno, Jr., Mendota Izabel Mendez, Sr., Caruthers Jaylee Moore, Soph., Caruthers Vivian Moore, Sr., Central Melanie Navarro, Sr., Lindsay Alexa Perryman, Sr., San Joaquin Memorial Milly Rojas, Jr., Monache Jilari Sandoval, Jr., Mendota Ava Schletewitz, Jr., Immanuel Saiya Sidhu, Sr., Clovis Kayla Silva, Sr., Hanford West Gi'Anna Smith, Fr., Buchanan Gia Souza, Soph., San Joaquin Memorial Keira Thomas, Fr., Immanuel Mia Va'asili, Sr., Caruthers Riley Walls, Sr., Clovis West Caris Williams, Sr., Bullard
Yahoo
09-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Clovis West to play in regional final, plus which other Fresno-area teams remain alive?
The Clovis West girls basketball survived a CIF Open Division NorCal regional semifinal with a 69-62 victory over San Ramon Valley. The second-seeded Golden Eagles moved on to the regional final against nemesis Archbishop Mitty in San Jose on Tuesday with the winner advancing to the state championship game in Sacramento. No. 3 San Ramon Valley had the lead in the fourth quarter, but the Golden Eagles stifling defense made things problematic and took advantage of the mistakes. Alexis Swillis led the way for Golden Eagles with a team-high 23 points. San Ramon Valley had come into the game on an impressive run beating Acalanes 76-43 and Pinewood 56-32 'There's a couple of more talented teams coming in and they blew out two Open Division teams,' Clovis West coach Craig Campbell said. 'They shoot well and are a well-coached team. That's a great win.' Clovis West was aided by a buzzer-beater just before halftime when Riley Walls nailed a 3-pointer. She finished with 10 points. Clovis West will try to knock off Archbishop Mitty for the first time in three previous meetings. Mitty won 53-45 (2022), 63-43 (2023) and 71-34 (2024). Campbell knows it will be tough but his team will be ready. 'I wish it was here in the nest,' he said. 'Time to lace them up and see what we can do.' CIF state playoffs Boys basketball Division II NorCal Saturday's regional semifinal No. 3 Jesuit 63, No. 7 Clovis East 60 Division IV SoCal Saturday's regional semifinals No. 1 Fresno Christian 68, No. 5 Grant-Van Nuys 64 Tuesday's regional championship No. 7 Granada Hills Charter at No. 1 Fresno Christian, 7 p.m. Girls basketball Open Division Saturday No. 2 Clovis West 68, No. 3 San Ramon Valley 62 Tuesday's regional championship No. 2 Clovis West at No. 1 Archbishop Mitty-San Jose, 7 p.m. Division II NorCal Round 2 NorCal Saturday's regional semifinals No. 1 Caruthers 64, No. 5 California 41 No. 6 Salesian College Prep 61, No. 2 Sierra Pacific 51 Tuesday's regional championship No. 6 Salesian College Prep at No. 1 Caruthers SoCal Saturday's regional semifinals No. 1 Monache 55, No. 5 Portola 43 Tuesday's regional championship No. 7 Rancho Bernardo at No. 1 Monache, 7 p.m. Division III NorCal Saturday's regional semifinal No. 4 Justin-Siena 48, No. 1 Immanuel 43
Yahoo
03-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Clovis West's hope for top-seed in the CIF Open Division were dashed. ‘Very disappointed'
Clovis West hopes of getting a No. 1 seed in the California Interscholastic Federation girls basketball Open Division came to halt Sunday night. The Golden Eagles are seeded No. 2 in the Northern California behind top-seed Archbishop Mitty. After Saturday's Central Section Division I win over Clovis, Golden Eagles coach Craig Campbell felt it was his team and Mitty fighting for the 1-2 seed. He was right, but he had hoped his team would get the top-seed based off a 32-0 undefeated record. 'Very disappointed,' he said Sunday. Perhaps the selection committee saw one common opponent between the two. Both played Pinewood. Clovis West defeated Pinewood 54-50 in the Bay Area and Mitty beat Pinewood 59-51 in the Central Coast championship at Santa Clara. Following Saturday's win, Campbell laid out why they should be the No. 1 seed. 'Mitty's a tremendous team and it's no knock, but since they've lost their best player for the year, they did lose three games. Three games to nationally ranked teams. Really good teams, but how do you discredit Clovis West, who's been the only team that's been in the Open Division every year in the entire state over Mitty and all the others,' Campbell said. 'To go 32-0, travel 7,500 miles and beat a state champion and a state runner-up, like how do you say no this team is still better than you. We played the last three years and our season ended at Mitty. I feel like our kids earned the 1 at worst the 2. You go down the list of the three through what's probably eight ... It's a gauntlet. It's going to be a dog fight. You could be one and done and still have had a hell of a year.' Nevertheless, the Golden Eagles will await the winner between No. 3 San Ramon Valley or No. 6 Pinewood. On the line for Clovis West is keeping its undefeated record intact. 'Both those teams are outstanding,' Campbell said. 'Their coaches are good friends of ours. It's going to be a great game either way. At the end of the day you got to go out and win.' Clovis will play in Division I and earned the No. 2 seed and will host No. 15 Oak Ridge. On the boys side, Fresno Christian earned the top-seed in Division IV and will face No. 16 Citrus Hill in a SoCal Regional game. The Eagles took care of business Friday defeating Monache 73-50. Also receiving a top-seed is the Immanuel girls in NorCal Division III. The Eagles will meet No. 16 East Union. Immanuel won the Division IV title after a 58-36 victory over Santa Ynez. Round 1 begins Tuesday at the host sites at 7 p.m. Here's the rest of the schedule involving Fresno-area teams: CIF state playoffs Boys basketball Tuesday, 7 p.m. Division I NorCal No. 12 San Joaquin Memorial at No. 5 San Ramon Valley No. 13 Liberty-Brentwood at No. 4 Clovis North No. 14 Clovis West at No. 3 Lincoln-Stockton No. 15 Monterey Trail at No. 2 Buchanan Division II NorCal No. 16 Bullard at No. 1 Rocklin No. 10 Cardinal Newman at No. 7 Clovis East Division III NorCal No. 10 Central at No. 7 Carmel Division IV SoCal No. 16 Citrus Hill at No. 1 Fresno Christian No. 10 Monache at No. 7 Granada Hills Charter Division V NorCal No. 14 Chowchilla at No. 3 Argonaut SoCal No. 9 La Puente at No. 8 Strathmore Girls basketball Open Division No. 2 Clovis West bye March 8 No. 3 San Ramon Valley/No. 6 Pinewood winner at No. 2 Clovis West Division I NorCal No. 16 San Joaquin Memorial at No. 1 Folsom No. 12 Central at No. 5 Priory No. 15 Oak Ridge at No. 2 Clovis Division II NorCal No. 14 Clovis East at No. 3 Colfax No. 15 Grant at No. 2 Sierra Pacific March 6 NorCal No. 8 Sacred Heart Cathedral/No. 9 Christian Brothers at No. 1 Caruthers SoCal No. 8 Palos Verdes/No. 9 Rolling Hills Prep winner at No. 8 Palos Verdes Division III NorCal No. 16 East Union at No. 1 Immanuel Division V SoCal No. 10 Lindsay at No. 7 Santa Ana
Yahoo
02-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Clovis West narrowly escapes upset in Central Section basketball championship against Clovis
Winning a 13th consecutive Central Section champion never came easy this time for the Clovis West girls basketball team. While at first when the Golden Eagles opened with a 17-2 lead, it seemed they were going to roll to a convincing win in the Central Section championship at Selland Arena on Saturday night. It was anything but that for Clovis West (32-0), which saw a determined Clovis team that were primed for an upset win. The Cougars (24-8) had chances as the game went to overtime which saw the Golden Eagles outscore the Cougars 13-4 for a 53-44 victory in a Central Section Division I championship game. 'We're up 17 and we just lost focus defensively,' Clovis West coach Craig Campbell said. 'We know they have a really good shooting team and they had three 3s in the second quarter, and not only did they get the points, but they played off that momentum and that energy. I was really frustrated that we just checked out their uncontested 3s.' It was a big scare for Clovis West because Clovis had taken a 37-36 lead on a 3-pointer by Sadie Sin with three minutes remaining. A minute later, Jaylnn Jasso hit a 3-pointer with two minutes remaining for a 40-38 lead with two minutes left. Clovis had a chance to win the game before the end of regulation but misfired on a shot that sent the game into overtime. In overtime, however, the Cougars were called for two technicals that left coach Cooper Steele wondering why they were called. He claimed the referees said he was issued a warning earlier in the game but didn't recall one before he was called for a technical. Mahloni Warren then made two free throws that gave Clovis West a 43-40 lead with 2:34 remaining in overtime. Minutes later, a second technical was called. This time on Jasso for kicking that left Clovis questioning the call. 'I didn't know I had a warning but I was just trying to get clarification,' Steele said. 'I don't think there was a warning at the table.' Asked again about the warning, Steele said the referee told him 'I've already warned you to stop talking to me.' 'I didn't hear a warning and there was no warning at the table. I need clarification on that, but I got to be better than that.' Clovis West will find out where it will be seeded in the CIF state playoff and likely will be in the Open Division, hoping for a high seed. Clovis could be in Division I. Top-seed St. Joseph didn't want a repeat runner-up finish like what happened to the Knights in last year's Division I championship. Back in the title game and this time facing Buchanan, St. Joseph (31-1) made sure Saturday's game wasn't close and led from start to finish en route a 54-33 victory. A year ago, St. Joseph lost to Clovis North 69-60 in last season's D-I championship. Buchanan (26-5), which knocked off the defending Central Section Division I champions Clovis North in the semis last week, suffered its worst loss of the season. Buchanan's top scorer Connor Sheets was held to eight points. Despite the loss, the Bears had a big season that was topped by a Tri-River Athletic Conference, led by coach Tom Orlich and Sheets. Buchanan is not done as it will play in the CIF Division I state playoffs. The Bears will find out their seed and opponent when the pairings are announced Sunday. Strathmore's Isaiah Colunga made a basket midway through the fourth quarter for a 41-39 lead and Diego Lopez followed with a 3-pointer as the Spartans held on for a 45-41 victory over Granite Hills, giving the school its first section title since 1937.
