By Neil Farrell
M
orro Bay High’s Winter Sports season saw two CIF wrestling champions emerge and several teams make the CIF playoffs.
Boys Soccer
The Pirates hit the pitch for the 2024-25 season with high hopes and a lot of talent. The boys managed to fight their way through the Ocean League but couldn’t top League Champs Nipomo.
The Pirates did land several players on the All-League teams with midfielders Efrain Hernandez, Luis Anguiano and Dylan Wynns all making First Team All-League.
Second Team honors went to midfielders Noah Esparza and Abel Mendoza, forward Logan McQuat and defender Isaac Von Meel. Defender Lenny Rivera made the Honorable Mention list.
Senior Juan Diego-Zarate of Nipomo was the League Most Valuable Player and Coach of the Year was Adrian Dalton of Nipomo. The Titans made it a clean sweep with senior Justin Sights being named Goalie of the Year.
According to MBHS Athletic Director, Tyler Hoyt, the Pirates’ future looks good, as they will bring back a majority of the Varsity Team for next season.
Girls Soccer
The Pirates competed in the tough Ocean League for girls’ soccer and finished behind League Champs Orcutt Academy.
The team had three players make the All-League Teams. Freshman Olivia Moreno was named to the First Team All-League. Junior Juliana Kong made Second Team All-League and senior Mia Bennett was named Honorable Mention.
Co-MVPs were Cara Mis Shalhoob and Summer Alcantar, both juniors, sharing the honors. Coach of the Year went to Brian Speer of Orcutt and sophomore Andrea Diaz Avila of Nipomo was Goalie of the Year.
Though their future looks to be bright, the Pirates will have to find a new leader, as the head coach, Kim Wishon is stepping down.
“Coach Wishon was an incredible asset to the campus,” A.D. Hoyt said, “and she will be greatly missed by the entirety of Morro Bay High School.”
Boys Basketball
The Pirates held their own on the court this year but fell short of making the CIF playoffs. The team finished the year behind League Champs Santa Ynez in the Ocean League play. Senior forward, Jake Falat was named to the First Team All-League for the Pirates and junior Sands Dougherty made Second Team All-League. Guard Everett Davidson, a senior, was named Honorable Mention All-League.
Santa Ynez Coach, Rod Cantrell was the Coach of the Year and Offensive MVP was Lucas Ollenburger, a junior from Santa Ynez, and the Defensive MVP went to senior Isaiah Hin of Righetti.
Morro Bay looks to rebound next season. Head coach, Robert Dougherty, who was a standout basketball and football player at the College of the Sequoias before ultimately transitioning to playing football at Boston University, is still building up the program.
“Coach Dougherty,” Hoyt said, “enters his fourth year as the head of the Pirate football program and his second at the helm of the boys basketball program. As a multi-sport coach with a tradition of success, the talented staff emerging around him will continue to propel the program forward.”
Girls Basketball
The Pirates hoopsters had another good season but didn’t play as deeply into the playoffs as they did last season, when they played for the Central Section CIF Title. The Ladies made it to the second round before falling to Sierra High, in what’s fast becoming a rivalry.
“The Chieftains bested the Pirates in November,” Hoyt said, “and were also able to secure a playoff win as well in February.”
St. Joseph H.S. was the winner of the Mountain League this season with St. Joe’s Elizabeth Johnson being named MVP and Diana Sorrondo of Arroyo Grande named Defensive MVP.
None of Morro Bay’s girls were named to the First Team All-League but Violet Pace, a junior, made Second Team All-League and point guard Zoe Fitzwater made Honorable Mention All-League.
Most of the team will return next year and A.D. Hoyt said they will be fielding a veteran varsity squad.
Wrestling
Of all the sports, boys and girls wrestling saw great success as two — one boy and one girl —won CIF Central Section Championships with a third also placing and all three making it to the State Championships.
Shea Dawson won his third straight Section Championship this year in the 138-pound weight class.
At the Masters Meet all the Sectional Winners from the various divisions wrestle each other, Dawson won his first two matches in the 140s before losing in round three. He won his first two matches in the Consolation brackets before losing and having to wrestle for fifth place. Dawson won that match pinning his opponent in 3:42 and taking fifth place.
At the State Championships he posted a 2-1 record but finished out of the medal hunt.
Chelsea Catalan, who won CIF at 135 lbs., made it to the semi-finals at the Masters Meet and qualified for State. She won her first round match at State but fell in her second bout. That put her into the Consolation Brackets, but she lost her first match and bowed out of the tournament.
Ahlexis Terry took second at the Section Championship at 130 lbs.; took second at Masters; and moved on to the State Finals. But she also finished out of the medals as Terry lost her opening round match.
Ashleigh Terry, sister of Ahlexis, was also second at CIF Sectionals and made Masters in the 145s. She won her first round match but lost in round two. She then won two Consolation matches before losing her next two.
Abby Tuller, 140 lbs., qualified as an alternate for Masters and was able to compete for the Pirates. She won her first round match at Masters but lost in the second round. That dropped her into Consolation but she lost there too and was out of the tournament.
A.D. Hoyt said the Pirates wrestlers will be graduating some tough wrestlers on both the boys and girls sides, “Coach [Albert] Garza is excited to lead the program into a bright future,” Hoyt said, “with a growing wrestling program at Los Osos Middle School, supported by his assistant coach Henry Catalan, and a great group of emerging and talented leaders in his returning group of wrestlers.”
With winter now just a memory, the school turns to its lineup of Spring Sports with baseball, boys golf, softball, track & field, cheer, boys volleyball, swimming and diving, boys tennis and girls beach volleyball all slated to compete.
