By Mike Chaldu

michael@santaynezvalleystar.com

The bad news on Halloween night for the Santa Ynez High football team was their defeat to Righetti in the regular-season finale, as the Pirates, despite getting off to an early lead, saw the visiting Warriors make big plays leading into halftime and into the second half to post a 34-24 win at Rio Memorial Field.

With the defeat, their second straight to close the Sunset League slate, the Pirates finished at 2-2 in the league, and 6-4 overall. SYHS had lost at San Luis Obispo the previous week by a 28-23 score. Righetti and SLO both finished 3-1 to share the league title.

Despite the setback, SYHS got some good news the next day, Nov. 1, with the release of the CIF Central Section playoff seedings. With a No. 6 seed in Division IV, the Pirates will be at home for their first-round matchup against 11th-seeded Dos Palos. The Broncos also finished with a 6-4 overall record and were second place in the West Sierra League with a 4-1 mark. The winner of that game will travel to Fresno to face No. 3 seed McLane, the North Yosemite League champ with a 10-0 overall record, on Nov. 14.

The game against Righetti was a chance for Santa Ynez to capture at least a share of the Sunset League title, and to begin with, things looked good for the Pirates.

SYHS scored on their first drive, culminating in an 8-yard scoring pass from Jude Pritchard to Austin Willis and the Pirates led 6-0 after a missed extra point. In the second quarter, Diego Pulido added a 21-yard field goal for a nine-point lead, and after Righetti got on the scoreboard with a 5-yard TD run by Michael Mendez, Pulido kicked a career best 44-yard field goal — just three yards off the school record for a 12-7 Pirates lead.

It looked like that scored would hold up by halftime, but Righetti was able to get into SYHS territory in the final second of the second quarter, and then Warriors quarterback Nick Matautia hit received Thomas Harris with.a 38-yard touchdown run as the half ended to give Righetti a 14-12 lead at intermission.

In the second half, Righetti blocked an SYHS punt, and Julian Santos returned that for a touchdown, and Mendez rushed for another to give Righetti a 27-12 lead. After Pulido caught a 3-yard TD from Pritchard to close the gap, Mendez rushed for his third touchdown of the night, and the Pirates’ Greyson Foy closed the scoring with a 1-yard TD run with 3:38 left in the game.

Pirates head coach Josh McClurg blamed the loss on the inability to contain the Righetti offense, which came up with plays at crucial moments.

“We can’t give up big plays,” he said. “No matter where it’s at, the big plays are going to kill us. We can’t do that.”

McClurg also pointed to his team’s composure: “We have to be able to have composure in adversity, and not point fingers. We’ve struggled with that this year; when things are going good, we’ve been good, but when they go bad, we struggle with composure.”

SYHS was riding high on Oct. 17 with a 51-0 shutout at Pioneer Valley that had them at 2-0 in league and 6-2 overall. In that game, Austin Willis returned the opening kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown, the third time Willis had taken a kickoff back all the way this season, and the third time the Pirates have done so on the opening kick. The Pirates also scored touchdowns on the ground (three times), by pass (one), and also with interception return (Pulido) and fumble return (Ayden Finley).

The next week, Nov. 24, the Pirates lost a tough game at San Luis Obispo 28-23 for their first league loss. Like in the Righetti game, SYHS had a lead late into the second quarter until the Tigers scored with about a minute left to take a 14-10 lead at halftime. The Pirates were able to regain the lead at 17-14 as Pritchard threw a 12-yard TD pass to Jaxson Glover, and after getting the ball back, hoped to add to it, but SLO returned a Pritchard interception 35 yards for a score to give the Tigers a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.

Kickoff for Friday’s playoff game against Dos Palos will be 7 p.m. at Rio Memorial Field.

Pirates girls water polo wins first-round playoff match

The Santa Ynez High girls water polo team won its first-round CIF Central Section Division III game over Exeter 7-4. The Pirates (13-10), the No. 8 seed in Division III, scored four goals in the second period to open up a lead, and then, when the No. 9 seed Monarchs drew to within one goal, scored a couple while shutting out Exeter the rest of the way.

Juliet Kerr led a balanced scoring attack with two goals, while Elena Sleiman, Angelina Lifeline, Paige Reynolds, Adriana Bilac, and Eleanor Murphy scored a goal apiece. Goalkeeper Rylan Agin was solid, with nine blocks and even has an assist.

The Pirates now advance to the second round, where they will play No. 1 seed in Hanford at 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 8

Santa Ynez closed out it regular season by defeating Cabrillo 11-3 to finish its play in the Sunset League finals on Oct. 29.

Lefemine led the way with four goals and four assists, while Bilac and Sleiman had two goals apiece. Goalkeeper Rylan Agin had 13 blocks to turn back the Cabrillo attack. The previous day, the Pirates lost 10-6 to Paso Robles in their first game of the tournament, with Bilac scoring twice and getting four steals, Eleanor Murphy with two goals of her own, and Agin with 15 blocks in goal.

The Pirates stood at 12-10 with a 3-3 league record for the regular season.

Pirates girls tennis eliminated in second round of CIF playoffs

The SYHS girls tennis team, the defending CIF Central Section Division II champions, fell short of a second straight title, suffering a 6-2 defeat to Reedley on Thursday, Oct. 30. The Pirates were swept in singles play, with the doubles teams of Keegan Withrow and Haley Towns (8-6) and Danielle Hyland and Claire Tipich (8-3) earning the only two points for SYHS.

SYHS won its first-round playoff match 5-4 over Templeton on Tuesday, Oct. 28. Danielle Hyland won the deciding match at No. 2 singles, 6-2, 6-3, in a hard-fought battle. No. 1 Keegan Withrow (6-1, 6-4) and No. 5 Clea Malkmus (6-3, 6-3) also won in singles, while doubles duos Withrow and Townes (8-1), and Tipich and Ainsley Haws (8-6) picked up points in doubles.

The post Pirates football drops regular-season finale, but earns home playoff matchup appeared first on Santa Ynez Valley Star.

The Santa Ynez High football team returned to Rio Memorial Field for the third straight week on Friday, Oct. 3, for its Sunset League opener vs. Atascadero. The visiting Greyhounds opened the scoring with an interception return for a touchdown on the Pirates opening drive, and ended the scoring with a touchdown pass in the fourth quarter.

However, between those two plays, the Pirates dominated, with four touchdowns on offense and three interceptions on defense, giving Santa Ynez a 28-13 victory, which raised their record to 5-2 overall.

The Pirates marched to the win with a strong ground game, gaining 245 yards rushing, led by quarterback Jude Pritchard, who gained 105.

“We really wanted to establish the run game, and we did,” said SYHS head coach Josn McClurg. “This week we challenged the offensive line, because we felt they did not play a great game last week [against Santa Maria High] and they rose to the occasion and blocked their tails off. I thought we had our way with them in the running game.”

As far as the passing game, Pritchard didn’t have to go to the air often, but he did complete 11 of 19 passes for 121 yards and three touchdowns. Jaxon Glover only had two reception for 20 yards, but both those catches were for touchdowns. Likewise, Levi Snow’s only catch of the evening was also for a score.

The defense, meanwhile, was stingy, keeping the Greyhounds’ offense out of the end zone until the fourth quarter. Defensive back Jack Swain had two interceptions on the night to go with seven tackles, and Diego Pulido had a pick of his own, and eight tackles.

“Once I saw them on defense, I know that was going to be fine,” McClurg said. “We gave up that interception and fell behind, but the defense stopped them on the next drive and we got the ball back, and we were fine after that.”

The Santa Ynez offense showed its effectiveness right away, taking the opening kickoff and marching down into Atascadero territory. However, that momentum was stopped when the Greyhounds’ Damon Mitchell picked off a Pritchard pass and took it 75 yards for a score. After the missed extra point, Atascadero led 6-0.

Undeterred, the Pirates again took the kickoff and moved down the field. This time, they were not stopped as Ayden Finley took it in on a 2-yard touchdown run. Pulido added the first of four successful extra points for a 7-6 SYHS lead. Later in the first quarter, Glover caught his first touchdown pass, a 9-yarder, to put his team up 14-6, a score that would hold until halftime. Snow caught his 20-yard TD pass in the third quarter, and Glover would have another TD reception in the fourth quarter.

Behind 28-6, the Greyhounds would score on a 29-yard pass with 4:54 left to cut the deficit, and then recover the ensuing onside kick, but the Pirates stopped them on downs and ran out the clock.

The Pirates enjoyed a bye week on Friday, April 10, and returned for a road game at Pioneer Valley on Oct. 17. SYHS goes out for another road game at San Luis Obispo on Oct. 24, then comes home for its regular-season finale vs. Righetti on Halloween night, Oct. 31.

Girls tennis

The Pirates lost to San Luis Obispo 8-1 in their last regular-season dual match of the season.

“Our lone win came from Claire Tipich, who showed incredible resilience — battling back from a 2–5 deficit in the second set to win 13–12 in a tiebreaker and push the match to a third set. An impressive fight!,” said Pirates head coach Jennifer Rasmussen.

The match was also during Senior Day, and three of them were honored.

We had the honor of celebrating our three amazing seniors: Keegan Withrow, Danielle Hyland, and Rylee Arellano,” Rasmussen said. “I’d like to thank them for their leadership, dedication, and the energy they’ve brought to the team. They’ll be missed!”

Girls water polo

The Pirates edged Cabrillo 6-5 in their Sunset League match to move to 10-9 (2-3 in league) on the season.

Juliet Kerr and Adriana Bilac had two goals apiece, while Rylan Agin had a whopping 12 blocks.

SYHS ends its regular season with a home game against Paso Robles on Wednesday, Oct. 22.

The post Pirates overpower Greyhounds in Sunset League opener appeared first on Santa Ynez Valley Star.

In an annual ceremony to honor its athletic past, Santa Ynez High School used the evening of Friday, Sept. 19, not only to stage a football game between SYHS and Nipomo, but also to recognize five former student-athletes and one former coach and faculty member for their induction into the schoo’s Wall of Fame.

In a ceremony preceding the kickoff, the school honored former soccer, swim, and Iain McPherson, former Pirates volleyball star Meghan Mosebar, former football and track star Josh Hartman, water polo, soccer and swimming standout Chris Pace, former football star Kelley Moore, and football and golf standout Parker Colvin.

Retired SYHS teacher Dave Smith accepted the Wall of Fame plaque for Iain McPherson, a native Scot who spent 26 years as a coach and teacher at SYHS before his untimely death in 1999. Known for his tough love approach, he earned respect from students and players by pushing them to achieve more than they thought possible. As an All-American swimmer himself, he coached numerous athletes to CIF, All League
MVPs, and All-American.

Smith was a colleague and good friend of McPherson’s when both were at SYHS.

“I got here in 1975, and he had been here for three or four years already and we became good friends,” Smith said. “I was a swimmer, and I had a sister who spent some time in Scotland, so we had a lot of common ground.”

Smith said McPherson left a lasting legacy with the Pirates’ aquatic sports programs

“He really made a mark in water polo and swimming,” Smith said. “I’m glad I was able to come accept this plaque for him and also happy I got to see some of his former athletes come to see this.”

Meghan Mosebar, who lives in Florida, was also unable to attend the ceremony in person, but Meighan Dietenhofer, a former teammate, was able to accept the plaque for her. After a standout career in high school, she played Division I volleyball at Purdue and William & Mary. She is currently a teacher and club volleyball coach in Rockledge, Florida.

Josh Hartman, who accepted his plaque along with his daughter Willow, was a standout in football and track at SYHS before graduating in 2006. On the football field, Josh was named the team’s Most Valuable Player and honored as the school’s Most Valuable Male Athlete in his final year. After high school, Josh concluded his athletic career at Chapman University, playing football while earning a bachelor’s degree in business with an emphasis in finance.

Chris Pace, who accepted his plaque carrying his young son, Jonah, not only was a three-sport star at SYHS, but outside of athletics was an Eagle Scout, Boys State School Rep, and senior class president. He continued his water polo career at the U.S. Air Force Academy, where he graduated in 2008, and went on to a distinguished USAF career.

“They’ve been calling me for quite a few years, but with me moving all over being with the Air Force, I could never schedule it,” Pace said. “Finally, one year they called and I brought up a few old teammates of mine and asked if they were on the wall, and they said, ‘oh, we got them in years ago!’ So I figured it was time to get this done.”

While some of his fellow inductees came in from out of town, Pace has moved back to the Santa Ynez Valley, bringing his family in to settle here just a couple months ago.

Kelley Moore, whose brother Mitch as on hand to accept his plaque, graduated Santa Ynez in 1972. He went on to play football at Allan Hancock College and Chico State. After graduating from CSU Chico in the spring of 1977, Dr. Kelley Moore has been blessed to have had a lifetime,49 years in the coaching profession. After stints at Hancock and Thiel College, he has been an assistant football coach at Arizona Western University.

Parker Colvin played four years (2005-09) of football and golf at SYHS, earned the Jeff Rio Memorial Scholarship and was named the most Valuable Male Athlete for the Class of 2009. After graduating
high school, Colvin attended Cal Lutheran University, where he played four years on the golf team, serving as team captain. He graduated from CLU with a degree in exercise science with an emphasis on sports medicine.

“I’m super honored to be inducted, I was at this school for four years and I loved it here,” Colvin said. “I made sure to bring my old letterman’s jacket to wear to this, just to show everyone, I still bleed black and orange.”

The post Santa Ynez High inducts seven into school’s Wall of Fame appeared first on Santa Ynez Valley Star.

After going through the 2024 season without his squad returning a kick for a touchdown, Santa Ynez High football’s special teams coordinator Sean Foy put forth a challenge to his players to get a scoring return, and even promised a special lunch to his special teams players if they “took it to the house,” as the saying goes.

That challenge has been met, and then some. At the Pirates’ Homecoming game against Santa Maria on Friday, Sept. 26, Austin Willis took the short opening kick from the Saints and returned it 78 yards for a touchdown, the Pirates’ third kickoff-return score of the year, as Santa Ynez cruised to a 41-0 victory over Santa Maria.

Coming a week after SYHS’s 23-7 home win over Nipomo on Sept. 19, the victory moved the Pirates’ record to 4-2 going into Sunset League play. SYHS plays its first league game Friday, Oct. 3, at home against Atascadero.

The kickoff return game is a source of pride for Foy this year.

“In 17 years this is the most I can remember us having [return touchdowns] in a season, and we’ve just played six games,” Foy said. “Hats off to the boys. It’s not a super complicated thing complicated thing, it’s just executing your job.”

Of course, the performance so far this year came with some incentive.

“At the start of the season, I told the kickoff return team that I would buy them lunch each time they scored a touchdown,” Foy said. “This is the third lunch; it’s a good thing I stock up for these things.”

Actually, the Pirates didn’t waste any time getting the kickoff return score out of the way this year: In the season opener Aug. 22 at Dos Pueblos, Greyson Foy — son of Coach Foy and one of the Pirates’ main running backs — took the first kick of the season and ran it back 90 yards in a 43-22 win. A week later, Aug. 29, after Lompoc had scored the go-ahead touchdown with less than a minute left in the fourth quarter, Willis took the ensuing kickoff 92 yards for a score that would have tied the game if not for the subsequent extra-point try being blocked.

After Willis’ game-opening touchdown against the Saints, the Pirates tacked on a lot more points on the night, racing to a 27-0 halftime lead and scoring two touchdowns in the third quarter.

The SYHS offense produced 309 yards of offense in the game, with 167 of those coming on the ground. Cael DeForest led the attack with 73 yards of rushing on just three carries, including a 55-yard touchdown, one of the third-quarter scores. Ayden Finley and Greyson Foy also rushed for scores.

Quarterback Jude Pritchard completed 12 of 19 passes for 142 yards and connected with receiver Mason Skidmore on a 16-yard pass in the second quarter. Diego Pulido hit on two field goals in the first half, from 30 and then 42 yards.

On defense Jackson Glover had a team-high 10 tackles, nine of them for negative yardage, including three quarterback sacks. Meanhwile, Hayden Pahler had 10 tackles of his own, with one QB sack, and Tate Rossler had an interception.

Rossler had actually run back his interception for a touchdown, but the return was called back due to a penalty committed by the Pirates. While SYHS head coach Josh McClurg was happy for the win and had high praise for the defense, the penalty that negated Rossler’s TD was a reminder his team still had things to work on.

“I happy with the win,” McClurg said. “I’m not happy with the mistakes and the dumb penalties. We had a guy who could have gotten his first pick-six, but then we had a bonehead play for the penalty, and we can’t have that.”

The PIrates will return this Friday, Oct. 3, for their Sunset League opener, and third straight home game, against Atascadero. The Greyhounds come in with a 2-3 mark.

GIRLS WATER POLO

The Pirates earned their first Sunset League win on Thursday, Sept. 25, by beating visiting Cabrillo 8-5. Paige Reynolds scored three goals and had four steals, while Juliet Kerr had two goals and four steals of her own, and Rylan Agin had seven blocks.

SYHS played at Paso Robles on Wednesday, Oct. 1, and return home to play Morro Bay on Wedensday, Oct. 8.

GIRLS FLAG FOOTBALL

The Pirates’ girls flag football team raised its record to 7-3 in its inaugural since with consecutive shutouts, beating Santa Maria 26-0 on Sept. 25, and Righetti 25-0 on Sept. 30.

In the Santa Maria game, quarterback Leighton Casey completed 15 of 25 passes for 125 yard and a touchdown pass to Campbell McClurg (five catches, 44 yards). Presley Pinoli had a team-high 69 yards rushing with a TD, and McClurg, Ella Gotschall, and Skyla Oslin had interceptions. No stats were available for the Righetti game.

The Pirates return to action on Oct. 7 with a home game against Cabrillo, and then close out the regular season with games at Pioneer Valley (Oct. 16) and at home against San Luis Obispo.

The post Some happy returns for Santa Ynez kickoff team in 2025 appeared first on Santa Ynez Valley Star.

The Santa Ynez High football team’s record stands at 2-2 with a stretch of three straight home games starting this Friday. The Pirates followed up a big home win over San Marcos with a loss at Mission Prep to stay at .500 so far in the seaons. A look at both games:

Santa Ynez 41, San Marcos 14

On Sept. 5, the Pirates trailed early in the second quarter, but then dominated the rest of the way, avenging their loss at San Marcos last year.

After taking the opening kickoff, SYHS drove down the field and opened the scoring when quarterback Jude Pritchard threw an 18-yard touchdown pass to Jaxson Glover. After the missed extra point, the Pirates led 6-0.

However, San Marcos came back to scored two touchdowns, included an 87-yard scoring run by Cole Dominguez, to give the Royals a 14-6 lead with 9:44 left in the second quarter.

After that, though, the Pirates took control with three touchdowns before halftime. Pritchard hit Diego Pulido with a 38-yard scoring strike, and then ran in the two-point conversion to tie it at 14.

SYHS then had two scoring runs, with Pritchard scoring on a 9-yard run, and then Greyson Foy taking it in from the 1-yard line, to give the Pirates a 28-14 lead at the break.

The Pirates defense kept the Royals scoreless in the second half, while the offense had two touchdowns from Mason Skidmore, a 4-yard run on a reverse in the third quarter, and a 17-yard pass from Pritchard in the fourth to close the scoring.

Pritchard continued to prove his worth as a double threat, completing 16 of 23 passes for 269 yards and three touchdowns, and also rushing for a team high 91 yards on 10 carries and another TD. Cael DeForest (76 yards on nine carries) and Ayden Finley (46 yards on five carries) also added to the ground game. Skidmore (four catches, 91 yards) and Pulido (five catches, 87 yards) excelled as Pritchard favorite passing targets.

On defense, Hayden Pahler was credited with a team-high 15 tackles, while Adrian Merritt (fumble recovery) and Dylan Zepeda (interception) had turnovers for SYHS.

Head coach Josh McClurg had blamed the Pirates’ previous-week loss to Lompoc on players “not doing their jobs.” When asked if they did against San Marcos, he said “to an extent. We gave up some plays early on, but the defense settled down and really played well in the second half.”

McClurg had high praise for the Pirates’ offense.

“I’m really proud of our quarterback,” McClurg said about Pritchard. “We had a good game plan and he pulled it off really well. Overall, after the loss to Lompoc, we had a good week of practice and did some soul-searching and came back.”

Mission Prep 24, Santa Ynez 7

On Sept. 12, the Pirates were worn down by the host Royals’ twin rushing attack of Robert Kardashian and Aiden Shelton in a 24-7 loss on the Mission Prep campus.

MP’s Kardashian led all runners with 172 yards on 26 carries and one of the Royals’ three touchdowns, while Shelton tallied 101 years on 10 carries, including a 41-yard TD run in the first quarter.

The Pirates’ offense had trouble getting untracked for most of the game and were behind 24-0 in the fourth quarter before getting a scoring drive that ended with a 7-yard touchdown pass from Pritchard to Pulido for its only points.

The Pirates will play three straight home games starting Friday, Sept. 19 against Nipomo. After that is a Sept. 26 contest vs. Santa Maria, and then the team’s first Sunset League game Oct. 3 against Atascadero.

Girls water polo team heads into Ocean League play

The Santa Ynez girls water polo team got a couple of big non-league wins last week before heading into Ocean League play.

On Thursday, Sept. 11, the Pirates defeated Santa Maria 14-3. In a balanced scoring attack, Elena Sleiman, Paige Reynolds, and Adriana Bilac had 2 goals apiece. Angelina Lefemine added a goal and 3 assists, while Juliet Kerr had a goal, 4 assists, and 5 steals.

Two days before, on Sept. 9, SYHS beat Lompoc 20-10, after jumping ahead 9-0 in the first period. Rylan Agin had 3 goals, 4 assists, and 4 blocks, and Eleanor Murphy had 2 goals and 5 blocks.

The Pirates played their first Ocean League game, at Morro Bay, on Wednesday, Sept. 17, and will return home to play Cabrillo on Tuesday, Sept. 23.

Girls tennis squad falls to strong Cate team in non-league finale

The Santa Ynez High girls tennis team ended its non-league schedule with a 9-0 loss to Cate of the CIF Southern Section to drop to 7-4 going into the Pirates’ Mountain League opener.

“We were short four of our varsity players but played some great matches against a strong, Southern section team,” said head coach Jennifer Rasmussen, who’s team played Lompoc at home in the first league game on Tuesday, Sept. 16.

The doubles team of Ainsley Haws and Clair Tipich gave Cate it toughest test, taking some games at No. 2 before losing 8-4.

SYHS was more successful on Sept. 9 with a 7-2 win at Cabrillo. Keegan Withrow, Haws, Tipich, and Clea Malkmus posted singles wins, while the Pirates swept doubles with the teams of Withrow/Haley Townes, Haws/Rylee Arellano, and Tipich/Avery DeJohn.

The Pirates traveled to Arroyo Grande on Thursday, Sept. 18, and return home Tuesday, Sept. 23, against St. Joseph at 3:30 p.m.

The post Pirates football at 2-2: Loss to Mission Prep follows win over San Marcos appeared first on Santa Ynez Valley Star.

Five former athletes and one former coach from Santa Ynez High are to be the newest additions to the school’s Wall of Fame. Parker Colvin, Josh Hartman, Coach Iain McPherson, Kelley Moore, Meghan Mosebar, and Chris Pace will be honored Friday, Sept. 19, at 6:30 before the Pirates’ football game against Nipomo High.

Parker Colvin

Colvin graduated from Santa Ynez High in 2009. He played four years of football and golf, and he earned the Jeff Rio Memorial Scholarship and was named the Most Valuable Male Athlete for the class of 2009.  After graduating high school, Parker attended Cal Lutheran University, where he played four years of golf. During his college career, his team had a NCAA Division III National Championship appearance in 2012, and 2013. In 2011 he was CLU’s golf team MVP and won Athlete of the Week for Southwest California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC). Colvin graduated from Cal Lutheran with a degree in exercise science with an emphasis in sports medicine.

Josh Hartman

Hartman graduated from Santa Ynez High in 2006, where he was a standout athlete in both football and track. As a senior, he captured the Los Padres League titles in the 100 and 200 meters and also won the 100-meter dash at the Santa Barbara County Championships. On the football field, Josh earned All-League honors twice. He was named the team’s Most Valuable Player and honored as the school’s Most Valuable Male Athlete in his final year. After high school, Josh concluded his athletic career at Chapman University, playing football while earning a bachelor’s degree in business with an emphasis in finance. Following graduation, he began working under one of his former coaches, Jim Colvin, who helped launch his career in the hospitality industry. Josh now serves as a director of revenue management.

Iain McPherson

Iain “Coach” McPherson left an enduring legacy at SYHS as a U.S. history teacher and a devoted coach of the soccer, swimming, and water polo teams. Known for his tough love approach, he earned respect from students and players by pushing them to achieve more than they thought possible. As an All-American swimmer himself, he coached numerous athletes to CIF, All League MVPs, and All-American. Beyond the classroom and pool, Iain was a proud Scotsman and family man, cherished by his wife Linda and daughters Kerry and Heather. In 1998, Coach McPherson was the winningest coach in SYVHS history with 1,359 wins; however, he passed away in February 1999 at the age of 53. It wasn’t the wins he valued most, but the special relationships he built with his students and players.

Kelley Moore

Moore graduated from SYHS in 1972. He went on to play football at Allan Hancock College and Chico State.  After graduating from CSU Chico in the spring of 1977, Dr. Coach Kelley Moore has been blessed to have had a lifetime, 49 years, in the coaching profession. The high-school portion of his career includes coaching tennis, wrestling, basketball, and track and field (28 years as head coach). Moore also spent four years with Allan Hancock College as the head track and field and cross country coach, and as an assistant coach for football.  That was followed by two years as Head Track and Field Coach and Assistant Football Coach at Thiel College. He has as an assistant football coach the last four years at Arizona Christian University.

Meghan Mosebar

Mosebar graduated from SYHS in 1995, went to Purdue University from 1995-1997, and transferred to and graduated from the College of William & Mary in 2000. Mosebar earned high honors each of her four years of high school: She earned varsity letters in volleyball three straight years as a middle hitter, named All-League First Team her sophomore and junior years. Her senior year, she set a school record for most blocks and kills in a single match, leading her team to a Los Padres League championship, and winning Los Padres League MVP honors. Meghan received athletic scholarship offers from many Division I schools and accepted a full volleyball scholarship to Purdue University in Indiana. During here junior year, Mosebar transferred to William and Mary in Virginia, where she also received a volleyball scholarship, graduating in 2000 with a Bachelor of Science in biology. While at William and Mary, she earned Dean’s List High Honors, All-Conference CAA Scholar Athlete, and was team Co-Captain 1999-2000. Meghan currently resides in Rockledge, Florida, where she has taught elementary school, and coached club volleyball. She now works with nonprofit organizations on the Space Coast of Florida, serving families with daycare and housing assistance, while enjoying life with her 19-year-old daughter and 7-year-old son.

Chris Pace

Pace graduated from Santa Ynez High in 2004. While at SYHS, he played water polo and soccer, and was a team captain on the swim team. Outside athletics he was the senior class president, a boys state school representative, and Eagle Scout. He was accepted into the U.S. Air Force Academy, where he graduated with a Bachelor’s in systems engineering management. While at the USAFA, he played water polo all four years, three times winning the varsity’s Hardest Worker Award, and in his senior year won the Derek Argel Memorial Award, for the athlete who demonstrates perseverance and an incredible work ethic, which was named for the former USAFA water polo player and alum of nearby Cabrillo High in Lompoc, who was killed in action in Iraq in 2005.

The post Five former athletes, one coach to be added to SYHS’s Wall of Fame appeared first on Santa Ynez Valley Star.

Every high school football coach has to deal with roster turnover from year to year — you know, with the pesky reality that every player is going to move on eventually, most because of graduation.

It’s something that Santa Ynez High football head coach Josh McClurg deals with every year, but this year it’s pretty steep: Thirty-three seniors have moved on from last year’s Pirates team that finished 1-3 in the Sunset League and 4-8 overall, but did gain the Pirates’ first postseason victory in over a decade.

However, McClurg isn’t lacking any confidence as Santa Ynez gets ready for its season opener this Friday, Aug. 22, when the Pirates travel to Goleta to take on Dos Pueblos. After all, there’s alway reinforcements coming.

“Yes, we got hit by graduation, but I think we’re looking good,” McClurg said at a recent practice. “We’re two-deep at most positions, and I think we’re well-stocked at middle linebacker and defensive line.”

Of course, it doesn’t hurt when you have last year’s Sunset League Offensive Player of the Year, quarterback Jude Pritchard, back for one more season. In 2024, Pritchard passes for 1,661 years and 12 touchdowns for the Pirates, and also led the team with 513 yards rushing.

“Jude looks the best he’s ever looked back there,” McClurg said. “This is his third year starting and he seems very comfortable. I’m excited to see what he can do this year.”

Pritchard should benefit by some decent weapons in the receiving corps, senior WR Mason Skidmore had 28 catches last year, good for second-most on the team, for 357 yards and two touchdowns. Meanwhile, senior Diego Pulido will return after being the Pirates’ Swiss army knife. Despite being hampered by an injury for most of the season, he was able to help SYHS at wide receiver, defensive back, and as kicker.

In the offensive backfield, returning seniors Greyson Foy and Levi Snow, two of the Pirates’ captains this year along with Pritchard and senior lineman Kaj Kretzschmer, are expected to pick up most of the carries though juniors Austin Willis and Cael DeForest could also make their mark.

“We lost a lot of seniors, but we have whole lot of talent,” Foy said. “I’m looking forward to playing a lot, at running back, linebacker, and maybe even kick returner.”

On the offensive line the Pirates got some beef, as Joey Duarte (6’3”, 290), Deagan Johnson (6’1”, 290), Javier Nungaray (6’1”, 285), and Vincente Perez (6’1”, 275) anchor the group.

“I really like what he have on the line,” Johnson said. “There are some big guys for people to deal with, and we’re becoming a real tight group.

On defense, many of the offensive group will be playing both ways; Johnson is looking forward to seeing some time at noseguard, while Jaxon Glover, who had four sacks last year, will play some at defensive end, and Pulido looks to excel at free safety.

Although the Pirates start the season on the road, they will have a bonus this year: an extra home game.

Santa Ynez was scheduled to play at Lompoc for its second game on Aug. 29, but an extensive revamp of the lighting systems at LHS’s Huyck Stadium means that Lompoc and Cabrillo will have to play their home games during the daytime this year.

However, according to McClurg, who’s also the athletic director at SYHS, Lompoc wanted to play the Pirates under the lights and offered to come to Rio Memorial Field for what’s usually a well-attended.

“They called and said, ‘hey this needs to be under the Friday Night Lights,’” McClurg said. “So we said ‘sure.’ Truth is, it’s not as huge a home-field advantage as you might think: Lompoc always travels well and they’ll be here in droves. It should make it a very exciting atmosphere.”

Elsewhere on the schedule, Santa Ynez will have its Homecoming game on Sept. 26 against Santa Maria. Other nights of note include Sept. 19 against Nipomo, when the newest members of the SYHS Wall of Honor are recognized; the Go Pink game Oct. 3 against Atascadero, and Senior Night (which is also Halloween night) Oct. 31 against Righetti. All home games will start at 7 p.m. at Rio Memorial Field.

2025 SANTA YNEZ FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

Friday, Aug. 22 at Dos Pueblos

Friday, Aug. 29 LOMPOC

Friday, Sept. 5 SAN MARCOS

Friday, Sept. 12 Mission Prep at Cal Poly

Friday, Sept. 19 NIPOMO

Friday, Sept. 26 SANTA MARIA (Homecoming)

Friday, Oct. 3 ATASCADERO

Friday, Oct. 17 at Pioneer Valley

Friday, Oct. 24 at San Luis Obispo

Friday, Oct. 31 RIGHETTI

The post Pirates ready to restock for 2025 football season appeared first on Santa Ynez Valley Star.

By Mike Chaldu

michael@santaynezvalleystar.com

August is a time of bustling activity on our local schools’ campuses: Students coming back to classes, seeing old friends, getting started on extracurricular activities. And, of course, it means late summer practices on the turf in anticipation of playing the season for the Santa Ynez High varsity football teams.

Wait, did you say teams? As in plural?

That’s right! Because in addition to the traditional football season played by the male students, the females will also have their time on the gridiron as the Pirates field their first girls flag football team this year.

Eighteen girls came out for the school’s inaugural campaign, which begins Tuesday, Aug. 26, with a game at Dos Pueblos in Goleta. After another road game at Paso Robles on Thursday, Sept. 4, and tournaments at Pioneer Valley (Sept. 6) and Lompoc (Sept. 13), the Pirates will have their home debut on Tuesday, Sept. 16, against Lompoc.

The team will be led by co-head coaches Maddie Quiroga and Hannah Wright, who also coach the junior varsity girls basketball team. The two established their own legacies while at SYHS: Quiroga, a 2014 graduate of SYHS, was the captain of the varsity girls basketball team her junior and senior year, and also broke the school record for 3-point shots in a game and points in a season. Wright, then known as Hannah Cantrell, graduated in 2015, and was a captain of the girls volleyball and basketball teams before playing volleyball at Santa Barbara City College and eventually graduating from UCSB.

“We’re so appreciative of being trusted with this new program,” Wright said during a recent practice. “It’s going to be hard work, but it’s exciting — we don’t know what’s coming, it’s a big unknown.”

Quiroga echoed her colleague’s thoughts.

“It’s a huge deal to launch this program and we’re honored to do it,” she said. “It’s great to give back to the school we went to.”

While Wright and Quiroga didn’t get the chance to play football while they were at SYHS, their families have a history with the sport, and with SYHS in general. Wright is the daughter of Rob Cantrell, the Pirates girls soccer coach, and her brother Austin Cantrell played football for SYHS for four years, and her cousin Brennan Swanson played for the Pirates in the ‘90s and eventually had a short stint with the San Francisco 49ers.

Meanwhile, Maggie’s late father MIke Quiroga was a standout was a standout in four sports (basketball, football, baseball, and tennis, during his time as a Pirate. She also is sister to Ashley Quiroga, a standout in basketball, and niece to David and Lydia Quiroda, who were also athletic standouts at SYHS.

“I think there are a lot of things from other sports that we can translate over for football,” Wright said. “Plus, my husband is a huge football fan, so I watch the games with him, and I’ve even gotten into fantasy football,” she said laughing.

The football bloodline doesn’t stop at the coaching staff: Pirates junior Campbell McClurg is the niece of head football coach and SYHS Athletic Director Josh McClurg, while players like Leighton Casey and Ella Gotschall are names that have been found on the boys football roster in past years.

But the girls are thrilled to make their own legacy as trailblazers in a new sport.

“We knew in the middle of the last school year that this was probably going to happen,” Casey said. “I played basketball for Coach Quiroga and Coach Wright so I was clued in on it pretty early, and when they asked me about it, I told them I’d do it.”

“I don’t think we’ll have too much trouble learning this, because we played Powder Puff football and it’s been a good crutch to lean on, so I think we’ve got a head start””,” McClurg said.

The game will have some differences from the boys game, most notable of which is the lack of contact. As indicated by the sport’s name, a ballcarrier is down when a defender takes the flag off her belt, and blocking with any contact in prohibited — you can try to impede a defender’s effort to get to the quarterback, but you can’t touch her.

“If you want to try and keep a defender away, you need to do it like a screen in basketball,” Wright said. “So that’s familiar to us.”

Also, the field is 80 yards, split into four 20-yard zones. There are no yard markers, so the midpoint 40-yard line and each 20-yard line are each known as the “line to gain,” meaning the offensive team must get past that line to keep possession. And, every player other than the quarterback (or “passer”) is an eligible receiver when the ball is snapped.

Helping out Quiroga and Wright with the game plan is Allen Pinoli, the current track head coach who is also on the boys football staff and is considered the offensive coordinator for the girls team.

“Josh (McClurg) saw this was going to happen, so he asked me if I would step in and oversee the offense, and I was happy to do so,” Pinoli said. “I’ve actually coached my son in flag football when he was young, so I’m pretty familiar with this.”

Pinoli has been very impressed with the girls’ progress so far.

“They’re showing the things they’ve leared on a daily basis; they’re really stepping up,” he said. “The positions are being filled by girls who are showing interest in what they do. It’s really filling out nicely — I think they’ll be fine.”

The addition of Santa Ynez gives the Central Coast eight girls flag football teams this year. League opponents for the Pirates will be Lompoc (coached by former SYHS Athletic Director Ashley Coehlo), Santa Maria, Righetti, Cabrillo, Pioneer Valley, and San Luis Obispo.

Those on the roster for the Pirates include (asterisks for team captain): Isabella Rubio*, Leighton Casey*, Presley Pinoli*, Myah Dunn*, Regina Guerrero, Skyla Oslin, Angela Guerrero, Campbell McClurg, Ella Gotschall, Maleah Knightley, Lylah Rueff, Chelsea Stepien, Karely Vasquez, Danaka Cantrell, Anna Carpenter, Lucianna Chavez, Alexandra Herrera, and Chanel Batastini.

All of whom, no doubt, are looking forward to the beginning of the season.

“I’m just super-excited to get the season started,” Casey said. “We’re making history.”

2025 SYHS GIRLS FLAG FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

Tuesday, Aug. 26, at Dos Pueblos                      

Thursday, Sept. 4, at Paso Robles (Parish Field)

Saturday, Sept. 6, Pioneer Valley Tournament

Saturday, Sept. 13, Lompoc Tournament

Tuesday, Sept. 16, LOMPOC*

Monday, Sept. 22, Madera South at Lompoc HS

Thursday, Sept. 25, at Santa Maria*

Tuesday, Sept. 30, RIGHETTI*

Tuesday, Oct. 7, CABRILLO*

Thursday, Oct. 16, at Pioneer Valley*

Tuesday, Oct. 21, SAN LUIS OBISPO*

The post Are you ready for some (girls) football at Santa Ynez? appeared first on Santa Ynez Valley Star.

By Mike Chaldu

michael@santaynezvalleystar.com

Every high school football coach has to deal with roster turnover from year to year — you know, with the pesky reality that every player is going to move on eventually, most because of graduation.

It’s something that Santa Ynez High football head coach Josh McClurg deals with every year, but this year it’s pretty steep: Thirty-three seniors have moved on from last year’s Pirates team that finished 1-3 in the Sunset League and 4-8 overall, but did gain the Pirates’ first postseason victory in over a decade.

However, McClurg isn’t lacking any confidence as Santa Ynez gets ready for its season opener this Friday, Aug. 22, when the Pirates travel to Goleta to take on Dos Pueblos. After all, there’s alway reinforcements coming.

“Yes, we got hit by graduation, but I think we’re looking good,” McClurg said at a recent practice. “We’re two-deep at most positions, and I think we’re well-stocked at middle linebacker and defensive line.”

Of course, it doesn’t hurt when you have last year’s Sunset League Offensive Player of the Year, quarterback Jude Pritchard, back for one more season. In 2024, Pritchard passes for 1,661 years and 12 touchdowns for the Pirates, and also led the team with 513 yards rushing.

“Jude looks the best he’s ever looked back there,” McClurg said. “This is his third year starting and he seems very comfortable. I’m excited to see what he can do this year.”

Pritchard should benefit by some decent weapons in the receiving corps, senior WR Mason Skidmore had 28 catches last year, good for second-most on the team, for 357 yards and two touchdowns. Meanwhile, senior Diego Pulido will return after being the Pirates’ Swiss army knife. Despite being hampered by an injury for most of the season, he was able to help SYHS at wide receiver, defensive back, and as kicker.

In the offensive backfield, returning seniors Greyson Foy and Levi Snow, two of the Pirates’ captains this year along with Pritchard and senior lineman Kaj Kretzschmer, are expected to pick up most of the carries though juniors Austin Willis and Cael DeForest could also make their mark.

“We lost a lot of seniors, but we have whole lot of talent,” Foy said. “I’m looking forward to playing a lot, at running back, linebacker, and maybe even kick returner.”

On the offensive line the Pirates got some beef, as Joey Duarte (6’3”, 290), Deagan Johnson (6’1”, 290), Javier Nungaray (6’1”, 285), and Vincente Perez (6’1”, 275) anchor the group.

“I really like what he have on the line,” Johnson said. “There are some big guys for people to deal with, and we’re becoming a real tight group.

On defense, many of the offensive group will be playing both ways; Johnson is looking forward to seeing some time at noseguard, while Jaxon Glover, who had four sacks last year, will play some at defensive end, and Pulido looks to excel at free safety.

Although the Pirates start the season on the road, they will have a bonus this year: an extra home game.

Santa Ynez was scheduled to play at Lompoc for its second game on Aug. 29, but an extensive revamp of the lighting systems at LHS’s Huyck Stadium means that Lompoc and Cabrillo will have to play their home games during the daytime this year.

However, according to McClurg, who’s also the athletic director at SYHS, Lompoc wanted to play the Pirates under the lights and offered to come to Rio Memorial Field for what’s usually a well-attended.

“They called and said, ‘hey this needs to be under the Friday Night Lights,’” McClurg said. “So we said ‘sure.’ Truth is, it’s not as huge a home-field advantage as you might think: Lompoc always travels well and they’ll be here in droves. It should make it a very exciting atmosphere.”

Elsewhere on the schedule, Santa Ynez will have its Homecoming game on Sept. 26 against Santa Maria. Other nights of note include Sept. 19 against Nipomo, when the newest members of the SYHS Wall of Honor are recognized; the Go Pink game Oct. 3 against Atascadero, and Senior Night (which is also Halloween night) Oct. 31 against Righetti. All home games will start at 7 p.m. at Rio Memorial Field.

2025 SANTA YNEZ FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

Friday, Aug. 22 at Dos Pueblos

Friday, Aug. 29 LOMPOC

Friday, Sept. 5 SAN MARCOS

Friday, Sept. 12 Mission Prep at Cal Poly

Friday, Sept. 19 NIPOMO

Friday, Sept. 26 SANTA MARIA (Homecoming)

Friday, Oct. 3 ATASCADERO

Friday, Oct. 17 at Pioneer Valley

Friday, Oct. 24 at San Luis Obispo

Friday, Oct. 31 RIGHETTI

The post Pirates ready to restock for 2025 football season appeared first on Santa Ynez Valley Star.

The Santa Ynez Valley High School District has named Maddie Quiroga and Hannah Wright as its girls flag football co-head coaches. Wright and Quiroga both graduated from SYHS and currently coach the JV girls basketball team.  

Maddie Quiroga graduated in 2014, where she was captain of the varsity girls basketball team her junior and senior years. Maddie broke the school record for 3-point shots in a game and the record for points in a season, while also being named to All Los Padres League team her senior season. She is currently finishing school to become a teacher.

Hannah (Cantrell) Wright graduated from SYHS in 2015, where she was a captain of the girls volleyball and basketball teams. She was all-league in basketball for three years and was all-league in volleyball twice.  While playing volleyball, she broke the school record for hitting percentage in a game. Wright went on to play volleyball at Santa Barbara City College, where she was named all-conference both years. She graduated friom UCSB and is currently teaching at Jonata Middle School in Buellton.

“We are extremely excited to be starting girls flag football at SYHS,” SYHS Athletic Director Josh McClurg said. “It is one of the fastest growing sports in the country and we had to make it a priority to get it started. I have been impressed with watching Maddie as our girls head JV basketball coach the last three years. She has a great rapport with the girls and brings a positive energy that is needed as a high school coach. The girls program added Hannah as a JV coach this year, and the two of them work extremely well together, so it was a no-brainer on who we needed to have as our inaugural girls flag football coaches.”

Both coaches have deep ties with the Pirates athletic program. Wright’s father, Rob Cantrell, has been SYHS’s girls soccer head coach since 2005. Her mom and brothers all graduated from SYHS, with her brother Austin playing football for the Pirates the last four years. Her uncles all played football for the Pirates in the 1990s, and one of them, Brennan Swanson, went on to play football at Cal State Northridge and then had a short stint with the San Francisco 49ers. Her cousin, Harloe Swanson, will be a senior and is a member of the girls track 4×100 team that broke the 30-year-old school record this past season.  

Quiroga is a proud Santa Ynez Valley Chumash descendant of the first students/athletes to become Pirates in 1896. Her father, Michael Quiroga, graduated in 1980 after being a standout basketball, football, baseball, and tennis athlete. Mike was considered one of the best basketball shooters in school history. Since his passing, Maddie and her family have started the Mike Quiroga Scholarship Fund at SYHS in honor of his legacy. Maddie’s uncle, David Quiroga, was an all-star athlete at SYHS along with her aunt Lydia Quiroga.  Her sister, Ashley Quiroga, was a four-year varsity basketball starter for the Pirates as well.

“The fact that both coaches come from a long line of standout Pirate athletes is pretty special,” McClurg said. “I remember playing men’s league basketball at 18 years old and having to defend Mike Quiroga, who literally could shoot the lights out of gym. Hannah’s uncle, Brennan, and I were teammates on the Los Padres League champion football team in 1993, and went to elementary school together as well. The small-town connections of the Valley are what make our school so special and it is what helps to instill Pirate Pride in all of our athletes.”

The Pirates girls flag football team will play its first game on Tuesday, Aug. 26, at Dos Pueblos (time TBA) and will play at Paso Robles on Thursday, Sept. 4. After weekend tournaments at Pioneer Valley and Lompoc high schools in September, SYHS will play its first home game on Tuesday, Sept. 16, against Lompoc.

A story on the two new coaches and the outlook of the Pirates’ first girls flag football team will run in the next issue, coming out Aug. 19.

The post Santa Ynez High School names Hannah Wright and Maddie Quiroga co-head coaches for girls flag football program appeared first on Santa Ynez Valley Star.