All 10 high school football teams from Santa Cruz County will see their first live action, full pads, against real opponents during scrimmages this weekend.
Campbell’s Trevor Gillis and San Francisco’s Stephanie Blankley earned wins in the non-wetsuit division at the Cruz Cruise in Santa Cruz on Sunday to cap 2026 Open Water Weekend.
Santa Cruz track and field talent Eli Fitchen-Young suffered an ill-timed injury that forced him to withdraw from the 2026 World Athletics U20 Championships in Eugene, Oregon.
Santa Cruz’s Haisley Flanagan and teammate Madison Gillinger took second place in the Girls 16U division at the 2026 AVP Juniors National Championships, which ran July 22-24 in Hermosa Beach.
Rancho Cucamonga’s Arturs Medveds repeated as champion at the 2026 Wharf to Wharf Race in commanding fashion, and Paige Wood, of Flagstaff, Arizona, also turned in a dominant showing to secure the women’s crown Sunday morning.
A slew of injuries has drastically reduced to the Wharf to Wharf Race’s international field this year, but event officials expect that the 54th running of the 5.91-mile road race will be every bit as spectacular as previous editions.
Three former Santa Cruz County residents — Aptos High alumna Nikki Hiltz and Scotts Valley alumna Jessica Kain and Vanessa Fraser — will compete at the 2026 Toyota USATF Outdoor Championships.
District 39 champion Aptos beat D-9 champ Soledad 11-1 in the teams’ opener at the Section 5 Majors All-Stars Tournament at Aptos Little League on Friday. Aptos hosts either Los Gatos (D-12) or Los Altos (D-44) in the winner’s bracket final on Sunday at 2 p.m.
Recently graduated Soquel High ace Jake Escalante, currently rehabbing his left arm after undergoing Tommy John surgery in early June, was drafted by the Athletics on Day 2 of the 2026 MLB Draft on Sunday.
Watsonville’s Ruben Ibarra, 27, produced the longest home run in the Cincinnati Reds’ farm system this season and led the Double-A Chattanooga Lookouts to a 9-3 win over the Rocket City Trash Pandas in the teams’ Southern League game at Toyota Field in Madison, Alabama, on Sunday.
Santa Cruz’s William Kelley and Felton’s Azalea Groleau earned wins in the 10K race at the 41st Firecracker Run at Harvey West Park in Santa Cruz on Saturday.
Santa Cruz’s Riviera Hunter made four finals and earned the Open women’s and Girls Air Show titles at the National Scholastic Surfing Association National Championships, which concluded Thursday in Huntington Beach.
Aptos Little League’s Majors All-Stars delivered another gutsy effort and secured their third straight elimination game win to claim the District 39 title and extend their season.
Santa Cruz’s Karissa Cook, 35, will rejoin Stanford University’s beach volleyball program for the 2027 season as an assistant coach, head coach Andrew Fuller announced Wednesday.
Aptos Little League’s Majors All-Stars handed Capitola-Soquel its first loss in the District 39 championship, 11-0 in four innings on Saturday, to force a winner-take-all game.
Harbor High 6-foot-4 senior outside hitter Cooper Lastition was a driving force behind the Pirates’ boys volleyball team’s success this season, and league coaches rewarded his showing by naming him the Santa Cruz Coast Athletic…
Soquel’s Rob Gibbs and Santa Cruz’s Yohei Rosen, who compete for Kua Nalu Canoe Club in Santa Cruz, medaled in the Long Course OC1 division at the 2026 Santa Cruz Paddle Classic at Capitola Beach on Sunday.
Capitola-Soquel tops previously unbeaten Aptos, forces winner-take-all game Tuesday in the Majors’ District 39 Tournament of Champions championship at Live Oak Little League.
Soquel High two-way baseball star Jake Escalante posted even better numbers this season than he did a year ago, when he was voted the Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League’s Player of the Year.
Two junior softball standouts, Kalina Healy of champion Aptos High and Emma Niizawa of runner-up Soquel, shared Most Valuable Player honors during 2026 All-Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League voting.
Flag football star Ella Porter, who competed in professionally with the Golden State Storm after shining for four seasons at Aptos High, continues to make HERstory.
Archbishop Mitty High senior softball star Kyleigh Mace, a Scotts Valley resident, repeated as West Catholic Athletic League’s co-Pitcher of the Year. She shared the honor with Saint Francis sophomore Mercedes Coller. (As a junior, Mace share the accolade with Lancers senior Ava Bulanti.)