Buffs bury Bulldogs for third straight win

Plan B worked out beautifully. With Ceres down two and needing a quick foul to regain possession, Manteca's Cynthia Perez, with no one open in front of her, sent the inbounds pass flying over the Bulldogs' fullcourt press and hit Sharon Washington in stride. Washington laid it in with six seconds left and drew the foul. Her missed free throw didn't matter, as Manteca went on to prevail 45-41 for its third straight Valley Oak ...

Cougars can’t find a spark in home loss

WESTON RANCH – It wasn't for a lack of effort that Weston Ranch fell to Sonora at home Tuesday night; the Cougars put in a hard 32 minutes.

Goslinga drops 31 as RC beats Escalon

ESCALON – Tyler Goslinga scored 31 points and Ripon Christian avenged an early Trans Valley League loss with an 82-73 win over Escalon Tuesday night.

Spring has Sprung

It was the first day of spring practice for area high schools Tuesday afternoon. First scrimmages start Feb. 16 and first spring games begin Feb. 20.

MANTECA UNIFIED STUDENT TRUST

Great Valley School battled Brock Elliott Tuesday during the Manteca Unified Student Trust boys basketball semifinal game at Golden West Community Gym.

Bryant brilliant in Cougars’ win over Sonora

WESTON RANCH – Marcean Bryant scored 18 points on a pair of 3-pointers and grabbed eight steals Tuesday night as the Weston Ranch sophomore girls basketball team ran past Sonora, 45-35.

Fire on ice: Alaskan community loses school, not hope

The first "biggest game of my life" was when we hosted the Region V championship basketball game my freshman year.

Schedule change forces Cougars to play Chico Thursday

STOCKTON - The Stockton Cougars, of the Professional Arena Soccer League (PASL-Pro), announce schedule changes for the current 2008-09 season.

Weston Ranch’s boys make biggest jump in power ratings

So how is Manteca rewarded for winning both of its games last week, one of which was a 73-69 overtime barnburner over Sierra in what could decide the Valley Oak League championship?

Seniors step up big to spark Knights in victory

RIPON - Ripon Christian looked to its seniors to step up Monday in its 29-24 victory over Escalon, and it was an appropriate time for them to do so being that it was Senior Night.

MANTECA UNIFIED STUDENT TRUST

The third-seeded Wildcats of Widmer defeated No. 2 Woodward, 25-17, during Monday's Manteca Unified Student Trust first-round playoff game at Woodward School.

Dinner ready for pickup tonight at MHS

The Manteca High swim team will host a Fagundes dinner today. Dinner may be picked up between 5:30 and 7:30 p.m. in the Manteca High front parking lot. Tickets are $12 and include tri-tip, chicken, potato salad and a roll. For tickets, contact Elyce Silva at 825-3150. SOCCER FURY: The Manteca Fury under-14 girls travel team will hold tryouts today and Wednesday at Northgate Park between 6:30 to 8 p.m. Girls must be born ...

HUSTLE BUT NO FLOW

RIPON - When all else fails, sometimes good old fashioned hustle does the trick. Despite making just 50 percent of its free throws while committing 25 turnovers, 12 in the opening quarter alone, Ripon did plenty enough to mask its sloppy play and hold off Escalon, 40-32, in a pivotal Trans Valley League contest Monday. "We weren't really playing with that much confidence the whole game," Ripon forward Skye Dominguez. "I think we're the better ...

Section releases first playoff power ratings

The Sac-Joaquin Section released its first of three Sac-Joaquin Section playoff power ratings Monday.

EU’s Castaneda shines at Pitman’s Rumble in Jungle

TURLOCK - East Union High's Marco Castaneda continued his recent tear in the non-league tournament circuit, finishing second in the 119-pound division during Saturday's Rumble in the Jungle hosted by Pitman High.

RIPON WAVES

He’s running Down Under

By JAMES BURNS

Thunder claim Western title; Kelly Cup Finals start Saturday

STOCKTON – Olivier Roy put on the best performance of his postseason career as the Stockton Thunder won Game 5 over the Idaho Steelheads 2-1 to become the 2013 Western Conference champions in front of 4,530 fans at Stockton Arena on Saturday.

Giants back up Lincecum with three home runs

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Fredi Gonzalez left the Atlanta Braves for two games following a series-opening victory at San Francisco to attend his daughter's college graduation in Georgia.

A’s fall behind early, keep sliding with loss

SEATTLE (AP) - It's been a stretch of struggles for Oakland, and no one on the Athletics struggled more Sunday than Brandon Moss.

Warriors beat Spurs in OT, even series 2-2

OAKLAND (AP) - His spirits down, his left ankle limp and his team's season hanging in the balance, Stephen Curry wondered whether he could recover for the biggest game of his career until a text message popped up on his phone around 2 a.m. Saturday.

Tiger Woods wins Players Championship

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. (AP) - Tiger Woods had the last word against Sergio Garcia by winning The Players Championship on Sunday.

Westra leads Tour of California

ESCONDIDO (AP) - Lieuwe Westra of the Netherlands easily outsprinted Spanaird Francisco Mancebo to claim the sweltering and hilly stage 1 and assumed the overall race Sunday lead at the Amgen Tour of California.

Hinchcliffe’s profile raised by hot IndyCar start

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - James Hinchcliffe might have the busiest appointment calendar in IndyCar.

LeBron James shrugs off Bulls’ flopping accusations

CHICAGO (AP) - The suggestion that he's a flopper drew a grin as wide as his wingspan from LeBron James.

Detroit Red Wings finish off Ducks 3-2 in Game 7

ANAHEIM (AP) - Henrik Zetterberg and Valtteri Filppula each had a goal and an assist, and the Detroit Red Wings finished off the Anaheim Ducks with a 3-2 victory in Game 7 on Sunday night.

East Union earns No. 1 seed

Jim Todd gave his East Union girls soccer team the day off on Friday. Come Monday, though, it's back to work. The Lancers will open the Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV playoffs on Thursday as the No. 1 seed, a just reward following a one-loss regular season and two hard-fought games against Valley Oak League champion and Division II contender Kimball. On Monday's practice agenda: "Basics," said Todd, the Lancers' seventh-year head coach. "We're getting back ...

DOWN BUT NOT OUT

The roller-coaster ride that is Ripon High's baseball season has hit another valley. The Indians were swept by Orestimba this week following Friday's staggering 13-2 five-inning loss at home. The Warriors (7-3 Trans-Valley League, 14-6 overall), on the other hand, appear to be peaking at the right time. By sweeping Ripon, they hold a tiebreaking advantage and clinched a berth to the Sac-Joaquin Section Division V playoffs, something that coach Matt Candelario says, "hasn't happened ...

Manteca tandem stumbles in section semifinals

Yok Jing Ma and Angel Tejada's Cinderella run in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division II Doubles Tournament came to an Friday morning at Johnson Ranch Racquet Club in Roseville. The Manteca High tandem did go down with a fight, however dropping a two-plus-hour long match to No. 2-seeded Alick Liang and Gurman Bains of Ceres, 6-3, 3-6, 3-6. "It was extremely competitive throughout," Manteca coach Frank Fontana said. "The Ceres team won the big points when ...

HIGH-WATER VOL MARKS

Erika Brown and the rest of the Ripon High girls swimmers put the cherry on top of a banner season in the Valley Oak League on Saturday. The Lady Indians more or less confirmed their status as regular-season co-champion with their performance in the VOL Championships, placing first with 129 points. Meet host Oakdale, which shares the girls crown with Ripon, posted 105 points. Oakdale dominated to win the boys competition, and the Mustangs topped ...