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Cougar Country
Cisneros, Mayorca lauded as VOLs top coach & player
SOC--All-VOL selections file 1 LT
Junior attacking midfielder Joseph Mayorca tallied 32 goals for Weston Ranch this past season. He led the Cougars to their first-ever Valley Oak League championship and was voted Most Valuable Player. - photo by Photo by WAYNE THALLANDER

SELECTIONS

All-Valley Oak League

Coach of the Year: Francisco Cisneros, Weston Ranch

MVP: MF/FWD Joseph Mayorca, Weston Ranch, 11th.

 

FIRST TEAM

GK: Derek Martinez, Oakdale, 11th. 

DEF: Humberto Andrade, East Union, 12th; Ramiro Ceja, Lathrop, 12th; David Serrano, Oakdale, 11th; Victor Munoz, Weston Ranch, 12th; Luis Esparza, Weston Ranch, 12th.

MF: Noah Aini, Kimball, 11th; Ulysses Almanza, Lathrop, 12th; Kevin Rodriguez, Manteca, 11th; Anis Guedoir, Sierra, 12th; Arthur Garcia, Weston Ranch, 12th; Kevin Medina; Weston Ranch, 11th.

FWD: Gerardo Romero, East Union, 11th; Marcus Montano, Manteca, 12th; Jason Maravilla, Manteca, 12th; Jose Becerra, Oakdale, 12th; Hector Maldonado, Weston Ranch, 12th.

 

SECOND TEAM

GK: Bryce Lew, East Union, 12th.

DEF: Sunny Hernandez Jr., East Union, 12th; Carlos Hernandez, Kimbal, 11th; Josh Kong, Manteca, 10th; Bryce Hobbs, Oakdale, 11th; Josh Lee, Sierra, 11th; Eriq Kurys, Sierra, 12th; Esteban Paramo, Weston Ranch, 11th.

MF: James Rendon, East Union, 11th Gabriel Ramirez, Oakdale, 12th; Francisco Garcia, Weston Ranch, 10th.

FWD:  Henry Diaz, Sierra, 12th.

 

HONORABLE MENTION

Central Catholic: Josh Forester, Charles Corsiglia.

East Union: Alejandro Sanchez, Gustavo Vasquez.

Kimball: Johan Duran, Christian Martinez, Tristen Power.

Lathrop: Jose Castellanos.

Manteca: Josh Kong, Carlos Belmonte.

Oakdale: Wesley Allen, Michael Arauza, Juan Rangel.

Sierra: Joel Vargas, Cesar Martinez, Luis Mendoza.

Weston Ranch: Omar Centeno.


All season long, they’ve carried themselves like MVPs, making the tough calls and taking the tough shots. 

On Monday, it became official.

Francisco Cisneros was named the Valley Oak League’s Coach of the Year after leading Weston Ranch to an unbeaten run through a league that featured four title contenders, and striker Joseph Mayorca earned the league’s MVP award after scoring 32 goals. 

The Cougars finished off their historic season with the school’s first-ever Sac-Joaquin Section team championship on Saturday with a 2-0 victory over Livingston in the Division IV final. 

By then, though, the votes were already cast.

By an overwhelming margin, Weston Ranch was recognized for its excellence on the pitch. 

A league-high five players joined Mayorca (seven assists) on the all-VOL’s first team, including forward Hector Maldonado (19 goals, 11 assists), midfielder Arthur Garcia (three goals, nine assists), and defenders David Serrano and Victor Munoz. 

Those six players formed the nucleus of a team that went more than two months without a loss and blitzed all postseason opponents, outscoring its foes 5-0 in three matches.

Weston Ranch (24-2-3) won 18 straight games to close the season, including all 14 league games.

East Union earned the VOL’s third and final playoff berth with a 1-1 draw with crosstown rival Manteca on the regular season’s final day. 

The Lancers, paced all season-long by first-team selections Gerardo Romero and Humberto Andrade, very nearly upset perennial section heavyweight Central Valley in the first round.

Romero provided the offensive fireworks for East Union, totaling 14 goals and six assists in 11 matches, according to MaxPreps. Andrade (two goals, one assist) was the anchor along the backline. 

The Buffaloes were left out of the postseason picture for the first time in four years, but tied runner-Oakdale for the second-most first-team selections with three. 

Forwards Marcus Montano and Jason Maravilla were arguably the best 1-2 punch in all the area, a region that also includes Ripon and Ripon Christian.  Montano finished with 27 goals and 15 assists, while Maravilla, thanks in large part to a strong second half, had 15 goals and 14 assists.

Montano will be remembered as one of the program’s most explosive players. In 95 career varsity games, Montano had 80 goals and 40 assists. 

Midfielder Kevin Rodriguez rounded out the Buffaloes’ first-team selections. The junior had 14 goals and 10 assists.

Lathrop’s Ramiro Ceja and Ulysses Almanza (eight goals, four assists in 23 matches) rounded out the local first-team selections.

East Union and Sierra each had three players named to the second team.

Goalie Bryce Lew, defender Sunny Hernandez Jr. and midfielder James Rendon played their way onto the team for the Lancers, while the Timberwolves’ sweeper-stopper combination of Eriq Kurys and Josh Lee and forward Henry Diaz were lauded.

Weston Ranch’s Esteban Paramo and Francisco Garcia also landed on the second team, along with Manteca’s Josh Kong.

Those earning honorable mention honors were: East Union’s Alejandro Sanchez and Gustavo Vasquez; Manteca’s Carlos Belmonte; Sierra’s Luis Mendoza, Cezar Martinez and Joel Vargas; Lathrop’s Jose Castellanos; and Weston Ranch’s Omar Centeno.