Isaac Starks of Denair was recently named the boys’ basketball Most Valuable Player in the Southern Athletic League.
Starks, who scored 20 or more points in 21 games was one of the few bright spots for a Coyotes team that struggled to back up Starks and led to a 4-8 league record and 10-16 overall.
The 5-foot-11 shooting guard, who played mostly as the point guard, was known for not only distributing the ball when he needed to as a deathly passer with great awareness.
Starks also provided the team with consistent scoring day in and day out.
Only once was Starks held below 10 points in a game for the year.
He not only led the league in scoring with 24 points per game, but he was ninth best in the Sac-Joaquin Section.
Jando Diaz named CCC MVP
The Pitman Pride were the real winners of the year on the basketball court.
Not only did the Pride accomplish an unforgettable feat that included their first Central California Conference title, sharing it with crosstown rivals, Turlock, but they also had the league’s Most Valuable Player on the team.
Jando Diaz was named the CCC MVP after leading the team in scoring, rebounding, assists and steals, and into the record books.
Diaz averaged 17.2 points per game, 5.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.6 steals a game and also scored 20 or more points in four conference games.
He was joined by his teammate Isaiah Marable who was named to the first team selection. Turlock added two first team selections in Oscar Moreno and Habib Velasquez.
Dom Von Waaden and Leon Ohms of Pitman were second team selections and Turlock’s Will Hilgen and Ricky Heidelbach followed as second team selections.
Harvey Marable and Doug Cornfoot both split the share for Coach of the Year award.
Turlock’s Julia Handy recognized as one of the nation’s top sophomore setters
Turlock High School’s Julia Handy has been named one of the nation’s top sophomore setters by PrepVolleyball.com, based solely on her play at Turlock.
Handy was named to the Soph 79, a list of accomplished high school talent, and was the only player from the Stanislaus District to make the list.
Turlock’s Jadyn Tubbs, Pitman’s Whitney Barnes were honorable mention.
Handy, who plays club volleyball for Rage was named a tournament MVP at the 2015 Junior Nationals, and was a team captain for Turlock, who shared the Central California Conference championship with crosstown rival Pitman.
The Bulldogs snapped the Pitman Pride’s 58-match league win streak with a 3-1 win on Nov. 2. Handy, who was a first-team all-conference selection and CCC Setter of the Year, had 48 assists in that win.
“Julia is without a doubt one of the best setters in the state,” Turlock head coach Amber Castillon told PrepVolleyball.com. “She leads with confidence and is loved by her teammates. She can make a play out of just about any pass.”
Handy was sixth in the state this year – and first among sophomores – with 1,082 assists, 108 kills and 56 aces.
