Sports

It happened completely by chance. James Giacomazzi ran into the towering, seven-foot Luka Galić in the Colfax High School gym in Sacramento. Galić was visiting his friend, MVP guard Diego Maldonado. They were there to meet up and work out.  The Las…

Star diver Ainsley Wade hasn’t been up on the one-meter and three-meter springboards much at all this season. She only competed in the first meet of the season before taking time off.  A roadblock appeared in the middle of the season. A…

Head coach James Giacomazzi walked into the gym at Colfax High School in Sacramento. In the middle of his recruiting season, he had one objective: locate Diego Maldonado. Giacomazzi had caught wind of Maldonado's senior season in which he won league MVP,…

A national championship on Las Positas waters set the scene: whistles blowing, humid air, a heated pool, and a single yellow ball. Athletes cut through the water as Las Positas Hawks, coaches, and scouts watched their every move — the best of…

The ball never seemed fully under control. Rolling from a throw-in to a backheel and into open space until it reached Jesus “Chuy” Lua’s feet.  In one motion, he pushed forward, made a shot fake that froze the defender, and then drove…

The 400 individual medley is not Logan Borrelli’s comfort zone. It’s a longer distance than normal and requires all of the strokes—not just his specialty: backstroke. That’s why, at the 2026 Hawk Invite, held March 27–28, swim and dive head coach Jason…

Arguably the greatest season in the history of the Hawks program came in 2017. The collection of talent and endurance swept away head coach Jason Craighead. Diver Valentina Barbalinardo won two medals at the state championships that year, silver in the one-meter…

By the end of the Bob Miyashiro Invitational, the 13-school swim tournament at Santa Rosa Junior College, two names could not be missed: Samantha Fehr and Filuka Houborg. Fehr, the sophomore breaststroke specialist, and Houborg, the freshman sensation, stole the spotlight with…

Ainsley Wade was on the brink of throwing in the towel. The challenge of balancing two sports —volleyball and diving — led her to turn away from competing at a higher level. She did not want to transfer to compete. She felt…

Dale Murray, a widely beloved Coast Conference commissioner, died at the age of 81 on Feb. 25. Murray had served as commissioner of the Coast Conference for the California Community College Athletic Association since 1989. For 37 years, Murray devoted himself to…