Sports in 2020, a year unlike any other

Pandemic shuts down most sports for last nine months of year
The COVID-19 pandemic was not kind to youth sports in 2020 — in fact it was downright cruel.  
The onset of the virus in March forced most schools to shutter their doors in favor of distance learning, and the spring sports season was abruptly cancelled for thousands of kids across the county.
While high school athletes participated in summer off-season workouts with strict health protocols in place, the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) announced it had revised its sports schedules, delaying the start of the fall season until January while merging the winter and spring 2020-21 seasons.
By September, and with Sonoma County mired in a restrictive purple tier, the prospects for a fall high school sports season were waning.
In December, the California Department of Public Heath issued new guidance using a color-coded system, categorizing youth and adult recreational sports into several tiers. For example, sports categorized as outdoor low contact, including cross country and golf, would be allowed to compete with their county in the purple tier. Outdoor moderate contact sports like baseball and softball would require a county to be classified in the red tier, while outdoor high contact sports such as football and soccer would require their county to be in the orange tier. By year’s end, Sonoma County schools remained closed and fields were eerily quiet. 
While most years are marked by unforgettable games and athletic achievement at the youth level, 2020 will be remembered more for what did not take place.
As COVID vaccines continue to roll out this month, hope remains high that the new year will restore a sense of normalcy to all aspects of life, including athletics.
Here’s to a happy and healthy 2021.
The following highlights are a reminder that the year had a promising start, albeit a disappointing finish.  

(1) League champs — The Windsor girls wrestling team displayed the championship pennant after a great showing at the North Bay League tournament in February. Under head coach Rich Dixon, the Jags completed an unbeaten NBL campaign, slipping past Ukiah, 42-37 in the title showdown.
Windsor boasted 12 NBL medalists, including first place finishers; 108-pound Carmen Perez, 118-pound Arianna Dixon and 145-pound Ellery Charleton. Second place NBL medals went to 113-pound Leah Cobos, 133-pound Maxine De Mars, 152-pound Savannah Burger, 162-pound Jolette Torres, 172-pound Destinee Groves, 191-pound Maribel Apineru and 237-pound Rebekkah Westmoreland. In addition, 123-pound Abby Garcia finished in third place, while fourth place medalists were 128-pound Hailey Woods and 139-pound Regan Janes.
Perez went on to capture the NCS title to make her second straight state appearance, while Torres, a freshman, stamped her state ticket with a fourth place NCS finish.  Other NCS medalists included Burger (6th place), Dixon (8th place), Westmoreland (8th place), Apineru (8th place) and Charleton (8th place). 

(2) Competitive season —  Senior Dante Mendoza (No. 33) went up for two in a heated North Bay League clash with Piner in February. Under head coach Jared Greninger, the Jaguars finished up a solid 2019-20 season with an appearance in the NBL tournament and an overall record of 10-16. Team members included Mendoza, seniors Christian Jernigan, Billy Boyle, Jaden Ruybalid and Joey Evans, juniors Ethan Lane, Elijah Sanders, Riley Nagle, Carter Daniel, Will Coolidge, Gabe Avila and Mason Beeler, and sophomore Tyler McBratney. 

(3) State medalist — Senior 162-pound North Bay League and North Coast Section wrestling champion Trent Silva capped a tremendous four-year high school career in March with a sixth place medal at the prestigious CIF State Wrestling Championships in Bakersfield. In doing so, he became just the sixth Windsor athlete to accomplish the feat.
Also joining Silva at state was 108-pound junior NCS medalist Jon Fredrickson, who bounced back from a first round loss with two straight wins to finish 2-2 for the tournament.
The state appearance highlighted a strong 2019-20 season for the WHS boys wrestling team under head coach Brian Tiewater and assistant coaches Emilio Perez, Luke Au-Yeung and Ryan Day, qualifying five athletes to the NCS meet.  Other NCS qualifiers included 115-pound sophomore Domonic Mertens, 140-pound freshman Kaeden Timmons and 154-pound sophomore Israel Higareda.  

(4) Emerging talent — Sophomore standout Meredith Gilbertson was among the bright spots for the Lady Jaguars on a young, rebuilding varsity basketball team during the 2019-20 season. Under veteran coach Joe Passalacqua, the Jags navigated a tough pre-league schedule that continued in a rough and tumble North Bay League campaign to finish up at 5-20. Windsor fielded one of the youngest varsity lineups in the North Bay, including emerging star sophomores Gilbertson and Grace Boyle, Abby Baribeau and Maddie West. Other team members were juniors Nataleigh Johnson, Paige Finney and Savahna Smith, and seniors Pauline Woodard, Andrea Meza, Riley West and Sophia Romero.         

(5) College Bound — The success of the WHS baseball program under coach Dave Avila  was validated in November when three of its team members signed letters of intent to attend college on athletic scholarships. The three Jaguars included senior all-leaguers Gary Hall, Trent Matthews and Carson Ramocinski.
Hall, an all-league pitcher and outfielder for the Jaguars, signed a letter of intent to attend San Jose State, while senior outfielder Trent Matthews (Lawrence Tech University) and veteran infielder Carson Ramocinski (Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University) also inked offer sheets.
All three players have been at the core of a baseball resurgence at Windsor, culminating in an NBL Redwood Division title in 2019. After having their 2020 campaign cut short after five games due to the COVID-10 pandemic, the Jags will move to the competitive NBL Oak Division next spring.