Buhach alums going college football bowling
The last time Aaron Cochran and Jayce Webster shared a football field, their high school careers came to an end on a cold night in Folsom.
It was the last in a run of great Buhach Colony football teams as the Thunder won three straight Central California Conference titles and made three straight trips to the Sac-Joaquin Section Division II semifinals. Cochran, Webster and company ran into mighty Folsom, which was in the midst of its rise to five section titles in six years, ending their Friday night careers with a 49-22 loss.
The pair of former teammates and old friends will share a field one more time, albeit in opposing uniforms, when Cal takes on Air Force in the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl on Dec. 29. Cochran worked his way into the starting lineup at left tackle as a red-shirt sophomore in the Bears’ best season in a while. Webster has seen limited reps for the Falcons, recording one tackle in three games as a defensive back.
The bowl game will mark the second former BC teammate that Cochran has gone up against in his last three games. Defensive end Aziz Shittu helped No. 6 Stanford knock off Cal 35-22 en route to a Pacific-12 Conference championship and will play in his first Rose Bowl against Iowa on New Year’s Day. The senior was named to the Pac-12 first team with 47 tackles, 10.5 tackles for a loss and 2.5 sacks.
Postseason haul
The season ended a little more abruptly than the UC Merced men’s soccer team hoped, but junior center back Andy Galvan is receiving plenty of offseason love.
Galvan became just the second Bobcat in school history to receive national recognition when he was named to the NAIA Men’s Soccer All-American honorable mention list last week. Galvan had a goal and an assist on the season for UCM, but it was his combination of pace and poise on the back end that distinguished him as one of the nation’s best.
The good news kept coming for Galvan as he was one of four Bobcats named to the National Soccer Coaches Association of America All-Region Team a day later. He was joined by teammates Cody Golbad and Brian Chongtoua.
UC Merced’s Rachael Schaefer, the California Pacific Conference Volleyball Player of the Year, was named to the American Volleyball Coaches Association All-Region team.
More All-Americans
Jordan Salcido and Caleb Rogers helped the Merced College men’s water polo team finish second in the Bay Valley Conference and fourth in Northern California. With only the top two teams advancing to the state tournament, the Blue Devils’ season ended there, but the pair of sophomores were each named California Community College Water Polo All-Americans.
Going for two
Former Atwater star Armando Gauger is set to play for his second national title in as many seasons as Southern Oregon will take on Marian on Saturday in a rematch of last year’s NAIA championship game.
The Raiders reached the title game with a 30-27 upset of top-seeded Morningside. Gauger had a nice showing in the victory, recording five tackles and half a sack. The sophomore defensive end has played in all 13 games for Southern Oregon, recording 35 tackles and 2.5 sacks for the year.
A night to remember
It didn’t take Camille Flores long to find her basketball legs.
In just her third game with Modesto Junior College, after playing volleyball for the Pirates in the fall, Flores set a school record. The former Golden Valley star scored a single-game, school-record 41 points in a victory over Yuba College. Perhaps most impressively, Flores didn’t go wild beyond the arc. The sharpshooter hit just two three-pointers in the game. She was 12 of 25 shooting and hit 15 of 16 free throws.
This story was originally published December 14, 2015 at 7:16 PM with the headline "Buhach alums going college football bowling."