Ten-year stock report for Vine Valley Athletic League softball

Singer and songwriter David Bowie released a song title called “Changes” in 1971.

The lyrics included the word being pronounced “Ch-ch-ch-changes!”

With another Napa Valley high school softball season in the rearview mirror, the word
change applies quite strong as it applies to the 2018-2019 athletic landscape.

The shakeup will be huge next year for four of the six schools. Calistoga and St. Helena

remain status quo in the North Central League III and I respectively.

The change part comes involving Justin-Siena, Napa, Vintage and American Canyon.

Justin will part ways with the Marin County Athletic League, where it has been since

2000. Napa and Vintage will vacate the Monticello Empire League, where each has been

since 1975. American Canyon will leave the Solano County athletic Conference, where it

has been since the school opened in 2010.

Beginning the 2018-2019 school year, the landscape will change dramatically for Napa,

Vintage and American Canyon. To a lesser degree it will change for Justin as well. For

Napa, Vintage and American Canyon, no more trips East on Interstate 80 as the move from

the CIF Sac Joaquin Section to the North Coast Section, unless they preserve any

longstanding matchups between MEL and SCAC combatants. For Justin, unless they retain

any MCAL teams as nonleague foes, no more trips to Marin County. Justin moved from the
SJS to NCS in 2000.

Justin, Napa, Vintage and American Canyon will have Sonoma, Casa Grande and Petaluma

as its league foes. The name of the new league is the Vine Valley Athletic League. By my
own admission, I have followed Sonoma, Casa Grande and Petaluma very little because I
have had no reason.

So I decided to research the last ten seasons involving the aforementioned schools. While
that span does not tell the entire story, it is enough of a sample size to gauge a program’s
trajectory.

Here’s a breakdown of the new league and a look at crossover games that took place last

season. The definition of crossover in this context means the aforementioned Napa schools

against their newly acquainted league opponents. Since Napa and Vintage have played each
other continuously as MEL foes, I exclude that history. I do the same for Casa Grande,
Petaluma and Sonoma for similar reasons.

AMERICAN CANYON

American Canyon did not open until August 2010, and that year was only grades 9 and 10
which meant no varsity sports until 2011-2012. Even that season had varsity sports without a
senior class. Roger Harris is the only softball head coach the school has ever known. The
Wolves are 82-88-2 in that stretch with the record being skewed by a 2-16 season in 2012,
which was without a senior class.

American Canyon reached the SJS Div. III playoffs each of the last five years with the lone
win coming over Rosemont, 9-8 in 2014. In head-to-head matchups, the Wolves are 0-3
against Sonoma, 0-1 against Vintage and 0-2 against Napa.

CASA GRANDE

The Gauchos have experienced a checkered ten-year stretch in going 108-110. From
2009-2013, Casa Grande went 63-48 under Louie Bruce (2009-2012) and Joanna Martin
(2013). The program then had four straight losing seasons, 30-54, under Martin (2014-2015)
and Scott Sievers (2016-2017).

Casa Grande went 15-8 in 2018, reaching the NCS Div. II playoffs as a No. 14 seed. The
Gauchos upset No. 3 Antioch 1-0 and lost to No. 6 Bishop O’Dowd 3-1. The Gauchos are
28-36 under Sievers in three years but showing upward mobility going from 4-17 in 2016,
9-11 in 2017, 15-8 in 2018. In head-to-head matchups, the Gauchos are 2-6 against Napa
and 1-1 against Vintage.

JUSTIN-SIENA

Since winning the NCS Div. IV title in 2011, the Braves have experienced seven consecutive
losing seasons, going 59-99 in the process. Micah Putnam coached the team from 2012-2015
followed by Tim Garcia from 2016-2018.

Justin has a ten-year record of 110-127. Tricia Wall was the head coach in 2009, that season
the Braves were 15-10. Rick Robben coached the 2010-2011 teams, during which time the
Braves were 36-18 with the aforementioned NCS Div. IV title. Justin has six playoff seasons
in the ten-year span. In head-to-head matchups, the Braves are 0-2 against Sonoma and 0-3
against Vintage.

NAPA

The Indians have experienced both a lot of coaching turnover and a lot of success. John
O’Connor retired after the 2014 season. Since that time, there has been a coaching change
every year from Karen Yoder (2015) to Ron Walston (2016) to Tammie Mansuy (2017) back
to Walston (2018).

The Indians possess a 177-105-1 in the previous ten years with just one losing season, one
.500 campaign (12-12 in 2014), three 20 win seasons, and eight playoff appearances that
included the 2017 SJS Div. II championship, winning it as the No. 8 seed. Napa has a playoff
record of 12-11. In head-to-head matchups, the Indians are 6-2 against Casa Grande, 4-2
against Petaluma, 1-0 against American Canyon and 1-0 against Sonoma.

PETALUMA

Petaluma has been a picture of consistent success the last ten years under head coach Kurt
Jastrow, going 194-56 with nine playoff appearances, a 12-8 postseason record, six seasons
of 20 or more wins and no losing seasons.

The Trojans had three straight years of deep NCS Div. II playoff runs. In 2011, Petaluma
defeated Carondolet for the NCS Div. II title. In 2012, the Trojans reached the NCS Div. II
title game only to have their repeat bid fall short with a loss to Concord. In 2013, Petaluma
reached the NCS Div. II semifinals, losing also to Concord. In head-to-head matchups, the
Trojans are 2-4 against Napa.

SONOMA

The Dragons have enjoyed steady success the past decade in recording a 142-105 record
since 2009. Sonoma went 6-12 under Jan Moore in 2009, 101-75 under Dean Merrill
(2010-2016) and 35-18 the past two seasons under Keeley Ray.

Sonoma has had just one losing season, two .500 campaigns (12-12 in both 2011 and 2012)
and one 20 win season. The Dragons postseason record is 4-7 but have made noise the last
two seasons in the NCS Div. III playoffs. Sonoma reached the title game in 2017 before
losing to San Marin. The Dragons reached the semifinals in 2018 before being eliminated by
Marin Catholic. In head-to-head competition, Sonoma is 0-1 against Napa, 2-0 against Justin
and 2-0 against American Canyon.

VINTAGE

The last decade has been both the best and worst of times for the Crushers, who went
175-95-1 in that span. The 2018 campaign was a struggle with Vintage going 4-16 under
first-year head coach Cat Guidry. The Crushers were 49-26 under Saanen Kerson (2015-2017)
with two SJS Div. II appearances and two wins.

Vintage went 71-20 under Rick Robben from 2012-2014 with the 2013 campaign being the
high-water mark with the team going 34-1, winning the SJS Div. II title. The Crushers were
41-33-1 the previous three years under ward Mullins. Vintage recorded an 8-5 mark in the
postseason and had just one losing campaign. In head-to-head matchups, the Crushers went
3-0 against Justin, 1-0 against American Canyon and 2-0 against Casa Grande.

Offseason primer for Vine Valley Athletic League baseball

Reporter’s note: This is the first in a two-part series based on Napa, Vintage,

Justin-Siena, American Canyon, Casa Grande, Petaluma and Sonoma being in the

same league. `Today, the focus is baseball. In a few days, softball will be featured.

You hear the word “change” it can mean a handful of things. It could mean what’s left in your
pocket or something different just to name a few. The sports landscape will feature a big
change here in the Napa Valley.

With another Napa Valley high school baseball season drawing the curtain, let’s peer into what
lies ahead.

The shakeup will be huge next year for four of the six schools. Calistoga and St. Helena

remain status quo in the North Central League III and I respectively.

The change part comes involving Justin-Siena, Napa, Vintage and American Canyon.

Justin will part ways with the Marin County Athletic League, where it has been since

2000. Napa and Vintage will vacate the Monticello Empire League, where each has been

since 1975. American Canyon will leave the Solano County athletic Conference, where it

has been since the school opened in 2010.

Beginning the 2018-2019 school year, the landscape will change dramatically for Napa,

Vintage and American Canyon. To a lesser degree it will change for Justin as well. For

Napa, Vintage and American Canyon, no more trips East on Interstate 80 as the move from

the CIF Sac Joaquin Section to the North Coast Section, unless they preserve any

longstanding matchups between MEL and SCAC combatants. For Justin, unless they retain

any MCAL teams as nonleague foes, no more trips to Marin County. Justin moved from the
SJS to NCS in 2000.

Justin, Napa, Vintage and American Canyon will have Sonoma, Casa Grande and Petaluma

as its league foes. The name of the new league is the Vine Valley Athletic League. By my
ownadmission, I have followed Sonoma, Casa Grande and Petaluma very little because I
have had no reason.

So I decided to research the last ten seasons involving the aforementioned schools. While
that span does not tell the entire story, it is enough of a sample size to gauge a program’s
trajectory.

Here’s a breakdown of the new league and a look at crossover games that took place last

season. The definition of crossover in this context means the aforementioned Napa schools

against their newly acquainted league opponents. Since Napa and Vintage have played each
other continuously as MEL foes, I exclude that history. I do the same for Casa Grande,
Petaluma and Sonoma for similar reasons.

AMERICAN CANYON

The Wolves’ history as a varsity program only dates to 2012 since the school opened in
August 2010. The first year involved only Grades 9 and 10. The following year juniors were
added and one year later all four grades were incorporated.

American Canyon has compiled a 70-98-4 record in its seven seasons, all under Matt Brown.
The record is skewed by going 14-34-2 over the course of 2012-2013. The Wolves have
reached the postseason three times in the past five seasons with two victories along the way.
In head-to-head matchups, the Wolves went 1-4-1 against Vintage, 2-6 against Napa, 1-1
against Justin, 0-1 against Sonoma and 0-2 against Casa Grande. The Wolves have not played
Petaluma.

CASA GRANDE

As a program, the Gauchos have been anything but slouchos. Casa Grande has amassed a
216-78 record the last ten seasons. The previous nine were under former head coach Paul
Maytorena. The winning tradition continued in 2018 under first-year head coach Chad
Fillinger, going 20-9 and winning the North Bay League title.

To further illustrate Casa Grande’s consistency the last ten seasons, the Gauchos have made
the NCS playoffs every season, going 14-10 in the postseason. The deepest runs came in
2013 and 2017, both times reaching the NCS Div. II title game before losing to Campolindo
and Arroyo respectively. Casa Grande has recorded at least 20 wins in a season six times in
that span, including a 27-3 mark in 2013 and 24-5 in 2017. In head-to-head matchups, Casa
Grande is 2-0 against American Canyon, 5-1 against Vintage and 3-0 against Napa.

JUSTIN-SIENA

On the surface, the Braves’ 155-116-1 record the last ten seasons is solid but also checkered.
Justin went 46-34-1 under Scott Wright (2009-2011) with two NCS Div. IV playoff
appearances. The Braves went 3-2 in the postseason but took a step backward in 2011, going
11-14. The 2012-2015 seasons were under Allen Rossi The Sequel. Rossi coached the Braves
from 1999-2006. In 2012-2015, Justin went 80-34 with four playoff appearances and two
NCS Div. IV titles along with two trips to the semifinals.

The Braves went 15-14-1 in Greg Evans’ lone season in 2016, reaching the NCS Div. IV title
game before losing to Arcata. Justin has gone 14-34-1 the last two years under Jeremy Tayson.
The Braves, however, made a splash in the NCS Div. III playoffs as the No. 13 seed, upsetting
No. 4 Cardinal Newman. The Braves are 2-0 against Sonoma and 1-1 against both Napa and
American Canyon.

NAPA

The Indians compiled a 149-128 the last ten seasons, all under Todd Pridy, who resigned at
the end of the 2018 campaign after 17 years. Though Napa had losing seasons in 2010 (6-21),
2013 (13-14) and 2016 (12-16), the last ten seasons have mostly been a success.

The Indians won sole possession of the MEL title in 2009 and a share of it in 2012. In that ten
year stretch, Napa qualified for the postseason seven times, earning three victories along the
way. The Indians also had two seasons eclipsing the 20-win plateau and went 18-11 in 2017.
In head-to-head matchups, Napa went 6-2 against American Canyon, 1-1 against Justin, 0-3
against Casa Grande, 1-0 against Sonoma and 0-1 against Petaluma.

PETALUMA

The Trojans have been a picture of consistency the last ten seasons with a record of 154-94.
Petaluma went 118-75 under Paul Cochrun from 2009-2016 and 36-19 the last two years
under the guidance of James Selvitella, including a Sonoma County League title this season.

The Trojans have not had a losing season in that span but finished exactly .500 with a 13-13
mark in 2013. Petaluma has been to the postseason in eight of the last ten seasons, going 5-8.
The Trojans’ deepest playoff run in that stretch came in 2012 when reaching the NCS Div. II
semifinals before losing to Dougherty Valley. That season Petaluma reached the playoffs as
a No. 6 seed and upset rival No. 3 Casa Grande 13-3 along the way. Petaluma defeated Napa
4-3 in a 2017 matchup.

SONOMA

The Dragons have recorded a mark of 164-121 the past ten seasons, 2009-2017 under former
head coach Don Lyons. In Ian Slaney’s first season, 2018, the Dragons went 10-12 and
reached the NCS Div. III playoffs. Sonoma has reached the postseason eight of the previous
ten seasons, going 7-7 in playoff competition.

The Dragons reached the NCS Div. III semifinals three consecutive years from 2011-2013. In
2012 and 2013, Sonoma lost to the eventual champion, Acalanes. In head-to-head matchups,
the Dragons are 2-6 against Vintage, 1-0 against American Canyon, 0-2 against Justin and 0-1
against Napa.

VINTAGE

The Crushers went 152-114-2 between 2009-2018. The 2009 season was under Cam Neal, the
previous nine have been under Rich Anderson The Sequel. Anderson was also the Crushers
head coach from 1992-2006.

In the aforementioned ten-year span, Vintage reached the SJS playoffs six times, recording
wins in 2014 and 2015. The program enjoyed a spike from 2012-2016, going 91-48-1 in that
period. The last two seasons, however, the Crushers have hit a valley in going 23-29. In
head-to-head matchups, Vintage went 6-2 against Sonoma, 1-5 against Casa Grande and 4-1-1
against American Canyon.

Just a few things to unpack from NFL National Anthem ruling

Phrases like “Stick to sports” and “I watch sports to escape politics” are among two
commonly uttered narratives that have engulfed sports fandom the last two years.

Sports and politics have always intertwined but in today’s social media climate, the platform
is more visible.

In lieu of protests that took place during the National Anthem before games, the NFL
announced on Wednesday after a two-day meeting that involved all 32 owners that individual
teams are allowed to discipline players who protest publicly while the song is playing. Under
the new ruling, players are permitted to stay in the locker-room while the National Anthem is
playing but owners have said that those on the sideline will be expected to stand or face
disciplinary action.

In case you have been frozen into position at the North Pole for the last two years, the move
started with former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick became a national
figure when he started a firestorm

Kaepernick became a national figure when he ignited a firestorm of controversy by refusing
to stand while the National Anthem was being played before the start of NFL games. He
described his behavior as a protest against racial injustice and police brutality. His actions
prompted negative and positive responses. The negative responses included suggestions that
players who protest should be fired; other people displayed their disapproval of players'
protests by leaving the stadium immediately after the protests or refusing to watch games at
all. Positive responses included similar activity by additional athletes in the NFL and other
American sports leagues protesting in various ways during the National Anthem. In
November 2017, Kaepernick filed a grievance against the NFL and its owners, accusing
them of colluding to not hire him.

After listening to talk radio and reading social media posts, there are a few layers I unpack
from this decision:

First Amendment rights have time and place

Freedom of Speech is one of the most misunderstood notions that exist. The First
Amendment protects your right to say or express what you want. However, it does not
protect you from the ramifications of such expression.

No one is saying that professional athletes cannot use their time to be activists away from
their professional domain but it should be exactly that. Given that the new ruling permits
them to stay in the locker-room during the National Anthem, the players now have another
layer of freedom. Their protesting on company time actually gives them more freedom than
the average American.

As a white male, I completely acknowledge the following: a) I don’t what it’s like to be
black and nor can I pretend to do so, b) Black people experience more systemic racism than
white people in the United States, c) While they are many great police officers, police
brutality is an issue that should be taken seriously.

Fighting the good fight has a place and pro athletes should do so but not on company time. In
the real world, you risk losing your job if what you do is bad for business. That’s true whether
you are a professional athlete, insurance salesman or a tow truck driver. NFL ratings dropped
by about 10% last season, at least in part based on the National Anthem protests. There were
also various business that dropped sponsorship and advertising. That would qualify as
effecting the bottom line.   

NFL owners are no different than any other business owners. The bottom line is how they are
judged. If I own a business that is losing money, you bet your tail I’m making changes.

Delusion of Reality

I’m not one that complains about how much money professional athletes make and I won’t
start now. I also don’t buy the narrative that because of the money they make, they should
keep quiet. Keep in mind, many of them came from impoverished backgrounds so they have
seen both ends of the spectrum more so than most people.

However, given the fact that NFL players are guaranteed 47 percent of defined revenue and
that the average career span lasts four seasons, toeing the line for a few years is not too much
to ask.

As a delivery driver for a water company, I wear a uniform and have my company name on
the truck I drive. If I walk into your home or business wearing a political hat (never mind
of it’s Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton) or make any verbal statements, I guarantee that you
will look at me sideways and say, “What the hell, Vince. You came here to set up a cooler
and deliver products, not preach politics.”

Your decision to stand is yours

I saw the most nonsensical Facebook meme the other day that read “I’ll take a knee with
Colin Kaepernick before I stand with Donald Trump.” If that is not the most moronically
politicized statement, I don’t know what is. The American flag has absolutely nothing to do
with party line affiliation.

I was interviewed by my local newspaper before the Super Bowl. The paper was doing a
feature story rounding up reactions of fans who either had stopped watching football or
continued to watch amid the National Anthem protests.

My stance has been consistent. No political figure will ever convince me to stop watching
football. No professional athlete will ever convince me not to honor my country. No other
person will ever convince me to hate another person.

Though I have utmost respect for the United States military, my reason to stand actually has
little to do with them. My reason stems from being first generation American. I know much
of family took a big risk coming to the United States from Italy. I’d feel like I was spiting
them if I was not standing.

I stood for the National Anthem long before Kaepernick and Trump were at the forefront of
this issue and I will do so long after they fade into oblivion. Those two clowns deserve each
other but I digress.

I’m in favor of the new ruling on principle but the unintended consequence I can see now is
that the politicalization of the issue is only going to worsen.