From the high school tennis courts to the Paris Olympics, 2024 was an eventful year for Santa Barbara sports.
Noozhawk was there to cover all of the biggest games and storylines in town, and here are some of the top stories from the past 12 months.
CIF-SS Playoff Success
Andreas Dybdahl Repeats as CIF State Champion in 1,600-meter race
Andreas Dybdahl, who is now running at UCLA, put an exclamation point on his career as a Santa Barbara High Don with his second straight state championship in the 1,600-meter race in the spring.
With his first-place finish and time of 4:08.23, Dybdahl became the first repeat champion in the event since Stockade’s Blake Haney in 2013 and 2014.
Santa Barbara High Girls Tennis Wins CIF-SS Div. 3 Title
The Dons capped off a stellar 2024 season with a CIF-SS Div. 3 championship victory over Santa Monica this November.
Santa Barbara High got contributions from up and down its lineup throughout the season, including standout play from the sister duo of Caitlyn and Nicole Buist.
It was a challenging road to the title for the Dons, as they were on the road for four out of their five playoff games and traveled over 1,000 miles across Southern California throughout the playoffs.
Providence Girls Tennis Captures CIF-SS Div. 6 Championship
Despite the rarity of winning a CIF-SS title, the Santa Barbara area earned another championship in girls tennis after the Patriots finished atop the Div. 6 playoff bracket.
The championship win rounded out a perfect team season for Providence, who ended with an overall record of 13-0.
Bishop Diego Girls Volleyball Reaches CIF-SS Div. 3 Title Game
The Cardinals enjoyed one of the best seasons in program history in 2024, falling in the CIF-SS Div. 3 title to a strong Long Beach Poly team after a 23-7 regular season and a Tri-Valley League championship.
Seniors Eliana Urzua and Nicole Schuetz, both Division I-bound players, came together for one final ride in their high school careers and shined for the Cardinals all year.
The duo was lifted up by many young stars on this year’s team as well, showcasing the bright future ahead for Bishop Diego girls volleyball.
Dos Pueblos Boys Lacrosse Makes Program History
The Chargers put the 805 on the map when it comes to lacrosse in the CIF Southern Section this spring, reaching the CIF-SS Semifinals for the first time in program history.
The Dos Pueblos squad was a force to be reckoned with all year, finishing with an undefeated Channel League record while outscoring opponents 265-87 in 16 games played.
Santa Barbara Boys Basketball Shines in Deep Playoff Run
The Dons went on a magical late-season run of their own early in 2024, falling in the final minutes of the CIF-SS Div. 3A Semifinals to Bosco Tech.
The playoff run capped off a historic season for Luke Zuffelato, who hit a game-winner in the quarterfinal game and set several program records to lead the team to a 24-9 record and a co-Channel League championship.
Biggest Games of the Year
The Big Game Ends in Historic 20-20 Tie
For the first time in the 64-year history of The Big Game Rivalry, Santa Barbara High and San Marcos ended their annual gridiron clash in a tie this September.
The non-league matchup ended in controversy as San Marcos head coach Ralph Molina was content with the game ending in a tie while Santa Barbara High head coach Nate Mendoza wanted the game to continue.
If the two head coaches cannot reach an agreement, the game ends in a tie per CIF-SS guidelines. So, the game ended in a 20-20 tie and the all-time rivalry record now stands at 39-24-1 in favor of the Dons.
UCSB Baseball Defeats Fresno State in Santa Barbara Regional Opener
The Gauchos put on a show for the largest crowd in Caesar Uyesaka Stadium history in June, defeating Fresno State in the Santa Barbara Regional opener in front of 2,110 total fans.
Jessada Brown powered the UCSB offense in the win, including a first-inning home run that sent a wave of electricity through the crowd behind home plate and in the newly-added outfield bleachers.
Brown’s two-homer night paired with a strong all-around performance from the Gauchos gave them a 9-6 victory to get the weekend started on the right note.
San Marcos Pulls Out Dramatic Flag Football Win Over Dos Pueblos
Girls flag football has exploded in popularity across the nation, and Santa Barbara has shown over the past two years that it is ripe with talent at the high school level.
That talent was on full display in the inaugural Channel League Girls Flag Football Tournament, including an electric battle between rivals San Marcos and Dos Pueblos in the league semifinals.
The Royals and Chargers exchanged haymakers down the stretch as there were three lead changes in the final two minutes of play. In the end, San Marcos pulled out a 34-33 win with a touchdown and extra-point conversion with 18 seconds left.
AFC Bournemouth, Wrexham AFC Square Off at Harder Stadium
The Santa Barbara soccer community got a preview of what professional soccer will look like in town in a matchup between AFC Bournemouth and Wrexham AFC at Harder Stadium in July.
Harder Stadium was packed to the brim with 13,322 fans to watch a 1-1 draw in the exhibition matchup, a good sign for the future of Santa Barbara Sky FC, a club set to begin play in 2026.
Biggest Storylines of the Year
Santa Barbara Sky FC Set to Debut in 2026 in USL Championship
Speaking of Santa Barbara Sky FC, the organization made several important announcements throughout 2024 after years of anticipation building within the community.
The professional soccer organization will kick off in the USL Championship Division in 2026 with the home field of UCSB’s Harder Stadium.
Until then, Santa Barbara Sky will work towards improving Harder Stadium and forming a squad full of players from across the world to compete in one of the top leagues in the nation.
UCSB Baseball Hosts First-Ever Regional at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium
After beginning the season without a field to play on due to a denied renovation during the offseason and winter rains in Santa Barbara, the Gauchos turned their year around and were named one of 16 regional hosts for the NCAA Baseball Tournament.
It wasn’t an easy process, however, as Caesar Uyesaka Stadium went through several changes before welcoming Fresno State, Oregon and San Diego into town.
From outfield bleachers to changes to the concession area behind home plate, UCSB showed why the program belongs in the same conversation as the top baseball schools in the nation.
CIF-SS Approves Change in Playoff Format
The high school sports playoff format was shaken up in a major way in 2024, as all team sports have now adopted the football format.
Now, teams will be placed into their playoff divisions based on the results from the current season and computer rankings instead of divisions based on results of previous seasons.
With one full season of sports in the books, the change in playoff format seems to have fostered more competitive and evenly matched games in the CIF-SS playoffs.
Ryann Neushul Competes for Team USA Water Polo at Paris Olympics
The Neushul family made it a perfect 3-for-3 on Olympic water polo players when Ryann, the youngest of three who all attended Dos Pueblos, was named to the Team USA Women’s Water Polo team for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Although this year’s squad did not come home with the gold medal, the Neushuls cemented themselves as one of the best Olympic families of all time.
Ryann Neushul’s Olympic selection also marked five straight Olympic Games in which a Santa Barbara local competes for the Team USA Women’s Water Polo team.