Mateo Williams received the Bishop Diego Phil Womble Ethics in Sports award to headline a light agenda at the Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table Press Luncheon on Monday at Harry’s Plaza Cafe.
Williams was honored at the top of the program and was followed by local track & field, volleyball, tennis, swim and golf teams providing updates as they have reached key points in their seasons.
The weekly SBART luncheon is presented by Maho Prentice LLP, Investec and Fidelity National Title Group Santa Barbara.
Mateo Williams Wins Phil Womble Ethics in Sports Award
Williams’ dedication to the Cardinals’ football and basketball programs on and off the field and court were rewarded on Monday when he received the Phil Womble Ethics in Sports Award.
As it states on the SBART website, “This award acknowledges student-athletes who value and incorporate into their daily lives, the following qualities: accountability, respect of teammates, opponents, and officials, honesty, positive attitude, reliability, loyalty, sportsmanship, others above self, and team above personal interest.”
The junior has grown into his role as a leader on campus, taking on the role of a team captain for the Bishop Diego football team.
“The award is accountability, respect to teammates, honesty, positive attitude, which [Williams] really has. Reliability, which is huge. It doesn’t matter how good you are, but you’ve got to be reliable and [Williams] is,” Bishop Diego athletic director John Muller said.
“If you have a guy that’s got a great workout ethic, may not be the fastest, may not be the biggest and the strongest, but if they’re going to be there every day, your best ability is your reliability and your availability.”
Bishop Diego head football coach Tom Crawford was unable to attend the luncheon, but Muller had some words to say on his behalf regarding Williams.
“Mateo is a pleasure to coach, not just because he is coachable, but because he holds himself to a high standard in terms of work ethic, performance and modeling of team standards,” Crawford said. “He demonstrates the desire to continually improve and quietly sets its tone for his teammates in his consistency and effort.
“Mateo is very respectful of opponents and officials, always demonstrating sportsmanship and integrity in his interactions with others. We’re proud to see him selected for this prestigious award.”
Williams holds a 3.38 GPA and is taking US History, Chemistry American Literature, Intermediate Multimedia and Theology. He hopes to continue both his athletic and academic careers in college.
“I would like to thank my mom and dad for making me the man I am today,” Williams said. “I’d like to thank Coach Muller, Coach Crawford and Ms. (Karen) Regan for presenting this award to me and recognizing me for it.”
Williams is the final of eight Phil Womble Ethics in Sports Award winners for this school year, joining Santa Barbara High’s Elina Stump, Dos Pueblos’ Logan Pearce, Cate’s Maddie Kollock, Providence’s Gavin Rutland, Carpinteria’s Hazel Dugre, Laguna Blanca’s Carolina Duron Angeles and San Marcos’ Lily Ruvalcaba.
The award is sponsored by Dave Pintard of the Pintard Group.
Track & Field Season Heats Up
The track & field season is nearing the end of the league dual meet portion of the schedule, with the local Channel League teams competing in their final league meets this week.
San Marcos, Dos Pueblos and Santa Barbara High squared off for a city championship meet last week at Warkentin Stadium, and the Royals emerged with the sweep of their crosstown rivals.
“Really great competition, really good atmosphere,” San Marcos track & field coach Marilyn Hantgin said of the city meet. “It was fun to see kids who have known (each other) growing up competing with each other, all over the track. It was really a fun day.”
While the local trio of Channel League schools will compete in the Mt. San Antonio College Relays on Saturday, the smaller local schools will compete in the 106th annual Russell Cup at Carpinteria High.
The Russell Cup is the oldest ongoing high school track & field meet in California, according to Carpinteria head coach Van Latham. There will be 40 small schools from all over California, including locals Bishop Diego, Providence and Santa Ynez.
“We’re looking for a great meet,” Latham said. “It’s always a fun community event and it looks like there’s going to be great weather. It’s going to be fun all day at Carpinteria Valley Memorial Stadium.”
At the college level, Santa Barbara City College track & field is entering its five-week championship season. For the next five weekends, the Vaqueros will compete in the WSC Prelims, the WSC Finals, the SoCal Prelims, the SoCal Finals and the State Championship meet.
“We’ve got a five-week grind,” SBCC Track & Field head coach Don Willis said.So from this point on, you’re fighting to compete every week from now on. That’s what we as coaches love. That’s what [the athletes] love.”
Rivalry Games Ahead
It’s another busy week of crosstown rivalry action as the spring sports season heads into the final month of the regular season for many sports. Here are the top matchups in town.
Tuesday
- San Marcos @ Dos Pueblos Boys Tennis, 3 p.m.
- Dos Pueblos @ Santa Barbara Baseball, 3:30 p.m.
- San Marcos @ Cate Boys Lacrosse, 6 p.m.
- Cate @ San Marcos Girls Lacrosse, 6 p.m.
- Dos Pueblos @ San Marcos Boys Volleyball, 6:30 p.m.
Thursday
- Santa Barbara @ San Marcos Boys Golf, 2 p.m.
- San Marcos @ Santa Barbara Boys Tennis, 3 p.m.
- San Marcos @ Dos Pueblos Boys Lacrosse, 6 p.m.
- Cate @ Santa Barbara Boys Lacrosse, 6 p.m.
- Dos Pueblos @ San Marcos Girls Lacrosse, 6 p.m.
- Santa Barbara @ Cate Girls Lacrosse, 6 p.m.
Friday
- Santa Barbara @ Dos Pueblos Baseball, 3:30 p.m.
Student-Athletes in Attendance
Bishop Diego Football, Basketball: Mateo Williams
San Marcos Boys Volleyball: Matteo Burdick, Kalae Anderson
San Marcos Track & Field: Samara Shalhoub, Layla Llewellyn, Elsie Tuttle, Autumn Richardson
SBCC Track & Field: Marley Nacco
San Marcos Boys Tennis: Nico Holve, Gavin Mast
Bishop Diego Track & Field: Remi Boykin, Connor Boyd, Gabe Phillips, Abby Walters
Bishop Diego Swim: Tierney Clark
Carpinteria High Boys Tennis: Servando Campuzano, Edwin Hernandez
Carpinteria High Boys Volleyball: Cole Rowbottom, Rafael Cintura
Carpinteria High Track & Field: Kiana Kiah, Josiah Gonzales, Leighla Richter
San Marcos Boys Golf: Ethan Klawuhn