UCSB soccer’s Sofie Rodriguez was named the school’s Scholar-Athlete of the Year and high school spring sports teams competing in the postseason headlined the final Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table Luncheon of the school year on Monday at Harry’s Plaza Cafe.
Monday’s luncheon also marked Bryan Cornet’s final luncheon as the SBART president. He will be replaced as president by current SBART CFO Gabe Gradcolas following the Evening with the Athletes event on June 1st.
“It’s been the greatest honor of my life (to be SBART president). Thank you all for being here week after week,” Cornet said to open the luncheon.
“Bryan has done an incredible job leading the organization and our press luncheons for the last two years. There’s a lot that goes on here behind the scenes that Bryan takes care of every day,” Gradcolas said.
The weekly SBART luncheon is presented by Maho Prentice LLP, Investec and Fidelity National Title Group Santa Barbara.
Sofie Rodriguez Named UCSB Scholar-Athlete of the Year
Rodriguez was honored as UCSB’s Scholar-Athlete of the Year after rounding out her career as a Gaucho defender in style last fall.
She was named an All-Big West First Team selection for the 2025 season after appearing in all 23 matches and leading the team with a career-high 2,014 minutes played.
In her junior season in 2024, Rodriguez earned an All-Big West Honorable Mention nod and was awarded the Big West Championship match co-MVP.
Off the field, Rodriguez has been a committed member of the UCSB women’s soccer program and boasts a 3.4 cumulative GPA.
“This is my first [luncheon] I’ve been to, and I’m very thankful to be here for the recognition. Thank you,” Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez is the last of 11 Scholar-Athletes of the Year for this school year, joining Dos Pueblos’ Elliot McGuire, Laguna Blanca’s Bennett Sullivan, Providence’s Annika Haugen, Bishop Diego’s Jaymi Coronado, Carpinteria High’s Vivian Huskins, San Marcos’ Rio Chesluk, Santa Barbara High’s Dane Polchin, Cate’s Jae Wykoff, SBCC’s Luke Steinert and Westmont’s Thomas Reed
The award is sponsored by Marc Gamberdella of the Gamberdella-Spruill Group of Merrill Lynch.
Baseball, Softball Teams Begin Quests for CIF-SS Titles
Five local high school baseball teams and a pair of softball squads will begin their CIF-SS playoff runs this week after a long regular season that began in February.
On the baseball diamond, San Marcos and Bishop Diego will have their playoff openers on Thursday at 3:15 p.m. The Royals will host Grand Terrace in D4, while the Cardinals will be on the road against Nordoff in D8.
Three more teams will begin on Friday at 3:15 p.m., with Santa Barbara High playing host to Loara in the first round of the D5 playoffs. Meanwhile, Dos Pueblos will be on the road against Burroughs (Burbank) in D3 and Carpinteria will head south to take on Flintridge Prep in D7.
“We think it’s a good matchup for us, but it’s baseball and anything can happen,” Dos Pueblos baseball head coach George Hedricks said of their first-round draw. “We’re hoping to go down there and hopefully win and get a home game on top of that next week.”
As for the softball postseason, the Santa Barbara area will be represented by co-Channel League champion Dos Pueblos and San Marcos, which placed fourth in the Channel League. Both teams will open the playoffs at home on Friday, with DP starting at 3:15 p.m. and SM kicking off at 4 p.m.
The Chargers are set to host Crescenta Valley in D3, while the Royals will roll out the welcome mat for Leuzinger in D5.
“We’re feeling really confident going forward, and hopefully have a lot of softball ahead of us,” San Marcos softball head coach Emily Dietz said.
Student-Athletes in Attendance
UCSB Women’s Soccer: Sofie Rodriguez
San Marcos Baseball: Alex Bagaw, Charlie Le Renard
San Marcos Softball: Reese Large, Isa Malarkey
Dos Pueblos Baseball: Spencer Holtz, Jason Holtz, Luke Jackson
Santa Barbara High Track & Field: Elina Stump, Malachi Johnston, Shea Gannon, Jarrod Shalhoob Conaway
Bishop Diego Swim: Tierney Clark
Bishop Diego Baseball: Josh Lopez, George Guzman
Bishop Diego Boys Volleyball: John Michael Flint
Santa Barbara High Baseball: Tanner Wilson, Brandon Weaver
San Marcos Swim: Cole Racich