Munoz hired as interim boys basketball coach at McFarland
Feb. 11—While still trying to recover from a difficult week, McFarland High announced Friday morning that Manny Munoz will serve as interim boys basketball coach for the remainder of the season.
Munoz, the Cougars' head football coach since August 2020, is a teacher on campus and tasked with providing leadership for a program still reeling from the death of popular coach and teacher Fernando Alaniz.
The Wasco resident died Monday after he experienced a medical emergency while preparing for a class at McFarland High where he taught and coached. No students were in the classroom at the time of the incident, according to school officials. He was 49.
McFarland (13-12, 3-6) finished the South Sequoia League season tied for sixth, but is currently slated to participate in the Central Section playoffs, which start next week.
While brackets are scheduled to be unveiled Saturday afternoon, the Cougars are expected to earn a lower seed in Division V.
Munoz will join Dwight Curry, who served as interim coach this week, and assistant Skyler Henson on the McFarland staff.
Hoop dreams
Bakersfield Christian and Bakersfield High continued their dominance in local basketball, with the Eagles boys team and Driller girls clinching their fifth straight league championships this week.
BCHS (18-9, 9-1) won the outright South Yosemite League crown with a 64-31 victory at Golden Valley (17-8, 6-4) on Thursday, and is now a favorite to garner a top seed in Division I when the Central Section brackets are unveiled Saturday.
BHS (23-2, 9-0) closed out its regular season against second-place Liberty (20-4, 7-2) on Friday, where the Drillers took a 23-game Southwest Yosemite League win streak. Bakersfield's last SWYL defeat came at home to Garces, 58-53, on Jan. 24, 2019.
Mira Monte (17-9, 9-0) and Chavez also extended streaks, with the Lions' girls team winning its third consecutive Southeast Yosemite League title and the Titans (14-11, 7-2) taking their third straight South Sequoia boys championship with a 55-39 victory over Shafter (8-14, 6-2) on Thursday.
Chavez's victory came in a unique fashion. With all the postponements due to COVID-19 health and safety protocols, the SSL opted to have a league tournament, seeding the teams and then playing on four consecutive nights this week, with the Titans defeating the Generals in the boys final at Chavez.
McFarland (14-6, 8-0) won the girls championship, its first since 2019, with a 63-56 victory over Arvin (14-10, 6-2) in the tournament final on Thursday at Shafter.
The Centennial and South High boys teams and Bakersfield Christian girls also snapped droughts by winning their respective leagues.
The Golden Hawks (19-7, 9-0) haven't lost in 2022, cruising to their first first SWYL title since 2016. Centennial closed out its regular season on Friday against Frontier (12-11, 4-5), and is expected to receive a high seed for the Division I playoffs.
The Spartans (18-8, 9-1) won a hard-fought, physical contest against North (15-10, 8-2) to clinch their first SEYL championship since 2017, while the Eagles girls posted a 52-48 victory over Golden Valley (18-7, 4-6) to capture their first SYL title since 2019. BCHS (16-11, 7-3) earned the outright title when West defeated Tehachapi 50-35, leaving Bakersfield Christian alone at the top of the standings.
On the pitch
In boys soccer, Chavez (15-5-4, 11-0-1) completed an historic run in winning the school's first league title in boys soccer, closing SSL play with a 2-1 victory over Kennedy on Wednesday.
Stockdale and Garces faced off Friday night, with the SWYL boys championship hanging in the balance. Both teams entered the match at 8-0-1, having tied 0-0 in their previous meeting.
Golden Valley won its first SYL title since 2018, finishing off a 9-1 league record with a 3-0 victory over Bakersfield Christian on Thursday. The Bulldogs (15-4-1) snapped Ridgeview's string of SYL crowns at five. The two teams shared the title in 2018.
Foothill (17-5-2, 8-1-1) won its third straight SEYL title, closing out the regular season with a 1-1 tie with Mira Monte on Thursday.
In girls soccer action, East (19-6-1) won its first league title since 2016 when it finished 9-1 in the SYL. This time around, the Blades went 9-1 to win the SEYL, unseating the defending champions, Highland, along the way.
Stockdale and Bakersfield played Friday night with the SWYL championship hanging in the balance. The Mustangs (17-0-2, 8-0-1) defeated the Drillers (17-3, 8-1) two weeks ago, 2-0.
Independence (15-1-5) won its fourth SYL title in the last five years with a perfect 10-0 run in league play.
Arvin won its first SSL title since 2019, and appears prepared for another long playoff run. The Bears (16-4-1), the three-time defending section D-VI champions, will likely have to try their hand at Division V this season. Current computer rankings have the team ranked 81st, which would force Arvin to play up one division.
On the mat
Hundreds of local wrestlers will be in action through the Central Valley with section qualifying meets scheduled for Friday and Saturday.
Division III Madera South) and IV (Madera-Matilda Torres) meets opened on Friday with divisions I (Clovis East), II Porterville-Monache) and V (Matilda Torres) starting Saturday morning. Qualifiers will compete Feb. 18-19 in the section meet at North High, followed by the CIF State Championships, Feb. 24-26, at Mechanics Bank Arena.
Area girls competed in the Central Section Area tournament on Friday in Clovis East, with qualifiers moving on to the section championships, Feb. 19 in Lemoore. Results were not available by press time, but will be posted online Saturday and featured in Sunday's The Bakersfield Californian.
