Lopez: Another year of the Trans-Valley League showing why it’s so successful
Two Stanislaus District teams won CIF Sac-Joaquin Section titles on Nov. 30 and both play in CIF State NorCal games on this weekend.
I’m not surprised that both are from the Trans-Valley League.
Ripon (12-1) will face Sutter in Division 4-AA on Friday. Escalon (12-1) travels to Pleasant Valley on Saturday.
Ripon won a Division V section title last weekend while Escalon won the Division VI championship, giving the league six championships since 2010.
It’s been a decade to remember for the TVL as 2016 was the only year where the league didn’t reach a section final.
“It’s a traditional small-school, small town league,” CalHiSports.com editor Mark Tennis said. “It’s the best small-school league in the state.”
So what makes the league so dominant?
“A lot of the schools in the TVL are part of one-school towns with strong community support and a strong infrastructure,” SJS Assistant Commissioner Will DeBoard said. “Kids in those towns grow up watching the high school team and they want to play for that high school team. There’s a strong sense of continuity that doesn’t start when you enroll at the school.”
DeBoard also added schools like Escalon, Hilmar, and Hughson have kids who are third- or fourth-generation members of their families to play at the school.
Escalon, Hilmar, and Hughson also have strong youth football programs.
“We have a good history of football and success that has gone back for years,” Ripon senior quarterback Nico Ilardi said. “We don’t have a lot of kids that leave our towns and go to other schools.”
The teams in the league are also successful because they play three to four “playoff-like” games in league each year when they play each other.
It’s evident the rest of the state has seen how strong the league is with the seeding of Escalon and Ripon in the state playoffs.
While the Sac-Joaquin Section looks at enrollment for seeding, the CIF State uses a competitive equity model that factors in strength of program, strength of schedule, and postseason success.
Hilmar cruised to a CIF State Division 6-AA title last year and Escalon coach Andrew Beam thought his Cougars might be in Division 5.
Instead both Escalon and Ripon are in Division 4.
“The type of competition we face in the TVL each year breads success in the playoffs,” Beam said.
As Modesto Bee football writer Jim Silva says: “Never pick against the TVL.”
I did plenty of times this year and there’s a reason Jim had a better record in our predictions.
Pleasant Valley scouting report: Escalon coach Andrew Beam said Pleasant Valley is the “largest” challenge that Escalon has faced in the last nine years.
The other game he mentioned was the 2010 state championship against Madison of San Diego in which the Cougars won, 30-14.
“They’re one of the most successful teams we have ever played,” Beam said.
Vikings senior linemen Josh Anderson (6 feet 5 inches, 280 pounds) and Aidan Finney (6-7, 290 pounds) are two players who will present challenges for the Cougars.
“Physically, they are biggest team we will have played,” Beam said.
To find out more about Pleasant Valley, I spoke with Chico Enterprise-Record sports reporter Will Denner to get his thoughts on the Vikings, who have won two state titles in the last three years.
The Vikings started 2-3 and although they didn’t win the Eastern Athletic League, they beat Chico, 24-3 in the Northern Section Division II championship on Nov. 30.
“What makes them successful, in my opinion, is their ability to consistently prepare for and come through in games with the highest stakes,” Denner said. “Two years in a row now, they’ve been unable to secure the EAL title, making them the No. 2 seed last year and No. 3 seed this year for the section playoffs. In both instances, they’ve been able to defeat a team that they lost to in the regular season.”
Some Vikings players to watch according to Denner are:
- Senior Austin York: Primarily plays tight end and linebacker but had 175 rushing yards and three touchdowns last week.
- Junior Sean Saise: Started at quarterback but moved over to receiver and also plays defensive back. Had two big plays in the section championship win.
- Senior Dane Jackson: The team’s kicker and punter, Jackson, is 28-for-28 on PATs and 8-for-10 on field goals with a long of 47 yards. Of his 39 kickoffs, only three have not been touchbacks.
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CIF State 4-A NorCal Championship
Escalon (12-1) at Pleasant Valley (7-5)
Date: Saturday, Dec. 7
Location: Pleasant Valley High School in Chico
Time: 6 p.m.
Ticket prices: Tickets are $12 for adults and $8 for high school students (with a valid ASB card), seniors (65 years old and older) and children.
Trans-Valley League teams to win section titles since 2010
| School | Year | Division |
| Escalon | 2010 | 4 |
| Hilmar | 2011 | 4 |
| Hilmar | 2017 | 6 |
| Hilmar | 2018 | 6 |
| Ripon | 2019 | 5 |
| Escalon | 2019 | 6 |
