Martins named Southern League football MVP for second consecutive year

The Orestimba football team has the wooden Chief trophy, the Southern League championship and most of its individual awards, too.

Austin Martins was named the league MVP for a second straight year and was joined on the podium by a host of other Warriors, punctuating the greatest season in program history.

Aaron Souza was named Coach of the Year, quarterback Joe Sheldon was the Best Offensive Player and Homar Ruiz collected the Offensive Lineman of the Year honor.

The Warriors won their first 11 games before suffering a season-ending 62-6 defeat at Sonora in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division V semifinal.

Though tears flowed in the wake of that defeat in the Mother Lode, history had already been made on the Central Valley floor. The Warriors became the first team in program history to finish the regular season 10-0, and then followed that feat by hosting and winning a playoff game at Roger Pauletto Field.

“People are still buzzing to this day. They’ll be buzzing for months in regards to this season,” Souza said. “We had certain goals we wanted to get done. We wanted to win conference. We wanted to get the Chief back. And we wanted to host and win a playoff game. Every goal we set forth we truly accomplished. This won’t be a season we think ‘what if.’ We did it all.”

The outright league title was the program’s first in 34 years, and Martins established single-season and career marks for rushing yards. He surpassed the totals set by Steven Machado, completing his senior season with 2,081 yards and 3,487 in two varsity seasons.

Martins was one of three players in the Stanislaus District to rush for more than 2,000 yards, joining reigning Bee Player of the Year Justin Rice of Central Catholic (2,698) and Gustine rival Brandon Labry (2,199).

Martins was also a first-team linebacker.

“Austin is the best football player to ever go to this school,” Souza said. “The numbers speak for themselves. The reality is this was the best team to play at this school, and he’s the best player on the best team. By that logic, he’s the best player to ever wear the purple and gold.”

Labry was named the Southern League’s Best Defensive Player. The Redskins’ middle linebacker finished with 124 tackles, including 16.5 for a loss, five forced fumbles and one interception, spearheading one of the district’s stingiest units. Labry was also a first-team selection at running back.

Gustine teammate Fabian Morales, a 5-foot-8, 185-pound senior, was named Defensive Lineman of the Year.

The Redskins (10-2, 6-1) were awarded nine first-team selections, the most in the Southern League. Joining Labry and Morales on the first team were: defensive backs Joey Reyes and Trever Flores; defensive end Jeremiah Laupua, also an all-league first-team pick at tight end; and offensive linemen Lio and Lolo Banuelos.

Ripon Christian (9-3 5-3), whose only two regular-season losses were nail-biters to Orestimba and Gustine, had five first-team selections: defensive back Connor McGovern; defensive lineman Chad Kamper; offensive lineman Eron Roen; tight end Ty Beidleman; and wide receiver Jonah Lewis.

Mariposa (5-5, 4-3) finished fourth in league. Defensive back Jake Mayberry, defensive end Jacob Baca and defensive lineman Jason Boyer were named on the first team, while wide receiver Zack Smith was the lone offensive representative for the Grizzlies.

Sheldon was the most versatile offensive weapon in the Southern League and one of just two quarterbacks in the district to rush for 1,000 yards.

The 6-foot-2, 195-pound senior closed his career with 1,553 yards through the air, 1,266 on the ground and 39 total touchdowns. He highlighted the Warriors’ 21-13 victory over Gustine, a game that pitted two 9-0 teams against one another for the wooden Chief and the league title.

Sheldon rushed for a game-high 183 yards and two touchdowns in front of a standing-room-only crowd. Few knew he had injured his leg on the second play, too.

“No matter how bad he felt, he was going to finish that game,” Souza said. “The way he played in the second half is something people will talk about for years.”

Two years after posting a 1-9 record, Souza led the Warriors to their first 10-win season.

While winning games with an explosive offense, the third-generation Orestimba graduate also rallied the alumni. He invited hundreds of former Warriors to join in the record-setting ride, hosting an alumni night against Delhi and asking others to speak to the team before games.

Souza took over the program in 2010 and has a career record of 34-31. His teams have finished above the .500 mark three times after posting at least six consecutive sub-.500 seasons before his arrival.

Defensive lineman Toby Silva and offensive lineman Antoine Richardson rounded out Orestimba’s first-team selections.

“I feel lucky to be leading the charge,” Souza said. “This year was epic.”

This story was originally published December 23, 2015 at 4:45 PM with the headline "Martins named Southern League football MVP for second consecutive year."