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Tag: Freddie Bryant

  • San Juan Spartans reflect on season with 1st league title in 10 years

    San Juan Spartans reflect on season with 1st league title in 10 years

    San Juan Spartans. // Image courtesy, Nanik Tagore

    By Nanik Tagore–
    The San Juan Spartans finished their 2021-2022 season strong after a rocky start in the preseason, but came up short in the playoffs.

    From last month: San Juan boys varsity wins League Championship for Devin Johnson

    Spirits were high heading into the playoff matchup against Calaveras High School. San Juan was slotted as the 15th seed with Calaveras slotted as the 2nd seed.

    From the jump Calaveras came out hot shooting the rock at a high clip. San Juan Shooting Guard Narco Gallon kept the Spartans in the game with multiple three point buckets. Calaveras pulled away going into the second quarter and the Spartans were never able to regain ground, losing 74-52.

    “Losing and knowing the season was over was tough, but I took all the positives we had this season and really shed a light on that,” Coach Jermaine Galloway said.

    Heading into the locker rooms, the Spartans were visibly defeated, knowing this was the end of the year.

    “I am just grateful that our team showed up and tried our best, regardless of the loss,” Junior wing player Ryan Martin said.”At the end of the day we will always be league champions.“

    As previously reported, San Juan defeated Casa Roble 69-48 to secure a spot in the playoffs on Feb. 16.

    The strong finish boosted the team’s morale after a slow preseason, losing eight out of 12 games. With excellent coaching by Head Coach Freddie Bryant paired with leadership from team captains, the Spartans were able to rally together eight straight league wins ultimately winning their first league championship in 10 years.

    “The most memorable moment was the overtime win over Golden Sierra and beating Vacaville Christian in an away game,” Junior Wing Sam Silchuk said.

    “I have always believed in scheduling a competitive preseason for the boys because it would always prepare us to deal with league,” said Coach Bryant, describing the rocky start to the season. “Watching the growth of these young men this season was the ultimate pay. I am filled with pride!”

    Coach Galloway, who came aboard San Juan’s coaching staff September 2021, said he believed the Spartans rebuilt the San Juan name, an important goal for the San Juan alumni.

    “The season was an absolute success,” Coach Galloway said. “The young men accomplished amazing things winning the 1st league title in 10 years.”

    *This article was published as part of a new collaborative effort launched by The Sentinel to cover local sports, featuring articles written by student journalists from Citrus Heights high schools.

  • San Juan Spartans (8-7) wrap-up 2019, look forward to league play

    Wyatt Winalski from the charity stripe, sinking the free throw. // Marcus D. Smith

    *Note: Sports stories are now a premium article accessible only by The Sentinel’s paid subscribers. To subscribe today for just $4/mo., click here.

    Marcus D. Smith—
    For San Juan High School, the last game of 2019 against Foothill High School was one they’d like to put behind them as the varsity boys team gears up for league play in 2020, beginning Jan. 10.

    It was simply a sluggish start from the beginning of the Dec. 30 game for San Juan. The holiday stretch proved to be too much time away from the court as the Spartans struggled to find a rhythm against the Mustangs.

    This was one of those games that can easily go overlooked with the timing of it on the schedule. Some players still seemingly on a rush from Christmas, others looking forward to the New Year, while some players were battling a cold. The overall focus was not necessarily on basketball, and from pregame warm-ups to opening tip-off, you could notice the energy was not present.

    “[E]ven before the game, just the way that we warmed up. I look at body language… I could honestly just see it right off the back,” said San Juan High School Varsity Head Coach Freddie Bryant. “So when you’re not doing the little things, you’re not going to come up with the big victory that you need at the end.”

    By the end of the first quarter, the score was only 14-9, but a 24-point quarter from Foothill High School opened the gates for a lopsided boxscore. It didn’t help that the Spartans only manged to register seven team points in the second quarter.

    They weren’t able to recover from that second quarter and would lose the game by a final score of 71-33, making them an overall 8-7 on the season. This game was the team’s first game since Dec. 21. The nine-day layoff was the Spartans’ the longest span without playing a game.

    “You knew this was going to be hard, but I didn’t think it was going to be this bad,” said Bryant. “But we showed that we haven’t been at practice, guys have been sick. It’s just it hasn’t been a merry Christmas and a happy new year for us so far, as far as that goes.”

    The second half was not much different than the first. They outscored 36-15 in the final 16 minutes of the game. Whether it was the anticipation of the new year, or simply that the game was the Monday after the holiday week.

    “This is the hardest time of the year,” said Bryant. “I knew it coming in, you don’t want to schedule too many games during the break just for the simple fact, kids are gone, kids are out of town, and you know you want to respect the fact, the family and everything.”

    With the year coming to an end, and the team can move on to focus on their true task for the season, which is hopes to win a league championship. He has the team motivated to succeed in all of their endeavors. They understand what their potential is, as well as their limitations on their abilities.

    “League is up for grabs this year, and if we don’t get it together then we’re going to find ourselves kind of in the middle of pack,” Bryant continued. “But hopefully we can get it together so we can, you know, be at the top of league the way that we need to.”

    The Spartans will have several home games to rectify errors and get their rhythm back when they play Franklin (Stockton) on Jan. 3 and Cornerstone Christian on Jan. 8.

    These will be the final two non-conference games of the season for San Juan High School with league play beginning on Jan. 10 when they go on the road against Highlands High School.

    Marcus D. Smith
    Marcus D. Smith

    Sports Reporter Marcus D. Smith covers high school sports in Citrus Heights. Smith is a Sacramento-area native and earned his bachelor’s degree in journalism in 2017.