Otter athletes shined during their fall seasons

By Skip Powers

The fall season for Cal State Monterey athletics saw program-bests, records fall and numerous honors bestowed to Otter student-athletes.

The women’s soccer team made history as they advanced to the postseason for the first time at the Division II level. The Otters took down Cal State LA on the road in thrilling fashion, claiming their first postseason victory in program history on the strength of winning on penalty kicks, 6-5.

CSUMB finished 7-4-8 on the season, securing seven-or-more wins in five of the last six seasons. 

Senior Jennifer Limon headlined the Otters as she became the first CSUMB women’s soccer player to be named the CCAA Defensive Player of the Year. Limon went on to earn CCA All-Region Honors and garnered Academic All-America accolades.

On top of Limon’s two awards from the CCAA that included first-team honors, six other Otters were named All-CCAA. Her sister Yohanna and Danielle Castro earned second-team honors and goalkeeper Nylah Mirshafiei, forward Audrey Reyna and midfielders Tiger Rendon and Evelyn Sandoval nabbed honorable mention. 

CSUMB paced the conference with six CSC Academic All-District selections as both Limon sisters were joined by Jasmine Guardado, Ariana Palomo, Mirshafiei, and Reyna.

On the men’s side the Otters finished 8-4-6 overall to once again punch their ticket to the postseason. The winning record marked the fifth in a row for CSUMB that included a hard-fought draw against No. 3-ranked Cal State LA.

Junior forward Mason Ward led the charge for the Otters offensively, being named to the D2 CCA All-West Region second team. Ward garnered All-CCAA first-team accolades after posting a team-high 21 points on seven goals and seven assists. His seven assists ranked second in the conference during the regular season.

Senior Hugo Vargas-Rios paced the Otters with eight goals to join Ward on the first team. Seniors Jack Blickenstaff, Janos Kömmerling and Alexis Sanchez garnered second-team recognition and Kane Ritchie nabbed honorable mention accolades.

In the classroom, Avery Edgar, Jomar Munaf, Francisco Ponce, and Ritche were named CSC Academic All-District. 

The volleyball team was paced by senior outside hitters Jackie Wahl. Wahl ends her collegiate career with her named peppered throughout the Otter record book. She leaves CSUMB ranked No. 13 in career kills, No. 11 in attack attempts, No. 22 in aces and No. 23 in digs. Her 317 kills in 2024 rank No. 12 on the single-season list. The Palm Springs native was named an All-CCAA second-team selection. 

While Wahl’s collegiate career came to a close, newcomer Ruby Ennis proved to be a big part of the future for the Otters. Although she's just getting started, Ennis already is etching her name in the history books. She ranks No. 12 on the CSUMB career assist list while her 482 helpers in 2024 are No. 17 on the single-season list.

With the addition of Wahl and Ennis, 11 Otters now have earned volleyball All-CCAA honors since Materazzi returned to coach at her alma mater in 2020. That is the most over a 4-year period in Otter volleyball history.

Senior middle blocker Mikayla Nolte ends her CSUMB career as one of the top 10 blockers in Otter history. She just missed reaching 200 blocks for her career, finishing No. 6 in the Otter record book with 199. Her 44 block solos rank No. 5 while her 155 block assists rank No. 9.

The cross country team also boasted success in the fall as multiple top-20 all-time marks were posted. The Otter harriers recorded a total of eight in 2024, including a school record from Ali Keith.

In the second meet of the season at the Stump Invitational in Davis, Calif., the junior blitzed the 5k course in a school record 18:00.1, breaking the mark by over four seconds that was held since 2019. She also clocked two other top-20 times, including one at the 6k distance.

On the men’s side, Jaime Gonzalez posted three top-20 times, culminating in a 32:30.6 at the NCAA Division II West Region Cross Country Championships on the 10k course in Billings, Mont. 

The Otter basketball teams are already in full swing and the springs sports will begin in mid-January.