Empire notes: Montgomery girls soccer honored

Editor's note: This article has been updated.

Montgomery's Cindy Arteaga was named North Coast Section senior of the year and Vikings' coach Pat McDonald won coach of the year in a slew of honors doled out by the website Prep2Prep.com.

Arteaga scored 25 goals and had 11 assists in her senior campaign. Also honored were Petaluma junior Lauren Hazel, who scored 13 goals and had seven assists for the Trojans. She was named to the all-NCS first team. Cardinal Newman senior Keely Roy, Casa Grande senior Jocelyn Garcia, Maria Carrillo senior Frances O'Donnell and Montgomery junior Christina Cawood were all named to the all-NCS second team. Ella Wright from Cardinal Newman, Abria Brooker from Montgomery and Taylor Little from Maria Carrillo were named to the third team.

Analy's Atkins breaks five-minute mark in 1,600

Analy High senior Sierra Atkins won the 1,600 meters at the Granada Sprint and Distance Festival last weekend. Atkins cross the line in 4:56, putting her at 11th all-time fastest in Redwood Empire history. In the 3,200 meters, it was St. Helena sophomore Harper McLain winning in 10:49, making her the 14th fastest in Redwood Empire history at that distance. Senior Lucas Chung set the Windsor High record for 3,200 meters, finishing in 9:28 to break his own previous best. Chung, a senior who is headed to St. Mary's to run next year, is the Jags' record holder in both the 3,200 meters and 1,600 meters.

Two Vikings shine in Boston

Montgomery grad and two-time Olympian Kim Conley finished the Boston Athletic Association 5K in 15:36 on Saturday as part of the Boston Marathon weekend. Her finish was good enough for fourth place. Monicah Ngige of Kenya won the race in 15:16. Fellow Montgomery grad Sara Hall, running her first Boston Marathon, finished in 15th place, crossing the line in 2:35.34.

Bear Cubs baseball battling Sac City this week

The Santa Rosa Junior College baseball team was in third place in the Big 8 Conference heading into two games with fourth-place Sacramento City College this week. The Bear Cubs were 13-5 in conference before Tuesday's game and the Panthers were 12-6 heading into the series.

The Bear Cubs are coming off two dominating wins, beating Monterey Peninsula 13-3 Thursday and Contra Costa City College 13-2 on Friday. Sophomore Jo Bynum, who prepped at Maria Carrillo, is hitting .357 with 36 RBIs.

He also has a team-leading eight stolen bases.

Sugarman scores at Sea Otter

Santa Rosa High class of 2017 grad Xander Sugarman finished 24th in the UCI cross country pro men's mountain biking race at the Sea Otter Classic in Monterey Thursday. On Sunday, he took 15th place in the cross country race. Sugarman was the eighth American to cross the line. Simon Andreassen of Denmark won the race.

SRJC's Jackie Ramirez wins 800-meter race

Santa Rosa Junior College freshman Jackie Ramirez won the 800-meter race at the American River Invitational and Distance Carnival April Friday and Saturday. Ramirez, who prepped at El Molino High, finished in 2:31. Freshman Dana Johnson, a Santa Rosa High grad, finished second in the 3000-meter steeplechase in 13:40. Alyssa Stewart, a sophomore from Windsor High, took second in the javelin with a throw of 105 feet, two inches.

On the men's side, Justen Santa, a freshman from Petaluma High, took second in the discus with a toss of 146 feet, one inch and Montgomery grad and Bear Cubs freshman Waisea Jikoiono finished second in the high jump after clearing six feet, six inches.

You can reach staff columnist Kerry Benefield at 707-526-8671 or kerry.benefield@pressdemocrat.com, on Twitter @benefield and on Instagram at kerry.benefield.