Author: KEYT

Tracy Lehr

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) Bill Baker wouldn’t miss decorated the 100 foot pine on the corner of Carrillo and Chapala in Santa Barbara.

“We’ve been installing the lights on the tree of light here in Santa Barbara for almost 90 years. We have our [union] membership come out. It’s really something that we we love to do. Give back to the community.” said Baker.

Steve Lopez enjoys it, too.

“In the younger days, we had incandescent lighting,” said Lopez, ” It was just quite a show. All my kids came through doing it.”

It is a labor of live rain or shine.

“At one time it rained so much we couldn’t get it up. And then we finally decided it was too late in the season. Forget it. And people called in and were asking for it. And so we came out in the rain and put it up,” Lopez.

“The community really enjoys it. We get phone calls from from people in the community asking us when we’re going to do it and when are the lights going to be up,” said Baker.

The city of Santa Barbara helps with traffic control and Ralphs powers the lights.

There are 17 strands of about 100 lights.

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Mike Klan

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) – CIF champions Ventura and Arroyo Grande will square off in a CIF-Division 3-AA Regional Championship Bowl Game between two local teams.

The game will take place Friday, December 5th at 7:30pm at Doug Hitchen stadium in Arroyo Grande.

It will be a rematch of the 2000 CIF-Southern Section Northern Division title game won by Ventura 35-14.

In Division 1-A Pacifica of Oxnard will bring their 14-0 record to El Cajon to play Granite Hills (10-3) on Saturday at 7pm.

Both teams won section titles over the weekend.

In Division 6-A Grace of Simi Valley will host Morse(San Diego) on Saturday 6pm at Moorpark College.

Grace won the CIF-SS D12 championship in just their third season back to playing 11-person football from 8-person football.

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Mike Klan

CLOVIS, Calif. (KEYT). – The Dos Pueblos High School boys cross country team took home an eighth place finish in Division 2 of the CIF-State Meet to wrap up a highly successful season for the Chargers.

DP head coach David Jackson said, “The result marks a significant improvement in speed from last fall and solidifies the Chargers as one of California’s most rapidly ascending programs.”

Owen Abbott led the way for DP with a 30th overall finish in a time of 15:26.7.

The San Marcos girls cross country team placed in tenth place highlighted Elsie Tuttle and Sofi Hernandez who finished right next to each other in 62nd and 63rd place overall.

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Mike Klan

DOWNEY, Calif. (KEYT). – James Watson raced 44 yards for a touchdown just 18 seconds into the game and Ventura ran away with the CIF-Southern Section Division 6 title with a 63-28 thrashing at St. Pius-St. Matthias Academy.

The 63 points scored is a new Ventura County record for most in a CIF-SS final.

Watson had four of the eight rushing touchdowns by the Cougars who led 21-0 after the first quarter and 42-7 at halftime.

It’s the third CIF-SS title for the Cougars in program history and first in 25 years.

Ventura quarterback and UNLV-commit Derek Garcia added two rushing touchdowns and he also threw a 30-yard td pass to Jack Cunningham.

The Cougars defense was led by Oregon-bound senior Tristan Phillips who registered five and a half sacks by himself.

(Phillips shows off championship hardware. Courtesy photo).

Ventura is 12-2 and advance to the CIF-State playoffs.

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Mike Klan

LONG BEACH, Calif. (KEYT) – Runners-up a season ago, second-seeded Cal Poly took home the crown at The Hawaiian Islands presents the 2025 Outrigger Big West Women’s Volleyball Championship in decisive fashion. Interestingly, a No. 2 seed has won all three iterations of The Big West Championship.

The Mustangs were able to defeat regular-season champion UC Davis, 3-1, on Saturday at the LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid, winning by scores of 25-16, 25-21, 20-25, and 25-15.

Cal Poly improves its record to 25-7 and earns The Big West’s automatic berth into the field of the 2025 NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Championship. Cal Poly will be making a 17th overall appearance into the national postseason, and a first since 2019 after capturing the crown. The Mustangs will learn their seed and destination during the selection show on Sunday, Nov. 30, slated to start at 3 p.m. on ESPN.

A defensive stalwart all season long, UC Davis held opponents to .149 hitting heading into the match. On Saturday, Cal Poly secured the victory with a strong offensive effort, recording a .252 hitting percentage while tallying 12 total blocks and six service aces to turn the tables.

The Mustangs secured the first set against UC Davis with a decisive 25-16 victory. Cal Poly’s Emma Fredrick and Charlotte Kelly each contributed key kills, while Emme Bullis facilitated the offense with multiple assists, leading to a dominant mid-set stretch. Cal Poly saw themselves with an eight-point advantage after an ace for Fredrick, followed by a big block for Bullis and Championship MVP Chloe Leluge to make it 21-13.

In the second set, the Mustangs gained the 2-0 lead in the match to continue the momentum. Cal Poly’s Ella Scott delivered a crucial service ace during a 4-0 run early in the frame and the score was 10-6 in favor of the Mustangs after a Leluge kill. The Mustangs continued to hold the advantage throughout but Allie Caldwell made the margin two points with a strike to make it 19-17. The Aggies were able to stave off two set points off of plays from Big West Player of the Year Jade Light, before a service error ended the frame at 25-21.

UC Davis rallied to take a point in the third, capitalizing on early momentum to build an 9-4 lead after a strike from Light off the pass from Libero of the Year Ximena Cordero Barr. The advantage was 14-9 after a service error for the Mustangs, but Cal Poly was able to knot the frame at 18 and 19 points before UC Davis secured the frame 25-20.

Cal Poly punched their ticket into the postseason with a decisive 25-15 fourth set victory with Leluge and Fredrick were pivotal, contributing key blocks and kills that pushed Cal Poly ahead and in control to close out the match.

Leluge led the team with 16 kills on .593 hitting and six total blocks. Leluge’s overall performance in the Championship earned her the title of Most Valuable Player, where she averaged 4.13 kills per set (33 kills in eight sets) while hitting a combined .561 and committing just one error.

Fredrick also made a notable impact with 12 kills and four blocks with libero Elif Hurriet adding 15 digs and seven assists. Senior setter Bullis recorded 34 assists and 15 digs for the double-double.

Light led the match with 19 kills for the Aggies with Breeze Czapinski powering down 10 kills with three block assists. Caldwell led the team at the net with six total denials and Big West Setter of the Year Mia Starr directed the floor with 39 assists and 14 digs. UC Davis stands and 21-7 with their first regular-season title and 20-win season in the books in their last year as a member of The Big West.

(Article courtesy of Big West)

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Tracy Lehr

MONTECITO, Calif. (KEYT) St. Vincent’s held its 15th annual Fashion Show & Luncheon on the Saturday following Thanksgiving.

The event sponsored by Claudia Lash and Pat Lupo took place at the Rosewood Miramar Beach in Montecito .

It began with a socializing around a silent auction.

People bid on art, baskets and holiday items collected by Lash and friends and family all year.

Then guests enjoyed a lunch and fashion show featuring clothing designed Mary Beth Larkin of (In)Larkin and children’s fashion presented by Wildflower Women.

The money raised benefits St. Vincent’s Family Strengthening Program that empowers mothers with young children.

Trina Phillips said her aunt Claudia’s home was filled with baskets before the event.

“My aunt Claudia, she is an amazing women and the baskets just fill up her house and she works throughout the year to collect all these wonderful things for a wonderful cause and I am very blessed to be a part of it and to be able to donate some of these baskets as well,” said Phillips.

ST. Vincent’s President and CEO Rosa Parades introduced the guest speakers that included a participant in the Family Strengthening Program and a graduate turned Pier Support Specialist.

“I get to see firsthand what these mom’s go through when they come to us and when they graduate from the program 27 months they are so strong and they become mentors to others and they come back and give,” said Parades.

Drew Wakefield also known as Mr. Santa Barbara encouraged people to fill out their donation forms at each table.

They will help St. VIncent’s families graduate to permanent housing and employment.

It is never too late to give.

For a link to donate and learn more visit https://stvincents-sb-org

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Mike Klan

CARPINTERIA, Calif. (KEYT). – The terrific postseason run by the Cate Rams fell one victory shy of a championship.

The Rams were soundly beaten by the visiting Lancaster Baptist Eagles 56-18 in the CIF-Southern Section Division II final in 8-person football.

Trailing 7-0 in the first quarter the Rams Noah Casbarro intercepted a pass near his own goal line and raced 78 yards for a pick-six to cut the deficit to 7-6.

But the Eagles gave the Rams defense fits by running the counter. The misdirection runs helped Lancaster Baptist run build a 27-6 halftime lead. The Eagles gained almost 250 yards on the ground.

The Eagles kept their foot on the gas and celebrated the championship with a 10-3 overall record.

Quarterback Camden Mordh threw four touchdown passes for Lancaster Baptist.

Cate quarterback Alex Kroehl threw two second half touchdown passes, a 36-yarder to Oliver Charvel and a 1-yard toss to Chase Meyer.

The Rams were just 2-7 in the regular season but ripped off three playoff wins to finish 5-8 on the campaign.

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Mike Klan

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KEYT). – Tied at 64 with one second remaining, Maddie Naro made a perfect cross-court inbound pass to Olivia Bradley for a game-winning layup as the Gauchos edged Chattanooga 66-64 to capture the CBU Classic title.

Jessica Grant set a screen at the elbow to free up Bradley for the winning basket. Bradley finished with a team-high 17 points as the Gauchos went 2-0 in the tournament and improved to 6-1 for the season.

Zoe Borter scored 15 points and Naro added 12.

UCSB opens up Big West play on Thursday, December 4th at Long Beach State.

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Mike Klan

LAS VEGAS, Nevada. (KEYT)- The UC Santa Barbara Men’s Basketball team claimed the inaugural Resorts World Las Vegas Championship after defeating Seattle U 74-71. 13 offensive rebounds and shooting 88 percent from the free throw line helped the Gauchos take down the Redhawks, who were riding a four-game winning streak coming into the contest.

HOW IT HAPPENEDBoth teams started quickly as they traded baskets at the start of the contest. The Gauchos made their first four shots of the contest to help them to a two-point lead at the first media timeout. UC Santa Barbara and Seattle U continued to trade baskets with both teams looking to get out and run. A small 5-0 by the Redhawks gave them a three-point lead, but it did not last long.

At the midpoint of the opening half, Zion Sensley started to propel the Gauchos in front. He made his first four shots, with three of them coming from beyond the arc, and got the Gauchos back out in front 23-20. Following Sensley’s surge, the teams went back to trading baskets. Both teams were playing with pace, pushing the ball up and down the floor, but then the Gauchos started to build more of lead. The Gauchos’ three-point shooting and a three-point play by CJ Shaw helped Santa Barbara grow their lead to as much as eight.

The half continued in a back-and-forth affair with the Gauchos taking a 36-32 lead to the break.

The second half opened with Seattle going on an 11-2 run, giving them their first lead since the 10-minute mark in the first half, 45-38. The Gauchos continued to chip away by grabbing offensive boards. During one possession, the Gauchos grabbed four consecutive offensive rebounds that ended up leading to a score.

Midway through the second half, the Gauchos fought back and tied the game. A three-point heave from Sensley at the end of the shot clock banked in to tie the game at 50 all. After turning the Redhawks away on their possession, another offensive rebound led to a Colin Smith layup and putting the Gauchos back in front. Those two baskets were a part of a 7-1 run, putting the Gauchos up by five.Down the stretch, the Gauchos continued to hold their lead between three and five points in the last three minutes. Free throw shooting was key down the stretch, and the Gauchos emerged victorious, defeating Seattle 74-71 and claiming the inaugural Resorts World Las Vegas Classic Championship.

NOTABLESSeattle came into the contest ranked 11th in the country in three-point percentage, shooting it at a 42.1 percent clip. The Gauchos held them to just three made threes and 27 percent from beyond the arc.UC Santa Barbara made nine threes in its last two games; today, they made eight and shot 38 percent from deep.After some free throw woes to begin the season, the Gauchos corrected that this weekend, shooting 88 percent from the charity stripe, going 50-for-57.Miro Little made 18 consecutive free throws, having not missed since the first half of the Nevada game.The Gauchos grabbed double-digit offensive rebounds for the eighth straight game, recording 13 against the Redhawks.

UP NEXTUC Santa Barbara will bring a 6-2 record into conference action as they host Long Beach State on Thursday, Dec. 4 in The Thunderdome. Gaucho fans are encouraged to wear Blue for the Gauchos Blue Out. The game will tip off at 6 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN+ with live stats available.

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Mike Klan

LONG BEACH, Calif. (KEYT) – Regular-season champion UC Davis defeated fourth-seeded UC Santa Barbara 3-1 (25-23, 23-25, 29-27, 27-25) on Friday at the LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid in the semifnal reound of The Hawaiian Islands presents the 2025 Outrigger Big West Women’s Volleyball Championship.

The victory advances the top-seeded Aggies to a 21-6 mark on the season and a place in their first Big West Championship finale, where they will take on the winner of the semifinal matchup between No. 2 Cal Poly and No. 3 Long Beach State. UC Davis split the regular-season series against the Beach and fell on the road against the Mustangs for their only two blemishes in league action.

UC Davis narrowly captured the opening set against UCSB, ending 25-23. The Aggies capitalized on service errors by UCSB, contributing to their early lead. Ally Chandler’s decisive kill, assisted by Mia Starr, sealed the set for UC Davis, despite a late surge by UCSB led by Eva Travis’ two kills.

The Gauchos were able to knot the score in the second, taking a 25-23 set victory. UC Davis mounted a late rally in the frame, clawing back from a 23-18 deficit to tie at 23, with Big West Libero of the Year Ximena Cordero Barr holding serve.However, UC Santa Barbara sealed the set with a timely kill by Travis and a decisive service ace from Cortni Youngblood. U

UC Davis captured the third set 29-27, overcoming a late challenge by UCSB after the Gauchos erased a 20-17 deficit to take the lead at 25-24 and again at 27-26 on decisive strikes from Travis. The set concluded with Big West Player of the Year Jade Light and Allie Caldwell’s combining for the final three points of the sest. A kill off the hand of Light tied the score at 27-all, then Light and Caldwell combined on the block of an Emma McDermott attept before Caldwell’s decisive kill finalized the tense back-and-forth contest.

The teams again played to extra points in the fourth, with the set punctuated by 20 ties and eight lead changes in the 27-25 frame. UC Davis gained momentum with service aces from Rachel Dunagan and Light, pivotal blocks from Mia Starr and Chandler, while Light and Brooke Hibino combined for crucial kills. Despite UCSB’s attempts to rally, including kills by Travis and Layanna Green, UC Davis secured the win to advance to the finale.

Big West Setter of the Year Starr led UC Davis with an impressive 40 assists and contributed defensively with 21 digs. Light proved to be effective in scoring, amassing 19 total points, with a 15 kills, 10 dig double-double. Cordero Barr closed with 16 digs as the Aggies saw five players reach double-figure dig efforts. UC Davis recorded nine service aces while posting 73 digs in the match.

Travis led the Gauchos with a match-best 24 kills to set a new Big West Championship record. The trio of Jordyn Johnson (6 blocks), McDermott (five, three solo) and Kiersten Schmitt (five) were a force at the net as the Gachos held a 14 to nine block advantage. Big West Freshman of the Year Gabi Martinez registered 19 digs in the match. UCSB caps the season at 23-9.

(Article courtesy Big West)

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