Looking back at the world of sports in Northern California in 2024, I’d be remiss to not to begin by bidding farewell and tipping my cap to the two most legendary No. 24s in baseball history — Willie Mays and Rickey Henderson.
2024 has brought some great losses — from the Bidwell Mansion to parts of upper Bidwell Park in the Park Fire, numerous big names celebrities and musicians, and that’s even before we get to the athletes. We lost legendary basketball players Bill Walton in May, Jerry West a month later in June, Al Attles in August, and Dikembe Mutombo and baseball’s Pete Rose in September. In October the Los Angeles Dodgers community mourned the loss of Fernando Valenzuela, but no two names stick out in Northern California sports history more than the two No. 24s — Willie Mays and Rickey Henderson.
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Legendary centerfielder Ken Griffey Jr., who also wore No. 24, paid tribute to both athletes after they passed away — Mays on June 18, 2024 at the age of 93 and Henderson on Dec. 20, 2024 at the age of 65.
Griffey called Mays, “the Godfather of all centerfielders” on Instagram and said he was heartbroken and devastated.
When Henderson passed away, he posted once more, talking about, “The Rickey smile.” He called called Dec. 21, “the hardest day for me, probably in my professional career. For all the guys we’ve lost this year, Rickey meant more to me than anyone. I was closest to Rickey. He was just so special to me.”
While of course there is time to mourn, it is also important to look at the exciting moments that 2024 brought to the community in the north state. Some are highs, some are lows, but regardless here are some of the top headlines from the 2024 Enterprise-Record.
Chico State
Several teams from Chico State achieved great success in 2024, but on June 7 the Wildcats received an honor that encapsulates it all. The Robert J. Hiegert Commissioner’s Cup returned to Chico State for success in the 2023-24 school year. It is given in honor of former longtime Commissioner and CCAA Hall of Famer Robert J. Hiegert. The Commissioner’s Cup is given to the member with the highest aggregate ranking in eighth of the conference-sponsored 13 championship sports. Chico State was first in the 2023-24 Robert J. Hiegert Cup Standings with 89.15 points, followed closely by Cal Poly Pomona (88.63) and Cal State San Marcos (88.13).
It is the third time Chico State has won the award in the last five times it has been given out. Chico State won it in 2017-18 and 2021-22, and it was not given out in 2019-20 or 2020-21 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Wildcats also won it four straight years in 2010-11, 2011-12, 2012-13 and 2013-14.
A big change occurred in the Wildcats’ administration department, when longtime Executive Director of Athletics Anita Barker announced May 29 that she would be retiring at the end of September. Barker spent 34 years at Chico State, including 22 years at the helm of the ‘Cats athletic department. Chico State announced on Nov. 1 that it had hired Eric Coleman as its new Executive Director of Athletics, and he began Dec. 3.
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In other administration news, longtime Chico State men’s basketball coach Greg Clink resigned from his position on Nov. 4 to spend time with his family. Clink said that he had applied for the Executive Director of Athletics position, and after not getting it, decided to step down to be able to watch his son wrestle more often at the collegiate level (see below). In his past 12 seasons of competition, his teams were 225-104 with a 684 winning percentage. Clink is a three-time CCAA Coach of the Year (2011-12, 2014-15, 2015-16). He boasts the second-highest career-winning percentage in program history, and his 285 career wins are the third-most.
In other basketball coaching news, on Nov. 19 former Chico State women’s basketball coach Lynne Roberts left the University of Utah after accepting the head coaching position with the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks. Sparks joins Seattle Storm President/CEO Alisha Valavanis (her former assistant coach at Chico State) as a second Wildcat tie now in the WNBA.
On Nov. 20 the Chico State men’s and women’s cross country teams continued their success under head coach Gary Towne, with both teams finishing first at the NCAA West Regional race on Nov. 9 in Billings, Montana, before both teams ran in the NCAA D-II meet in Sacramento. The men’s team finished sixth and the women’s team finished 15th.
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In the 2023-24 season the Chico State men’s basketball team finished 21-9, while the women’s team finished 21-10. Both teams are off to strong starts once again early into California Collegiate Athletic Association play, with the men holding a 8-2 overall record and 4-0 record in CCAA play, and the women holding a 9-1 record and 4-0 record in CCAA play.
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Butte College
Like Chico State, Butte College teams had success in 2024 as well, but the passing of Butte College football alumnus Larry Allen on June 2 is the most dismal of all. Allen, a member of the NFL Hall of Fame who spent 14 seasons with the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers on the offensive line, died at the age of 52.
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Early in 2024, on Feb. 23, the Butte College women’s basketball team cut down the net after winning a fourth straight Golden Valley Conference title, and advancing to a third straight Elite 8. After the season head coach Tyler Newton and his staff left the Roadrunners for College of the Sequoias, where he and several former Butte College starters are undefeated and the No. 1 team in the CCCAA. Phillip Thomas was named as Newton’s replacement.
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On March 6 softball coach Stacye York was placed on administrative leave, and four months later Joshua Correa was hired as the new head softball coach for the Roadrunners.
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One major coaching highlight at Butte College in 2024 was Butte College baseball coach Anthony Ferro getting his 500th win on April 20 when the Roadrunners defeated Lassen 15-4.
“It’s never been about the wins and losses in our program, it’s always been about the kids’ lives and being able to impact their lives as coaches did for me when I was younger,” Ferro said. “I don’t look at it as 500 wins, I look at it as I’ve coached a long time and I’ve been able to make an impact on some kids’ lives and get some wins along the way.”
On Nov. 8 the Butte College men’s cross country team achieved a major accomplishment, winning its first NorCal title since 1979, led by its No. 1 runner Stephan Chapdelaine.
“It means a lot because I take pride in what Butte can represent,” said Butte College head cross country and distance coach Mark Chavez.
On Dec. 6 the Butte College men’s soccer team played in its first Final 4 match in program history. The Roadrunners, who entered as the No. 14 seed in playoffs, played as the underdogs throughout, before losing 2-0 to Cuyamaca on Dec. 8 in the CCCAA state championship.
In one of the biggest Butte College headlines of 2024, former athletic director Melody Stockwell announced June 30 she was taking a leave of absence and would be on a district-approved paid leave. Jeff Jordan took over temporarily before the Roadrunners named Randy Maday as interim athletic director on July 1. Stockwell’s final day at Butte College was June 30.
As we head into 2025, Butte College men’s basketball center Jessy Maximin currently leads the state in rebounding, and looks to lead the Roadrunners entering GVC play.
Chico High School
Early in January on Jan. 6, Panthers’ wrestler Ryan Clink took first place at the 10th annual Joe Rios Memorial tournament at Chico High. Clink, competing at 165 pounds, would go on to finish fifth at the CIF state meet in late February. On April 9 Clink signed with Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. The Panthers won the Almond dual, and would go on to win their 15th straight Eastern Athletic wrestling team title on Feb. 3.
On Feb. 22 the Chico girls soccer team outlasted PV 1-0 to claim the NSCIF D-I title, before an abundance of injuries caught up to the Panthers in their NorCal playoffs loss.
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June 11, Chico High alumni Dion Coleman and Azari Cruz launched the first Cruz and Coleman Youth Football Camp for over 150 youth. The camp saw players from Chico High and Pleasant Valley join together as coaches to lead the athletes of the future.
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In one of the more impressive feats, the Chico High girls tennis team led by head coach Randy Agnew capped yet another impressive season. The group of seniors who graduating in 2025 finished 40-0 in EAL matchups and won a seventh straight NSCIF title. The Panthers have not lost an EAL match since late 2018, and have now won 50 straight EAL matches.
One of the biggest headlines and changes at Chico High School was former head football coach Jason Alvistur stepping down after 15 seasons in February.
Alvistur remains as the school’s athletic director, but former defensive coordinator Chris Click was named Alvistur’s football replacement.
Pleasant Valley High School
The Vikings had several exciting achievements in 2024, but the first one came on Feb. 8 when AJ Gambol from the girls basketball team set a new career scoring record with 1.423 points. Gambol passed Peanut Tuitele (2014-18)’s 1,422 points. Gambol tied Tuitele’s record on a free throw with 52.5 seconds left in the fourth quarter in the Vikings’ win against Chico, and swished her second free throw to make the record her own. With 290 points in 15 games in her senior season, Gambol now has 1,869 points. The Vikings have 11 games left in the regular season, and Gambol is just 131 points away from 2,000. She needs just 11.9 points per game average to reach 2,000. Gambol was named All Northern Section player of the year.
“It was really cool to get it at home against Chico. That was the most cool part,” Gambol said. “Being the No. 1 leading scorer was something that I didn’t think was even possible, so it’s really cool.”
On Feb. 25, Gambol continued her highlights with a fadeaway jumper with .5 seconds remaining in a CIF NorCal playoff game against Oakland Tech to send the Vikings to the NorCal finals.
In other impressive news at PV, the Vikings’ football team beat Chico 20-7 in the Almond Bowl, before going 5-0 in Eastern Athletic League play. The Vikings won a Northern Section title for a fourth straight season for the first time in program history. Tight end/defensive end Gavin Garretson was named All Section Defensive MVP for a second straight season, shortly after signing a scholarship to play tight end at University of Arkansas.
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On Feb. 17 the PV boys soccer team outlasted Chico High 2-1 to reclaim the NSCIF title.
PV runner Jackson Hein earned his second straight fifth place finish at the CIF track and field meet in the 800-meter race. Hein later signed to continue his athletic career at Cal.
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On Nov. 2, PV swimmer Holden Campos set a new PV record in the 100-meter breaststroke, finishing in 1 minute, 0.76 seconds at the Masters Meet at Shasta College. Campos’ time is fifth fastest in Northern Section history.
In one of the bigger headlines in which the Vikings were involved with was one that hurt them. PV was scheduled to host Red Bluff in both teams’ EAL opener and on PV’s homecoming, but the Spartans forfeited due to player violations that left the Spartans with an unhealthy amount of players available. PV went on to face Red Bluff in the NSCIF championship, and the Vikings defeated the Spartans 48-21.
North state achievements
There were many other headlines across the north state, and one of the first was on Feb. 28 when the Biggs High School boys basketball team won their first Northern Section title since the 1960s. It was the first berth to the NSCIF title for Biggs since the 1980s, and its first CIF state playoff game in boys basketball program history.
On April 5, Orland baseball player Zach Story became the first Trojans baseball player to sign at a four-year school out of high school since 2015 when he signed with UC Davis.
In other Orland news, the Trojans won their 15th straight Battle of the Axe 50-0 against Willows in the Glenn County game’s 100th in the programs’ history.
On Nov. 15 Orland quarterback Luke Schager broke a 70-year old record when he broke the single game rushing record against Pierce. Schager had 26 carries for 417 yards and four touchdowns, accumulating 417 of the Trojans’ 514 yards. Schager broke a school record that dates to 1954, when quarterback Steve Bates had 15 carries for 334 yards against Willows. Schager’s 417 yards is fourth-best in Northern Section single-game history. He’s just the sixth ever player to rush for 400-or-more yards in a single game in Northern Section history.
On Sept. 20, the Chico-based North Valley Seniors Softball team won the 60+ division of the senior softball World Championship in Las Vegas.
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While many signings occurred from many schools across the North State, one unique one was Hamilton High School’s Claire Boles signing with Kansas State for rodeo in early may.
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On May 21 the Chico Enterprise-Record inducted its latest Chico Sports Hall of Fame class, with longtime Corning football coach Gary Burton inducted, longtime Oroville football coach inducted, and twin sisters and former Chico State women’s basketball players Alisha Valavanis and Alexa-Benson Valavanis being inducted. LSU baseball coach and former Oroville resident Jay Johnson was named Chico Enterprise-Record Sportsperson of the Year.
On Aug. 25, 18-year old Corey Day led all 40 laps at the Gold Cup Race of Champions at Silver Dollar Speedway en route to his second straight Gold Cup victory.
After starting its season 0-4, the Willows High School football team forfeited the remainder of its season beginning Oct. 4.
“The decision was made due to a shortage of players,” said Willows athletic director Bob Rawles said in an email. “The shortage has occurred due to injuries, disciplinary suspensions (team rules-related), and athletes stepping away for personal reasons.”
One last headline to finish off is not a loss of someone, but still a loss to the sports world in Chico. One of the longest running sporting goods story in Chico, Sports LTD, closed its doors at the end of July.
“We had a great run,” said owner Matt Smith. “I’m grateful for the opportunity, and I’m grateful for the experience, and I wouldn’t change it for the world, but at the same time it’s time. You know when it’s time, and it’s time. It’s all been great. We’ve had a really good run. My wife and I started with very little money in a very tiny store downtown in 1985. We had a great run, but it just ended… Recreational outdoors stuff is so good for the soul, so good for the mind and to recharge the batteries. That’s what I need to do, is get outside and recharge my batteries. Hike, bike and such.”
