Jessica Vo is the Sports Director at KSBY. One of my favorite things to do on the podcast is to get to know people who aren’t from San Luis Obispo and see the area — especially the sporting landscape — through their eyes. Jessica Vo is someone I’ve interacted with on the sidelines for more than a year. She’s always been friendly and engaging. We talked about what growing up in the Bay Area was like, what her favorite sport is and why, and she told an awesome story about Bill Murray at Pebble Beach. 

Lucas Clark is the college sports writer for the Tribune.

Lucas Clark has been on the college beat in San Luis Obispo for the Tribune for just a few months, but he already has a lot to say about college football here. We talked about life in Oregon, what brought him to the Central Coast, and a little about his allegiance to LeBron James.

Mission Prep quarterback Bryce Fledderman threw for 295 yards and three touchdowns on Friday night. By Owen Main

On Friday night, Mission Prep used a big performance from quarterback Bryce Fledderman to improve their record to 3-0 on the young season. The Royals, who won just four games a year ago, have a defense that gets off the field on third  down and an offense that has been able to consistently move the ball.

Fledderman’s 295-yard, three-touchdown performance will make defenses have to respect the Royals’ passing game along with a running game that has been very efficient so far in this young season.

Mission, which has two more games before the start of league play, will host Sierra Canyon on Friday.

Photos by Owen Main – click here

Molly Schlemer’s offensive game demands attention from opposing defenses. By Owen Main

One was a face-up big. The other loves to have her back to the basket.

One was a superstar from the beginning. The other took half her college career to blossom into a dominant force.

Their styles probably couldn’t be more different, but a pair of Righetti High School forwards have, over the course of the past six years, helped lead the Cal Poly women’s basketball program from a team that was perennially in the bottom half of the conference bracket into a four to five-year run of conference dominance.

The numbers bear it out. In the seven years leading up to Santiago’s freshman year (2000-01 year through 2006-07), Cal Poly had winning percentages of .445 (49-61) in conference and .438 (85-109) overall. In the six years since Santiago arrived, winning percentages have increased for the Mustangs to .684 (67-31) in Big West Conference play and .580 (109-79) overall. They have not won less than 11 games in conference since Santiago’s Freshman year.

It isn’t like these two have done it completely on their own. Building a winning atmosphere requires contributions from everyone from the assistant coaches to the last player off the bench.

Kristina Santiago enjoyed an MVP season in the Bulgarian League last year and is back in Ruse. Photo courtesy of Dunav 8806.

The year Santiago missed due to injury saw Rachel Clancy win Big West Player of the Year. Cal Poly players have won that award four straight years. Schlemer, the defending conference player of the year, has better numbers this year than last year. She has upped her activity rebounding and demands constant attention from opposing defenses as the conferences most dominant offensive player. Barring something completely unforseen or a collapse on the part of the team, Schlemer will raise that number to five this season.

There have been others. Point guard Jonae Ervin has led the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio. Ariana Elegado is a constant outside threat who can create her own shot off the dribble — a valuable attribute at this level. Clancy, Kayla Griffin, and so many others have contributed to what has become a run of women’s basketball dominance that the Big West Conference hasn’t seen for some time.

Schlemer’s induction into the 1,000 point club is made even more remarkable by the fact that she averaged only nine minutes and 3.3 points per game during her first two seasons with Cal Poly.

Here’s a look at a few numbers from both Santiago and Schlemer:

* As of February 12, 2014

The two Righetti High School graduates have helped make the local school a perennial conference power. While coach Faith Mimnaugh loves great guard play, two post players with very different styles have helped the Mustangs establish a winning tradition at Mott Athletics Center.

If this March turns out the way San Luis Obispo fans hope, Schlemer could leave Cal Poly having won the program’s fifth consecutive Big West Conference Player of the Year award. Oh, and there’s also the matter of getting back to the NCAA Tournament.

*********

Post update – I just got back from the Cal Poly game against Cal State Northridge on Thursday night. That Matadors team looked REALLY good. They ran the Mustangs out of the gym. Like a buzz-saw. In a conference tournament it’s all about matchups and it looks like these two might be a good bet to meet in the conference final in March.

Photos by Owen Main

[See image gallery at www.fansmanship.com]

Nick Wynne is a Cal Poly alum and Big West Conference and Cal Poly sports fan. I met him at last year’s Big West Conference tournament and am always impressed with his off-the-cuff knowledge of Cal Poly sports, especially when it comes to analyzing statistics at a little higher level than most sports fans. With basketball season starting on Friday for Cal Poly and football season winding down, I thought it was a great time to talk to a guy like Nick.

What you’ll hear is an analysis especially of Cal Poly football and basketball and Big West basketball as a whole. Hope you enjoy it!

Back together and it feels so good. Owen’s and Luke’s newborns are more than three months old and so it’s time to get back together and talk sports.

We probably spent more time talking about the Warriors, Cavs, and Wizards than anyone ever. Diane Tanjuaquio also joined us for a segment to talk NBA.

I want to apologize for the technical malfunctions that were prevalent throughout the podcast. See if you can hear the clip of Luke singing every time our system hiccuped and enjoy.

It was Cami’s last day at the CJ Silas Show. Photo by Leighton Giannini

On Wednesday night, we were lucky enough to have the opportunity to guest-host the CJ Silas Show on ESPN Radio 1280 The Ticket.

CJ went on vacation and gave us the keys and we did our best not to wreck the car. We are pretty sure we got it back to her in one piece and are thankful for the opportunity.

We talked about why Mike Trout doesn’t get more attention, had JD Scroggin in to talk about Cal Poly football, and even argued about which young quarterback in the NFL will take a step forward or backward in their second season as a starter.

I wanted to also thank the CJ Silas Show Syndicate – Cami, Leighton, Bobby, and Alex – for helping make sure we got the show back to CJ in one piece.

Enjoy.

Brian Milne was in the middle of this scrum and talked about it on Podcast 71.

What’s it like to kayak at McCovey Cove during an All Star Game? Why would Bruce Bochy leave Tim Lincecum in for 148 pitches? And what do you do when an All Star Game is bereft of a true hero?

Brian and I explored these and other issues on the most sports-bereft day of the year – the day after the Major League Baseball All Star Game.

Here’s a link to the Detroit Free Press article about Brian kayaking in McCovey cove during the 2007 All Star Game.

Podcast can be played under the YouTube clip.

Peter McBride is REALLY good at disc golf. By Owen Main

As it sometimes gets in the Spring, Laguna Lake Park was so freaking windy. Clutching my three cheap frisbees (discs) I had bought earlier at Big-5, I trudged up to the professional, knowing I was about to go to school.

Peter McBride still does go to school — high school, in fact. He stands under six feet tall and wouldn’t be more than a welterweight if he boxed. His bag – a backpack with over 20 discs, seems bigger than he is, though he carries it easily and is sponsored by the bag’s label. A San Luis Obispo High School student and native of SLO, McBride has emerged in the past year as one of the best young disc golf players in the country.

After winning three top-level amateur events over the past year or so, he participated in the “Steady” Ed Memorial Masters Cup, finishing in 12th place — ahead of at least two former world champions. The high finish encouraged him enough to take the prize money and officially become a professional.

Already signed up for several pro tournaments next year, the high school junior will enroll in independent study to avoid getting behind in his school work.

So, I played a round with the kid. As his “shots” curved just the right way nearly every time, mine went awry. Nearly every time. There was one shot that looked good, but a tree branch came out of nowhere to crush my hopes of a great shot. McBride was nice — blaming my errant throws on either the wind or my discs. It was much like a golfer blaming his clubs or the ball,  and something told me that he could have made my starter-set of discs curve any way he wanted.

In a lot of ways, disc golf seems kind of like golf (disc golfers call golf “ball golf”). In “ball golf,” most players who play a lot can make a few really good shots in a round. But the ones who make mostly great shots are the people who can make money doing it. Other things are similar about the two types of golf — swearing (by me, not him), having a good walk spoiled by a bad shot, and a chance to get outside for an extended period of time. I enjoyed disc golf and will definitely play again sometime. Here’s a link to a local disc golf group, the SLO Throwers.

McBride and I talked about where he wants to go, what he’s up to, and what it would be like to have a Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA) event here in San Luis Obispo. It’s a quick podcast (only about 18 minutes) and I hope you enjoy it.

Another Fansmanship podcast, you say?

For the first time in many months, Luke, Andy and Owen get back together to talk about the upcoming baseball season, the NCAA Tournament, and NFL free agency.