520 Day: These Tucson-bred athletes shined in the last year

And it was another year to remember for the Tucson-area sports scene. 

Between the Arizona Wildcats, the World Baseball Classic qualifiers, another rendition of the Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl, Cologuard Classic, professional sports — Tucson Roadrunners, Tucson Sugar Skulls and FC Tucson — and multiple state championship-winning high school programs, along with the number of high-level events, there were plenty of noteworthy moments in the last year. 

We're highlighting Tucson's greatness in sports by reflecting on five athletes who had a profound impact, along with 20 others who made a difference in the last year. 

The 5

America Cazares: The Pueblo High School girls basketball star broke the Arizona state scoring record with 2,932 points, passing former Catalina Foothills standout Julie Brase. Cazares also totaled 630 rebounds, 470 steals and 240 assists. She signed with Pima College and will continue her basketball-playing career with the reigning NJCAA Division II national champions. 

Bryce Cotton: Cotton was awarded the Andrew Gaze Trophy as the NBL's most valuable player for the third straight season — his sixth MVP honor since joining the professional basketball league in Australia. The Tucson native and former Palo Verde High School basketball star is now one NBL MVP away from tying Gaze. Cotton, who's now playing for the Adelaide 36ers, received his previous five NBL MVP honors with the Perth Wildcats, the team that helped kickstart his NBL career from 2017-25. 

Audrey Jimenez: Nearly two years after Pima County declared April 2 as "Audrey Jimenez Day," the Sunnyside wrestling product won the 110-pound national championship at Lehigh. Before her career at Lehigh, she became the first girl to win an Arizona state wrestling championship in the boys division. She won the Division I state championship at 106 pounds and defeated four male competitors. Prior to her historic feat, she won three straight individual titles at the girls level.

Bijan Robinson: Robinson led the NFL in yards from scrimmage (2,298), which is also a Falcons franchise record. Robinson eclipsed the 2,000-yard mark in his homecoming game against the Cardinals in Glendale. His 1,478 rushing yards ranked fifth in the NFL this past season. Robinson was named a Pro Bowler for the second straight season — and an All-Pro selection for the first time in his career. 

Sergio Vega: The Oklahoma State freshman and former Sunnyside wrestling star won the 141-pound NCAA wrestling national championship in Cleveland. Vega beat Jesse Mendez, a two-time national champion and three-time All-American at Ohio State, 4-1, following a takedown in overtime. Vega snapped Mendez's 31-match win streak. Vega is the first freshman to cap an undefeated season with a national championship since Oklahoma A&M's Dick Hutton in 1947. Vega went 24-0 in his first season with the Cowboys.

The other 20

Jaylee Abraham: Abraham, a sophomore running back at Desert View, led the Jaguars to their first-ever undefeated regular season. After rushing for 1,716 yards and 33 touchdowns in 2025, Abraham was named the Bijan Robinson Arizona Player of the Year, an award presented by the Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl. 

Claire Achilles: The Star's Student-Athlete of the week led Tanque Verde High School to its first Class 3A state championship. Achilles, who's currently committed to play at UConn, was named the 3A MVP. Achilles has a 0.62 ERA with 338 strikeouts in 180.1 innings pitches.  

Ka'Deem Carey: The former Arizona Wildcat and Canyon del Oro legend retired from the Canadian Football League and is now a running backs coach for the Toronto Argonauts, a team he led to a CFL championship. Between his career at CDO, Arizona, the Chicago Bears and the CFL, Carey rushed for a combined 14,324 yards and 158 touchdowns on 2,080 attempts (6.8 yards per carry); he had 18,163 all-purpose yards in that stretch.

Isla Collins: The Salpointe Catholic girls flag football quarterback and defensive back completed 76% of her passes for 2,319 yards, 47 touchdowns and three interceptions, and led the Lancers to a 4A state championship in the program's first-ever season. As a defensive back, Collins had 27 tackles and a team-high 10 interceptions. Collins is entering her sophomore season at Salpointe. 

Connor Daggett: The Catalina Foothills High School boys swimming team won its 14th state championship after posting a team score of 386. Daggett had three first-place finishes in the 200 medley relay, 50 free and 200 free relay.

Reagan Edquid: Pusch Ridge Christian girls swimming didn't place at the Division III state championship, but Edquid had two first-place finishes.  

Bruno Fina: Fina concluded his college career at Duke, helping the Blue Devils take down the Arizona State Sun Devils at the Sun Bowl in El Paso. The Salpointe grad was a two-year starter at left tackle at Duke following a four-year career at UCLA. Fina played in the Hula Bowl in Orlando, a showcase for draft-eligible players leading up to the NFL Draft in Orlando. Fina signed with the Buffalo Bills as an undrafted free agent — the team his father, John, played in two Super Bowls with. 

Nick Gonzales: The Cienega High School product ascended into the Pittsburgh Pirates' starting third baseman. Gonzales has a .318 batting average this season with 19 RBIs. Gonzales played for Mexico in the World Baseball Classic. 

Tyla Greenwood: After shooting rounds of 69 and 72, the Mica Mountain senior girls golfer won a state championship. Greenwood was one of multiple state champion golfers from Tucson, along with Pusch Ridge's Mark Stypa, who won a Division III championship.  

Leo Gutierrez: Arguably the greatest soccer player in Arizona history, Gutierrez ended his Salpointe career as the all-time state leader with 173 goals. He led the nation in goals (62) and assists (16) in his last season at Salpointe. He had the sixth-most goals (22) in his first season at Pima College, leading the Aztecs to the NJCAA semifinals. 

Macee Jackson: Salpointe's standout softball pitcher threw eight strikeouts and led the Lancers to a 4A state championship. The top-seeded Lancers beat Mica Mountain, 4-2, at Rita Hillenbrand Stadium on Monday. The Texas State-bound Jackson put a bow on her illustrious career with a 0.81 ERA and 482 strikeouts. 

Colten Meyer: The Marana High School quarterback became Southern Arizona's all-time passing yards leader. Meyer is one of three quarterbacks, along with Sabino's Cameron Hackworth and Catalina Foothills' Rhett Rodriguez, to pass for more than 8,000 career yards. Meyer passed for 3,826 yards and 41 touchdowns as a senior. 

Jordan Morgan: The Marana native and former Arizona left tackle played four positions on the Green Bay Packers' offensive line. Morgan played 358 snaps at right guard, 191 snaps at left guard, 148 snaps at right tackle and 51 snaps at left tackle this season, according to Pro Football Focus. 

Cali Nance: The Tanque Verde High School junior was the only American to compete at the Competitive Wake Surf Association’s World Championship. Nance competed against surfers from Canada, Japan, Russia and South Korea — and finished in second place. 

Vikram Narendran: The Rincon/University star, who was one of the Star's 11 Student-Athletes of the Week this spring, won his third straight individual boys tennis championship. 

Carissa Palomarez: The Salpointe swimmer led the Lancers to a runner-up finish at the Division II state championship. Palomarez had three first-place finishes in the 50 free and the 200 and 400 free relay. 

Lathan Ransom: Ransom had 51 tackles and an interception in his first season in the NFL. Ransom had a career-high 11 tackles in the Carolina Panthers' 31-28 win over the Rams in November. The Salpointe alum had a costly unnecessary roughness penalty in the final minutes of the Panthers' loss to New Orleans, but redeemed himself the following week with a game-sealing interception against Tampa Bay. 

Dezmen Roebuck: The former Arizona Gatorade Player of the Year and Marana football great had 42 receptions for 560 yards and seven touchdowns in his first season at Washington. 

Broden Schmidt: The Mica Mountain football standout and linebacker had the second-most tackles (159) in Southern Arizona behind Sierra Vista Buena's Cooper Kraus. Schmidt led the Thunderbolts to another 4A state championship. Mica Mountain became the first Tucson-area high school football team to repeat as state champions since CDO in 1975 and '76.

Mason White: The UA baseball home runs leader hit a go-ahead RBI in the eighth inning of the Wildcats' Super Regional round at North Carolina. White's late-game heroics propelled the Wildcats to their first College World Series appearance since 2016. White was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the fourth round of the MLB Draft.