Greg Hansen: Southern Arizona's Top 100 Sports Figures of 2018

As the Tucson Roadrunners won the Pacific Division, Hill, a goalie, was ranked No. 5 in the American Hockey League goalie statistics, and has shuttled between Tucson and the NHL’s Arizona Coyotes this season.

Rincon’s dominating soccer twosome combined to score 35 goals in a 13-4-2 season, and this year had 22 goals combined after a 10-2 start.

As Cienega High School rolled to another state softball championship, Hayward, a freshman with 54 RBI and a .513 batting average, and Anderson, a senior with a .467 batting average and 11 home runs, led the way.

In her junior year at Arizona, the middle blocker was selected to the AVCA All-America honorable mention team.

As The Gregory School rolled to the state boys basketball championship, going 27-4 in Class 1A, Mort averaged 26 points and eight rebounds a game.

The Walden Grove High School twins combined for 4,509 yards from scrimmage in an 8-3 season; Alex, the quarterback, passed for 2,655 yards and 29 touchdowns and rushed for 624 more. Jordan, a junior receiver, caught 54 passes for 1,230 yards and 12 touchdowns.

One of the state’s leading high school soccer players, Kakou helped Salpointe win the 2018 Class 4A state championship and then signed to play collegiately at Eastern Washington.

Altherr was a top two-way player for Catalina Foothills High School's baseball team, hitting .348 with 15 extra-base hits and going 5-1 as a pitcher.

Pima College’s freshman goalkeeper led the NJCAA in goals-against average as the Aztecs won the men’s soccer national title.

Pima College’s standout soccer player, a Sahuaro High School grad, was a first-team All-ACCAC selection.

The four-time Olympic swimming gold medalist, a volunteer coach on the UA swimming staff, finished second in the 100 backstroke at the USA finals.

In her first two seasons at Tucson High, Scupin, a first baseman, has hit 24 home runs; her sophomore softball season was her best, producing a .619 batting average.

Not only did the freshman golfer from Salpointe Catholic qualify to compete in the Drive, Chip and Putt competition on the week of the Masters, she won the state Division II girls golf title.

Flowing Wells’ senior running back gained 1,366 yards, scored 23 touchdowns and made 43 tackles for Mark Brunenkant’s 8-3 Caballeros.

The Cholla High School grad averaged 16.6 points per game on Pima College’s national basketball runnerup team, and is now leading the team with a 20.1 points-per-game average this season.

 Pima College’s veteran track and cross country coaches produced five NJCAA All-Americans at the national finals: 800 meter runner Collin Dylla, pole vaulter Tony Chavez, high jumper Cameron Crandall, long jumper Anahiramar Lopez and high jumper Megan Schiffmacher.

Salpointe Catholic’s senior basketball standout led the Lancers to the state championship game as a junior. Now a senior committed to Pepperdine, Deng averaged 17.9 points per game in his first 11 games. 

Arizona’s sophomore golfer, a vital part of the NCAA championship, was the Pac-12’s November golfer of the month, and finished in the top 20 of six tournaments.

As a junior catcher at Arizona, the Sahuaro High School grad was an All-Pac-12 first-team catcher, hitting .339. 

Abdirahman, who turns 42 on New Year's Day, was 15th in the Boston Marathon and fifth in the Doha Half-Marathon.

One of the top prep baseball coaches in Tucson history, Chandler produced his first state championship, directing Sabino High School to a 28-4 record and the Class 3A state title.

Salpointe’s softball coach guided the Lancers to the state championship, 32-4 overall, and has won 105 games in four seasons on the job.

The former UA softball and basketball two-sport athlete has become one of the West’s leading women’s basketball referees, working her sixth season in the Mountain West, Big Sky, WCC and WAC conferences.

Cienega High School's versatile football standout rushed for 636 yards, caught passes for 763 yards, made 32 tackles and scored 17 touchdowns.

Not only did the former Sabino High School tight end start as a BYU sophomore, he has now caught 74 passes for 979 yards in two years for the Cougars, including a game-changing touchdown in a victory over Arizona.

In his senior year at Arizona, Wright won the men’s 200 butterfly in the USA Championships, qualifying for the USA National team. He was fifth in the 200 fly for the Wildcats at the NCAA finals.

Few basketball players in UA history got off to the kind of start the sophomore transfer from Washington did. She averaged 23.7 points through 10 games; her 39 points against Loyola Marymount tied the Wildcats' single-game scoring record.

Sunnyside’s senior soccer all-star has scored 44 goals (and counting) the last two seasons.

Salpointe Catholic’s accomplished cross country coach piloted the Lancers girls to their second state championship in three years.

In PCC’s burst to the NJCAA men’s soccer championship, Zawadi — a sophomore defender from Cholla High School — was selected to the All-America second team.

One of the leading names in Tucson soccer history became Phoenix Rising’s interim head coach during the USL season, led the Rising to a 12-7-1 record and then guided it to the USL title game. Schantz, a former FC Tucson coach, was then named permanent head coach .

Arizona’s soccer coach reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the second year in a row, going 13-6-2 overall.

Hall became an all-WSFL first-team defensive back as a Pima College sophomore. The former Sahuaro High School standout made 83 tackles, fourth in the league.

Stevens coached Catalina Foothills’ girls tennis team to a 17-0 record and her 12th state championship.

Murphy averaged 15.9 points per game for Pima College’s basketball team, guiding the  Aztecs to 31 victories and a No. 2 finish in the NJCAA.

The freshman diver from Tucson High was the Pac-12 freshman Diver of the Year, finishing sixth in the NCAA 1-meter diving championships.

Sunnyside High School's soccer coach has gone 27-4-2 the last two seasons, and the Blue Devils were ranked No. 1 in the state through Dec. 20.

In Salpointe Catholic’s state championship softball season, Montano, a junior, drove in a team-high 64 runs and hit .450 with eight home runs.

More: Greg Hansen's Top 100 sports figures of 2018: 100-81. 

Winning a World Series as Boston’s second baseman the last half of the season, the CDO grad hit 14 home runs and was awarded his second career Gold Glove.

Arizona’s pitching ace won 28 games, had a 1.67 ERA and was third in the Pac-12 with 287 strikeouts.

Rebuilding Arizona’s women’s basketball program, Barnes produced the nation’s No. 4 overall recruiting class and guided her team to nine consecutive wins in November and December.

Arizona’s all-Pac-12 third baseman hit .313 with 14 home runs and 55 RBIs as a sophomore.

Marana High School's senior quarterback passed for 2,460 yards, giving him a Tucson prep career record of 7,612 yards, with 89 career touchdown passes.

Ybarra, a junior ranked No. 12 in the nation, has won back-to-back state wrestling championships and accepted a scholarship offer to Iowa. Head coach Anthony Leon piloted the Blue Devils to yet another state title.

After opening his EuroLeague career in Spain, the former Amphitheater High state player of the year was leading the Slovakian league with 18.9 points per game. 

Sahuaro High School's enduring girls basketball coach won his 500th game at the school. No other girls coach in Tucson prep basketball history has even 400.

A freshman, Arizona’s school-record holder at 400 meters finished second in the Pac-12 finals and then capped the meet in a dazzling comeback in the 400 relays, giving Arizona its first-ever championship in the event.

After a strong prep season at Cienega High School, Gonzales became the starting second baseman for New Mexico State’s WAC champions, hitting a team-high .347. He was named the WAC Freshman of the Year.

Even though his school chose to eliminate its football program beginning in 2019, Monaco persevered, coaching Pima College to a 6-4 record, the Heart of Texas Bowl and a No. 20 ranking in the NJCAA. He was recently named the school's athletic director. 

In her final season at Arizona, the Salpointe Catholic grad finished third in the Pac-12 long jump and third in the Pac-12 heptathlon, and was one of 12 conference student-athletes selected as a Postgraduate Scholarship recipient.

Houston’s accomplished pitching coach, a longtime Tucson resident, helped the Astros reach the American League Championship Series after winning the AL West Division.

Pima College’s assistant men’s soccer coaches not only helped the Aztecs win the national championship, but were chosen as the staff of the year by the United Soccer Coaches of America.

Howard swept the  100 and 200 meters at the state championships and was part of Tucson High’s state-title-winning 4x100 relay team. She is now a freshman at Arizona.

The director of both the Kino Baseball League and the Sun Belt College Baseball League experienced the most productive season yet in the sixth year of his vast organization.

Cienega’s able softball coach piloted the Bobcats to their third state title in four years, finishing 29-6.

In her sophomore season at Pima College, Bruno, from Canyon del Oro High School, won the ACCAC and Region championships in cross country and finished ninth in the NJCAA, backing up her spring finish of No. 9 in the NJCAA 1,500 meter finals.

His first and only year as coach of the Tucson Roadrunners was a triumph, as the Roadrunners went 42-20-5-1 and won the AHL Pacific division.

A big part of Pima College’s run to the NJCAA men’s basketball championship game, Biggs, a Cienega High School grad, averaged a team-high 17 points per game.

The Atlanta Falcons pass-rusher, now in his eighth season in the NFL, has 24 tackles . He is a Sabino High School and UA grad.

A golf instructor at Green Valley’s Haven Golf Course, Barnard was named the PGA of America’s 2018 National Player Development pro of the year.

Pacho closed her productive Ironwood Ridge High School softball career with 30 career home runs and 149 RBI. She is now part of Mike Candrea’s Arizona softball team.

After helping the growth of the Arizona Bowl in its marketing department, Adair became the game’s executive director this year. She is just the second of two females to hold such a position in the NCAA’s 41 bowl games.

Leading Sabino High to its first state baseball championship in 21 years, Clifford, a junior, went 8-0 as a pitcher and hit .398. He was the winning pitcher in the state title game.

In her sophomore season at Amphitheater High School, Watson hit an astonishing .716 with 14 home runs and 51 RBI.

Arizona’s sophomore first baseman hit .363 and led the Pac-12 with 19 home runs as a first-team all-conference selection.

The Sahuaro High School grad played in 37 games for the Los Angeles Dodgers, hitting .260, after playing at a star level at Triple-A Oklahoma City, hitting .329 with 10 home runs in half a season.

A first-team All-Pac-12 volleyball player, the UA senior also was part of the AVCA’s honorable mention All-American team.

The former Tucson golf pro, a state champion from Palo Verde High School, qualified for the PGA Championship by finishing No. 9 in the PGA Club Professionals championship. He was the only club pro to make the cut in the PGA finals, finishing 42nd and earning $33,281.

In a remarkable tennis season at Pusch Ridge, the Lions won the state championship in boys and girls competition behind coach Andy Fetsis, whose daughter, Sofia, won the Division III state singles title, and whose son, Christian, won the Division III doubles state title.

The father-daughter combo for Pueblo High’s girls state championship runner-up set a school record with 30 wins. Izzy, the coach, had gone 113-22 in four-plus seasons through Dec. 20. Ilyssa, a senior guard, averaged 12.4 points and 7.0 assists.

The successful founder and chairman of the Nova Home Loans Arizona Bowl somehow found time to become a partner in the Tucson Sugar Skulls of the Indoor Football League.

The sister-and-brother pair from Catalina Foothills High School and the UA each coached into the playoffs in their respective pro basketball league. Hairgrove, an assistant for the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury, helped her team reach the Western Conference finals. Brase, head coach of the G League’s Rio Grande Valley Vipers, reached the conference semifinals, then was hired as a full-time assistant coach of the Houston Rockets.

Salpointe’s football coach has gone 26-2 the last two seasons, reaching two state championship games while establishing himself as one of the top football coaches in Tucson history.

Averaging 18.1 points in his final season at Arizona, Trier was chosen to the All-Pac-12 first team and then made the New York Knicks roster as an undrafted free agent, averaging 11.3 points through 27 games.

In her freshman season at Pima College, the point guard from Flagstaff was named the ACCAC Player of the Year and a first-team NJCAA Division II All-American, averaging 17.7 points for a 23-9 team. Nakai averaged 22.2 points through the first six weeks of this season.

An All-Pac-12 first team golfer as a UA senior, the Tucson product then stepped it up a notch, finishing No. 2 on the Canadian Tour money list. He earned more than $65,000 in two PGA Tour events, clinching his Web.com Tour card for the 2019 season.

In his third season as Green Bay’s starting middle linebacker, the CDO and Stanford grad shined. Martinez is ranked No. 2 in the NFL with 132 tackles through Dec. 23; his total of 276 tackles the last two seasons is tops in pro football.

Arizona’s women’s golf coach piloted her team to the NCAA championship.

MORE: From 'no chance' to national champ, Laura Ianello is No. 1 sports figure of 2018