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RC sweeps All-TVL boys major awards; Ripon’s Scheid is girls Coach of the Year
All-TVL basketball
Ripon Christian guard Jake Vander Veen drives on Colfax defender Caleb Edlund in a Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV playoff quarterfinal. - photo by SEAN KAHLER
JONAMAR JACINTO
The Bulletin
Updated: Mar 21, 2025, 7:07 AM
Published:

 It was a banner basketball season for local schools in the Trans-Valley League.

Ripon Christian’s boys team swept the major postseason awards after claiming a fifth straight league title. Mark Hofman, who surpassed 200 career wins during the season for RC, received his fifth-straight Coach of the Year honor.

Meanwhile, the Ripon girls have three players on the All-TVL team, and first-year coach John Scheid is Coach of the Year after leading the Indians to their first outright league championship since 2018.

The boys and girls teams for each school all made the postseason and won at least one playoff game. Hofman’s Knights advanced to their eighth consecutive Sac-Joaquin Section semifinal and NorCal appearance.

A pair of junior guards garnered the top recognition for Ripon Christian (11-1 TVL, 24-7

All-TVL basketball
Ripon Christian’s Amos Cady takes the jump shot over Ripon’s Ethan Baur.
overall), as Jake Vander Veen got the nod for boys MVP, while Amos Cady was named Most Outstanding Player.

An all-league selection as a sophomore, Vander Veen averaged 18.2 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.0 steal in nine league games. He took games off to recover from a sprained knee ligament, which didn’t keep him from coming up with clutch shots in the second-half league.

Vander Veen hit the game-winning shot in the closing seconds of a 57-55 win at Ripon that put the Knights alone at the top of the TVL standings. Vander Veen scored eight of his 17 points in the fourth quarter. One week later, he hit another tough layup at the buzzer to force overtime at Sonora’s Bud Castle Gym. Ripon Christian escaped with the 70-68 victory, with Vander Veen producing 24 points and five assists.

Cady also had big moments in league, flirting with triple-doubles on multiple nights. He scored 14 of his 18 points in the second half in that Sonora game, finishing with five rebounds, five assists and three steals. The versatile point guard averaged 14.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 3.1 steals.

Sharp-shooting guard Mason Tameling joins his fellow Ripon Christian juniors on the all-league team. He averaged 11.7 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.7 steals while making 39% of his 3-pointers.

All-TVL basketball
Ripon’s Marcus Madoski operates in the key while guarded by Ripon Christian’s EJ Bruno.
Runner-up Ripon (9-3, 18-12) has two All-TVL selections in senior center Marcus Madoski and senior guard Logan Lefebvre.

The prolific Madoski is a three-time all-league recipient after averaging 22.2 points, 9.4 rebounds, 1.9 steals and 1.3 blocks in league. Lefebvre recorded 12.3 points, 6.4 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.8 steals.

Ripon Christian’s front-count trio of Walker Postma, E.J. Bruno and Chase Bunnell earned honorable mention. Ripon also had three make honorable mention in Ethan Bauer, Nathan Curless and Tanner Hickman.

All-TVL basketball
Ripon guard Leila Sanchez attacks the key against Manteca’s Lana Bondoc during the Tracy Breakfast Lions Tournament.

The Ripon girls team (11-1, 19-11) had quite the turnaround under Scheid after winning just two league games last year. The Indians did it with different standouts every game.

Seniors Shayla McKeon and Leila Sanchez are joined by sophomore guard Kaylee Lehmkuhl on the all-league team. McKeon compiled 6.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and 1.1 steals in the TVL. Sanchez averaged 4.5 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.2 steals. Lehmkuhl scored at a team-high 7.5-point clip to go with 2.1 steals.

Senior center Reagan Vander Hoek (12.9 points) represents Ripon Christian (5-7, 10-13) on the all-league team.

Getting honorable mention were Ripon’s Danika Escola and Ripon Christian’s Cailyn Mouw.

Escalon racked up the two top player awards; sophomore point guard Arianna Velasco is MVP, and junior guard Madi Babasa earned Most Outstanding Player.