Taken from the Aptos Times dated March 16, 2026 - Article by Jon Chown

The Aptos High School boys and girls soccer teams made school history this season, with both winning the first Central Coast Section soccer championship in the school’s history and moving on to the CIF Northern California Regionals, where both teams were eventually eliminated in tight matches.

Their CCS championship games were both played at Del Mar High School on Feb. 28.

The Girls:

The girls, the top seed in Division III, defeated No. 2 seed The King’s Academy 1-0 in the first of the two championship matches.

The Mariners controlled the ball and kept the pressure on their opponent nearly the entire match, but couldn’t get past the opposing goalie until, with about 15 minutes remaining, Isabella Hartnett was able to penetrate the defense and pass the ball to Alexa Castaneda, who then scored.

It was an amazing season for the girls, who won their third straight Santa Cruz Coastal Athletic League title, finishing unbeaten in league play for the third straight season before winning the CCS title. Castaneda said she was extremely proud of the girls and really appreciated all of their hard work this season. “They made history,” she said.

The Boys:

The boys' team, the No. 2 seed in the CCS Division IV playoffs, came from behind to defeat Carlmont High, 2-1, and win its first CCS championship.

Aptos started slowly, as Carlmont controlled the ball and the match early, going up 1-0 just five minutes in. The early deficit seemed to wake the Mariners up.

Once trailing, the Mariners took control of the game. They responded quickly with a goal in the 13th minute when Zavala chased down a long pass from teammate Julian Torres that landed between his defender and the goalie. Zavala raced past his defender and kicked the ball past the goalie, just as he was reaching for it, to tie the game at 1-1.

Aptos stayed in control of the ball much of the remainder of the match until Haziel Parra scored the game-winner with about 10 minutes left in the second half.

“We got it done: CCS champions and first-ever in the history of the Aptos High boys soccer program. I’m very proud of this team,” said coach Roberto Zuniga.

Aptos Mariners Soccer CCS Rings

Team Members