The Buchanan of Clovis boys wrestling team (left) gathered to celebrate after it won 10th CIF state title last March. At right, Mater Dei’s Jasmine and Marcel Aguilar show off the girls and boys CIF D1 state title trophies that both teams won this year. The sister-brother combo were members of both teams. Buchanan’s girls also won the CIF state title as the school became the first in state history to attain the sweep. Photos: @cifstate / X.com & OCCatholic.com / Mater Dei HS.
For boys sports only, St. John Bosco of Bellflower tops the group with baseball, wrestling, football and boys basketball success. For the girls, overall winner Santa Margarita had to be the winner in that category this time as well. Other schools gaining overall state sports excellence honors for 2025-26 are San Ramon Valley of Danville once again for D2, Birmingham of Lake Balboa (D3), Menlo School of Atherton (D4) and University of San Francisco (D5). Check inside for writeups of those schools and for every other school that is appearing on our Top 10 ticker at the top of our home page.
For announcement of overall State School of the Year, CLICK HERE.
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Congratulations to the following schools for collecting a statewide all-sports honor for the 2025-2026 school year:
(Please note that for our criteria we are going to favor schools that have been in our state rankings for football, boys basketball, girls basketball, baseball & softball plus schools that have have placed high in CIF championship events.)
St. John Bosco’s baseball team is shown after it won CIFSS D1 title. Photo: sjboscobaseball / Instagram.com.
Boys Sports Only:
St. John Bosco (Bellflower)
The Braves had never gotten one of these nods until the 2019-20 COVID school year and now they’ve gotten it for two of the past three years. The football program of head coach Jason Negro has been near or at the top of the state since 2013, but in recent years the basketball, baseball and wrestling programs have been similar and in some years even better.
For the 2025-26 year, the team at St. John Bosco that ended No. 1 in the state was baseball for the second straight year. Head coach Andy Rojo’s squad won the CIF Southern Section D1 title for the second straight year as well and was State Team of the Year even though it didn’t win the CIF SoCal D1 regional title. The football team was No. 1 in the nation entering the regular season finale vs its rivals from Mater Dei, but lost that game and then was upset in the first round of the CIFSS D1 playoffs by Orange Lutheran. The Braves ended with a No. 4 overall state ranking.
In boys basketball, Bosco featured All-American Christian Collins and ended with a No. 10 final state ranking. The wrestling team in the winter did even better and scored well at the CIF state championships in Bakersfield. With first-place wins by both Jesse Grajeda and Michael Romero in the 144- and 150-pound weight classes, the Braves were third in team scoring behind only Buchanan of Clovis and Poway. It was in D3 and not D1, but the cross country team had another top five placement in a CIF state meet. The Braves were fifth in the race with all-junior lineup that should give them a chance ot having another good season this fall.
Girls Sports Only:
Santa Margarita (Rancho SM)
We have documented much of what the Eagles did in girls sports in the State School of the Year announcement. They also were tops in the annual CIFSS Commissioners Cup standings for girls sports. They were shown with 33 points and were three points higher than Trinity League rival JSerra and far ahead of Mater Dei, which had 19 points. The SMC girls won CIFSS titles in golf, volleyball, soccer plus swimming & diving. The Eagles’ previous state school of the year honors on the girls side have come for 2023 and 2019.
The San Ramon Valley girls soccer team won the first-ever CIF D2 state title and were followed immediately by the SRV boys doing the same in their D2 state final. Photo: San Ramon Valley HS.
Division II State School of Year:
San Ramon Valley (Danville)
One year after the Wolves gained their first-ever state school of the year honor, they have repeated in the same division. The highlight for the 2025-26 year came on the same day in Sacramento and in the first-ever CIF state soccer championships.
San Ramon Valley first won the CIF D2 state title for girls soccer with a 1-0 win over Westlake of Westlake Village. Freshman Morgan Van Puffelen scored the game-winning goal in overtime. The SRV boys then came out on to the pitch and didn’t need overtime in a 4-1 win to win their CIF state title over Mira Monte of Bakersfield. Aden DePaco led the way with three goals. Both of the Wolves’ teams had to go on the road for multiple days as lower seeds to even get into the state finals. The boys had a 2-1 win in their regional final over a Berkeley team that they had lost to 1-0 in the CIF North Coast Section playoffs. The girls won in their regional final over higher seeded Archbishop Mitty.
The girls at SRV also scored a lot of school of the year points in flag football, girls basketball, softball and swimming. The flag football team went 18-6 and defeated Granada of Livermore, 14-7, to win the NCS D1 title. The girls hoopers finished 27-4, won the NCS Open Division title, won a NorCal Open playoff game over Pinewood of Los Altos Hills and then lost to Clovis West of Fresno in the NorCal Open semifinals. The softball team rolled to a memorable 12-1 win in the NCS D1 final against College Park after it got past league rival Livermore in the semifinals before the season ended in a NorCal D1 playoff loss to St. Francis of Mountain View. It also was a strong showing for the SRV girls at the CIF state swimming championships where the Wolves notched 128 points, good enough for fourth-place in the overall team standings.
The Birmingham of Lake Balboa girls water polo team is shown after it won the CIF Southern California D3 regional championship. Photo: @cifstate / X.com.
Division III State School of Year:
Birmingham (Lake Balboa)
The most fun we had doing the division school of the year recaps this year was looking up the historical aspect of Birmingham winning in schools we considered D3. It’s a first for the Patriots as well as a first for D3 or medium schools among all schools in the CIF L.A. City Section. It also was important to look up any L.A. City school that has ever been school of the year in any division. The last time was for the 1975-76 school year for San Fernando (led by future Heisman Trophy winner Charles White in football and track). L.A. Jefferson is listed twice on the overall honors list for 1955-56 and for 1949-50 when it was great in both basketball and track. L.A. Washington also is on for 1947-48 with Hugh McElhenny starring in football and track. Los Angeles High has some for the very early years (including 1898-99) as does Manual Arts three times in the late 1910s.
ALl of that could happen because of the overall excellence that Birmingham teams displayed throughout the 2025-26 school year. The only time we saw a Patriots’ team play was in the CIF D4 boys basketball state final in a loss to Cornerstone Christian of Antioch. The Bham girls in basketball had an even better record at 28-5 and went to the CIF SoCal D2 regional semifinals. The one team that went all the way was in girls water polo as the Patriots topped Coronado to win the CIF SoCal D3 regional title. We also credited the school with a lot of points for football (L.A. City Open Division semifinals), boys water polo (reached CIF SoCal regional semifinals), wrestling (placed 8th overall among all schools with no divisions at CIF state meet), boys volleyball (LA City D3 champions) and wrapped it all up with an L.A. City Open Division championship won at Dodger Stadium in baseball.
The Menlo boys tennis program added to its legacy of success by beating the best of Southern California to win the CIF D1 state title and complete a perfect season. Photo: menloschool.org.
Division IV:
Menlo School (Atherton)
We consider both Menlo and their rivals from Sacred Heart Prep to be D4 for these honors and they often go back and forth in getting to the top. At some point, since the schools both have teams that compete in the highest levels in some sports due to competitive equity, we will have to move them up. For this year, however, it stayed D4.
Menlo’s most recent State School of the Year honor for D4 came in 2022. The Knights also have been state school of the year three other times. Sacred Heart Prep won this honor just last year and also has won four other times. In other words, they are now both tied with five.
The top team at the school for the year would be in boys tennis. The Knights won their first CIF state championship (there are no divisions) with a 5-2 win in the state final vs Harvard-Westlake. They had lost in the same state final last year to University of Irvine, which also won the first CIF state title in boys tennis in 2024. Menlo, which finished a perfect 29-0 in the season, had a win in the No. 1 singles match by top player Yuanye Ma. Knights senior Arki Temsamani and freshman Maximus Chan clinched the win with a tiebreak triumpn in their match.
It was more than that obviously that helped Menlo get to the top of the D4 school of the year heap. The Knights were second in the D5 boys cross country race while in girls cross country team placed 11th in the same state division. In flag football, Menlo split with Sacred Heart Prep in two close games but won the first-ever CIF Central Coast Section title (no divisions) with a 27-13 in the final over Los Gatos behind four TD passes from junior QB Ava Allen. The football team (9-3) was highly ranked among state small schools as well with a 21-6 win over Sacred Heart Prep, a CCS D2 playoff win vs King’s Academy and then a lopsided loss to large school regarded St. Ignatius (which went on to win a CIF state title in a lower division). In girls soccer, Menlo went to the CIF NorCal D4 regional semifinals before a loss in overtime penalty kicks to Twelve Bridges of Lincoln. The school year ended with the Knights’ run to the CIF NorCal D3 championship game in baseball where it fell in a loss to Roseville. Jack Freehill, who passed for 22 TDs and rushed for 11 TDs in football, had another outstanding baseball season with a .379 batting average and 30 RBI.
University’s boys soccer team won the CIF North Coast Section D2 title. Photo: uhs.score / Instagram.com.
Division V:
University (San Francisco)
There is some flexibility with a school like University, which can be D5, D4 or even D3 based on competitive equity divisions in which the Red Devils have played in during CIF NorCal competitions. They had another outstanding year and instead of putting them in D4 where they’ve been in the last few years and where they frankly would have been beaten out by Menlo School in D4 this year we put them in the division in which they’ve been state school of the year several other times.
In addition to getting it this year for D5, University was state school of the year for D4 in both 2021 and 2023. It’s last D5 selection came in 2018. Between 1998 and 2004 in a seven-year run, the Red Devils were No. 1 for D5 schools five times.
Athletic Director Anthony Thomas reported the school won 12 league titles during the school year. It was the high-level finishes in state or NorCal competitions that of course what mattered most. The boys cross country team captured the CIF D5 state title while the girls cross country team on the same day had a third-place podium finish (also in D5).
Other top seasons were turned in by boys basketball (28-6 final record, won NCS D2 championship); boys soccer (won NCS D2 title and reached CIF NorCal D3 final); and boys tennis (NCS Open runner-up and reached NorCal regional semifinals). There also was a San Francisco Section fencing title (not offered as a CIF sport), plus NCS titles in girls tennis and girls track & field.
“Our coaches challenge students to compete, lead, persevere, and grow,” Thomas said. “The lessons learned through athletics help shape the type of young people our graduates become long after the final game has been played.”
Note: If we were doing a top 10 ranking for schools of the year, Santa Margarita would be first, Mater Dei second, Buchanan of Clovis third, Archbishop Mitty of San Jose fourth, Mira Costa of Manhattan Beach fifth, St. John Bosco sixth, Sierra Canyon of Chatsworth seventh, De La Salle eighth, JSerra of SJ Capistrano ninth and Harvard-Westlake of Studio City 10th. Note that Bosco and De La Salle are boys only. This year, the Trinity League could not claim that every school had at least one team that was No. 1 in the state. Servite of Anaheim was tops in boys track. Lutheran of Orange didn’t have a No. 1 team this school year..
2. Mater Dei (Santa Ana)
It’s rare for a school to have four teams that ended No. 1 in the state and won state titles, but that was what the Monarchs did during the 2025-26 school year. The success began in the fall with the girls volleyball team winning the CIF D1 state championship. MD capped a 35-5 record with a 3-0 sweep of Rocklin in the state final, which came after a win over Sierra Canyon in the SoCal final that reversed the results of the CIFSS D1 championship. The winter season was even better for MD as the girls water polo team won the CIF SoCal regional title and was quickly followed by a CIF D1 state title sweep by both the boys and girls soccer teams. In water polo, the Monarchs also finished 30-3. The girls soccer team had lost in two earlier matches with Santa Margarita (with one tie), but then got past the Eagles in the SoCal D1 final and then won state with a 2-0 win over Bishop O’Dowd of Oakland. The first-ever CIF D1 state title for boys soccer also was claimed by Mater Dei. The Monarchs topped Alvarez of Salinas, 2-1, in the final and had a 21-1-3 record.
A fifth team for MD also was considered top five in the state and that would be in football. The Monarchs posted a late-season win over St. John Bosco, which was No. 1 in the state at the time, but then lost in the CIFSS D1 semifinals to Corona Centennial. That team of course has been No. 1 in the state before and the Monarchs also have had stronger seasons in their history in both boys basketball (No. 18 in final state rankings) and girls basketball (No. 12). If football had won state or if one of the basketball teams was closer to the top five, then that would have been enough to be higher in the final school of the year rankings than Santa Margarita. It was viewed again as a very close contest.
3. Buchanan (Clovis)
The strength of the Bears’ argument to be up there near the top of the state is similar to Mater Dei’s in that they also won four CIF state titles during the 2025-26 school year (which is tied for the most). Buchanan’s four state titles were in girls cross country (D1), boys wrestling (no divisions), girls wrestling (no divisions) and small varsity competitive cheer. We had to check to make sure if the cheerleading title counts and there’s photos of the girls with the same CIF state title plaque that others get. Buchanan teams also were in the NorCal regional semifinals in girls volleyball and girls soccer. The Bears won their 10th CIF state title in boys wrestling by a fairly comfortable margin over both Poway and St. John Bosco. Rocklin Zinkin also made history by becoming the 25th wrestler in state history to win three individual state titles. The difference in wrestling this time was that for the first time the Bears also were champions on the girls side. They also won by more than 30 points and had a freshman girl, Alexandria Marin at 100 pounds, gain an individual title.
4. Archbishop Mitty (San Jose)
Well-known for its accomplishments particularly in girls sports, the Monarchs had perhaps their best overall year of the current decade. Mitty’s girls reached the CIF Open Division state championship in basketball but lost in the game to Ontario Christian. It wasn’t their only No. 2 finish in a CIF state event, though. The Monarch girls also were second in team scoring at the CIF state swimming & diving championships. Three other Mitty girls teams on our list were in volleyball, soccer and softball. The volleyball team made it to the CIF NorCal Open Division final where it lost to Rocklin. In soccer, Mitty went 17-5-1 and reached the CIF D2 NorCal final while in softball the Monarchs won the CCS Open Division title before dropping their NorCal D1 playoff opener to Clovis East. Mitty’s boys sure helped the cause as well. They won the CIF D3 NorCal title in water polo, they were 29-9 in volleyball with a loss in the CIF NorCal D1 semifinals and they were fourth in team scoring at the CIF state meet in swimming.
5. Mira Costa (Manhattan Beach)
They may not have all been in the top divisions, but we’re going to give the Mustangs a lot of credit for winning seven CIFSS titles during the school year. On the boys side, Costa won CIFSS titles in baseball, lacrosse, track and volleyball. That helped the school finish in a tie for first with Loyola of Los Angeles with 23 points in final Commissioners Cup standings. For the girls, the Mustangs won CIFSS crowns in cross country, lacrosse and boys volleyball. They were fourth with 17 points in the Commissioners Cup. Combining the boys and girls scoring for the Commissioners Cup, Mira Costa’s 40 points was second only to Santa Margarita’s 46.
The Sierra Canyon boys & girls basketball teams got together for a celebration a few days after they made history by both winning CIFSS Open Division titles. Photo: sierracanyonschool / Instagram.com.
7. Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth)
A magical night in March when the Trailblazers swept the boys and girls championship games in the CIFSS Open Division finals in basketball was the highlight of the school year. Head coach Andre Chevalier’s boys then took the CIF Open Division state title in Sacramento two weeks later in a win vs Salesian of Richmond. The girls, however, were upset in the CIF SoCal Open playoffs by Sage Hill of Newport Beach as Ontario Christian (the team Sierra Canyon beat in the CIFSS final) went on to win the state crown. The school also had two nationally ranked teams in the fall in football and girls volleyball. The football team had an unbeaten regular season but lost in the CIFSS D1 quarterfinals to a Santa Margarita squad that later won the CIF Open state title. The girls volleyball team had a win over Mater Dei to win the CIFSS D1 title, but lost to the Monarchs in a rematch for the CIF SoCal Open title. It will be interesting to see how the school does as its starting up a flag football program this fall.
8. De La Salle (Concord)
While the Spartans continue to show a lot of depth and with deep runs into CIF state/regional playoff brackets, they are always striving for the very top and didn’t get there in any sport this year. Last year’s Boys Sports Only School of the Year came the closest to a CIF state title in golf with a second-place finish in the state final behind Stevenson of Pebble Beach. The Spartans did have individual champion Drue Sanchez, a junior who became the school’s first individual state champ in golf. De La Salle earlier went to the CIF Open Division state final in football where it lost to Santa Margarita but could only finish No. 7 in the final state rankings. In baseball, in what turned out to be the final season for head coach David Jeans (he’s retiring), DLS saw its attempt to win a third straight CIF NorCal D1 title stopped with a loss to Valley Christian of San Jose in the regional semifinals. Other highlights included a regional semifinal push in water polo, a sixth-place finish in team standings at the CIF state track meet, a regional semifinal push in soccer and a sixth-place finish in team standings at the CIF state swimming championships.
9. JSerra (SJ Capistrano)
There were again some really good teams that the Lions had during the 2025-26 school year. The one that was regarded as No. 1 in the state, though, was flag football, which capped a 28-0 season with a 25-20 triumph over Orange Lutheran to win the CIFSS D1 title. JSerra also had a CIF state title boys-girls sweep in cross country. It came in D4, which doesn’t have the same impact for example as what Mater Dei did in soccer (which was in D1). The Lions also were No. 2 in the final state softball rankings after winning the CIFSS D1 title with a win in the final over La Mirada and a win in the semis over defending champ Norco, which was No. 1 in the state at the time. JSerra had other big wins in boys hoops and girls hoops during their seasons but those teams both were at No. 15 in final rankings.
10. Harvard-Westlake (Studio City)
This is another state school of the year regular that we always check for overall excellence. Our overall winner for the 2020-21 school year won a CIF state title in girls volleyball with a 3-0 victory in the D1 title game over Woodcreek of Roseville. The Wolverines also were No. 2 in the final boys basketball state rankings, No. 4 in the final baseball state rankings, reached the CIF SoCal final in boys teannis and were fifth in the CIF D4 state cross country race.
MORE HONORABLE MENTIONS
Bakersfield Christian — Football, Boys Basketball, Baseball
Campolindo (Moraga) — Boys Cross Country, Girls Cross Country, Boys Water Polo, Boys Swimming, Girls Swimming
Cathedral Catholic (San Diego) — Baseball, Football, Girls Cross Country, Boys Water Polo, Girls Volleyball
Centennial (Corona) — Football, Boys Basketball, Girls Basketball
Etiwanda – Girls Basketball, Softball, Boys Basketall, Girls Wrestling
Loyola (Los Angeles) — Boys Volleyball, Boys Lacrosse, Boys Basketball
Lutheran (Orange) — Football, Softball, Baseball, Girls Flag
Oaks Christian (Westlake Village) — Boys Water Polo, Girls Water Polo, Boys Cross Country, Girls Soccer
Redondo (Redondo Beach) — Boys Cross Country, Boys Track, Boys Basketball, Girls Volleyball
Sacred Heart Prep (Atherton) — Boys Basketball, Boys Water Polo, Girls Water Polo, Girls Flag, Girls Lacrosse
Servite (Anaheim) — Football, Boys Track
Torrey Pines (San Diego) — Girls Golf, Boys Golf, Girls Volleyball, Girls Flag, Boys Tennis, Boys Volleyball
Mark Tennis is the co-founder and publisher of CalHiSports.com. He can be reached at markjtennis@gmail.com. Don’t forget to follow Mark on the Cal-Hi Sports Twitter handle: @CalHiSports
