Late legendary basketball coach John Wooden said it best: “A good coach can change a game. A great coach can change a life.”
The 2025-26 San Joaquin County school year proved just how true those words still are.
Championship standards were maintained. New milestones were reached. Programs found new life. Historic seasons followed.
These are The Record’s top 10 girls high school coaches of the 2025-26 school year.
Note: This list recognizes coaches of girls programs only.
David Rios Jr. leads Kimball flag football to 24 wins behind nation’s top passer
Talent alone doesn’t guarantee wins. Knowing how to maximize it does. David Rios Jr. proved that in just his second season at Kimball. After a 14-win inaugural campaign, the Jaguars took another leap, finishing 24-3 overall, 10-0 in the TCAL and No. 74 in California according to MaxPreps. The biggest example came at quarterback, where Emma Coronado became one of the nation’s most productive passers, finishing near the top of nearly every major statistical category.
Steffany Zanini guides East Union flag football to county’s only CIF SJS semifinal berth
Improvement isn’t always measured by wins alone. Sometimes it’s measured by how much longer a season lasts. Steffany Zanini proved that with East Union. After an 18-win inaugural season ended in the Section quarterfinals, the Lancers captured the VOL title, earned the No. 4 seed in the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division III playoffs and became San Joaquin County’s only flag football team to reach the semifinals before falling to eventual champion Christian Brothers.
Gregory Soliz extends Ripon volleyball’s run to four straight section title games, top-50 state ranking
Championships aren’t built in a single season. Gregory Soliz continued proving that at Ripon. The Indians finished 25-4 and rolled to a third straight undefeated TVL championship before claiming the No. 1 seed in the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division III playoffs. Three straight-set victories later, Ripon had reached a fourth consecutive Section championship match. Although the title stayed just out of reach, the Indians finished No. 48 in California after adding another chapter to a run that already included Section championships in 2022 and 2024.
Kayla Kootstra returns Ripon Christian volleyball to CIF NorCal Regional final
Programs accustomed to championships don’t stay down for long. Kayla Kootstra made sure Ripon Christian didn’t. One year after the Knights’ run of four consecutive CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division III championships — excluding the COVID-19 season — came to an end, Ripon Christian again fell in the Section semifinals despite earning the No. 2 seed. Instead of letting the season end there, the Knights earned the No. 1 seed in the CIF State Division IV NorCal playoffs and advanced to the regional championship match before falling to eventual state champion Immanuel.
Jim Agostini turns seventh straight league title into East Union basketball’s first CIF SJS final since 1994
League championships had become routine at East Union. Another trip to the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section final had not. Jim Agostini finally brought the two together. The Lancers finished 23-5 in the regular season and captured a seventh consecutive league championship, including the COVID-19 season. Then came the breakthrough. East Union dominated its first two CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division III playoff games, ended Lathrop’s unbeaten season in the semifinals and reached its first Section championship game since 1994. The Lancers weren’t finished there, either, winning two CIF State Division III playoff games to advance to the program’s first regional semifinal.
Dwayne Davis rewrites Lathrop basketball history with undefeated season, CIF State regional final
Perfection was only the start. Dwayne Davis made sure of it. The Spartans rolled through the regular season at 28-0 with three freshmen in the starting lineup and every WAC victory coming by at least 20 points. When their undefeated season ended in the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division III semifinals, Lathrop refused to let its story end there, winning three CIF State Division IV playoff games to reach the program’s first regional championship game and cap the greatest season in school history.
Alle Moreno adds to St. Mary’s basketball dynasty with 23rd section title, top-10 state ranking
Dynasties aren’t measured by how often they win. They’re measured by how they respond after they lose. Alle Moreno had the perfect answer. One season after St. Mary’s fell short of another CIF Sac-Joaquin Section title, the Rams responded with a 21-2 regular season, reclaimed their 23rd Section championship and earned the No. 3 seed in the CIF State Open Division NorCal playoffs before finishing No. 8 in California according to MaxPreps. Along the way, St. Mary’s collected five wins over California top-35 opponents and victories over elite programs from Hawaii, Washington, Colorado and Oregon.
Paulette Keeney builds another top-40 Tracy softball team in California with one-loss regular season
Every team dreams of ending its season as the last one standing. Sometimes, the ending has other plans. Paulette Keeney’s Tracy softball team never got the ending it wanted, but that didn’t erase one of California’s most dominant regular seasons. The Bulldogs finished 24-1, with only one victory decided by fewer than four runs, spent much of the season ranked among the state’s top seven teams and finished No. 38 in California according to MaxPreps for a second consecutive top-40 finish.
Mike Stallings turns uncertainty into CIF SJS title game for Elliott Christian softball
Before the season, Elliott Christian wasn’t chasing championships. It was simply trying to field a team. Mike Stallings made sure the Eagles did, piecing together a 10-player roster at a school of just 58 students. The reward was an 11-4 season and a return to the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section championship game for the first time since 2015, where No. 2 Elliott Christian fell to top-seeded Le Grand in the Division VII final. For a program that once won eight consecutive Section titles from 2005 to 2012, it marked another memorable chapter.
Escalon’s Lexy Underwood authors remarkable turnaround from 1-9 start to CIF NorCal softball title
A 1-9 start usually marks the end of championship dreams. For Lexy Underwood and Escalon softball, it was just a number. The Cougars rebounded to finish 11-11 in the regular season and second in the TVL before the No. 7 seed caught fire in the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division V postseason, upsetting the No. 2, No. 3 and No. 5 seeds to capture the program’s sixth section championship. The magical run, however, didn’t stop there. After defeating No. 4 Alhambra in the CIF NorCal Division IV quarterfinals, a semifinal forfeit sent the Cougars to the regional championship, where they defeated No. 2 Alisal to become the first softball team in San Joaquin County history to win a CIF NorCal championship.
This article originally appeared on The Record: The 10 coaches who defined girls sports in San Joaquin County in 2025-26
Reporting by Dylan Ackermann, The Stockton Record / The Record
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Dylan Ackermann, The Stockton Record | USA TODAY Network
