San Marcos’ Tiller commits to run track at Cal
Annabelle Tiller, a senior at San Marcos High School, has accepted a scholarship offer to run track at the University of California next year.
Annabelle Tiller, whose promising junior season at San Marcos High was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic, received a boost to her senior year with a scholarship offer to run track at the University of California.
The star hurdler said she will sign a national letter of intent with the Golden Bears during a ceremony at San Marcos on Nov. 11.
“It’s nice to realize that the hard work is paying off,” said Tiller, who also competes for the Santa Barbara Track Club. “I’ve put in a lot of hours and dedicated a lot of time.”
UCSB and Georgetown also offered scholarships to Tiller, but she chose Cal to pursue a pre-med curriculum. She has accumulated a grade-point average of 4.6 at San Marcos.
She burst upon the track and field scene as a freshman when she finished second at the Channel League Championships in both the 400 meters and 300 hurdles, qualifying for the CIF Preliminaries in both events.
As a sophomore, Tiller won the 400 and was second in the 300 hurdles at the Santa Barbara County Championships while qualifying again for CIF.
Her junior season got off to a good start in February when she won the 300 hurdles at the Thousand Oaks Lancer Invitational with a time of 46.29. She won that same race on March 7 at the Don Green Invitational in Moorpark with a personal-best 46.11 and also set a PR in the 200 with a runner-up time of 25.46.
The CIF State office, however, shut down all high school sports the following week because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Williams, Nepa named Scholar-Athletes
Tyler Williams of St. Joseph’s High School and Kidasi Nepa of Righetti are among 144 prep football players from throughout the country to be named as Great American Rivalry Series Scholar-Athletes for 2020.
They will both receive a $500 scholarship on behalf of the Great American Rivalry Series and, through a partnership with the Pro Football Hall of Fame, are eligible to receive an additional scholarship while becoming a member of the inaugural Great American Rivalry Series Scholar Athlete Hall of Fame Team.
The 25-member Hall of Fame Team will be chosen through a 30-day voting period that begins Monday. Voting will be conducted at the association’s web site, greatamericanrivalry.com/2020-scholar-athletes.
As a junior defensive back and wide receiver, Williams led St. Joseph’s to a 9-4 record and the CIF Central Section’s Division 2 semifinals last season. He’s received scholarship offers from Cal Poly, Yale, William & Mary, Fordham, Lehigh, Bucknell, and the University of San Diego.
Righetti has compiled a 17-7 record during Nepa’s two seasons as a starting slot back and free safety, advancing to the CIF-CS Division 2 final in 2018. He compiled 924 total yards of rushing and receiving last year while scoring 10 touchdowns.
email: mpatton@newspress.com
