ELK GROVE, CA (MPG) - Winter sports have kicked off, which means the return of the boys and girls season on the hardwood. 

With the return, local teams are thriving and others are struggling to find their footing early in this new season. 

Bradshaw Christian: The Pride started their season out with a 1-2 record as their first three games came in tournament play at the Bill Cartwright Classic at Elk Grove High School. 

In their first and third game, the Pride fell to Woodcreek and St. Mary’s but was able to win their second game of the season against Mt. Diablo. 

Junior Carson Fitzpatrick racked up 17 points, four rebounds and four assists, while senior Ethan Rickert scored eight points, 12 rebounds, five assists, two steals and a block. The Pride took the victory over Mt. Diablo by a score of 72-48. 

The leading scorer for the Pride so far is Fitzpatrick with 23 through two games played, Rickert leads in rebounds with 16 in two games played and Ricker and senior Daniel Watkins lead in assists with six. 

The Sierra Valley Conference play kicks off on Jan. 7 against the Amador Buffaloes, as the Pride has time to prepare with seven scheduled games on MaxPreps before league play. 

Cosumnes Oaks: The Wolfpack started their season with a 2-1 record with wins over Chavez and San Lorenzo in the McKinleyville Tournament. 

Last season, they went 14-15 which resulted in a fourth-place finish in the Delta League.

So far, the Wolfpack have no stats entered in MaxPreps and their Delta League season will not begin until Jan. 8 against the Franklin Wildcats. 

The Wolfpack have seven scheduled pre-season games and tournaments until they begin league play. 

Elk Grove: The start of the basketball season for Elk Grove means the Bill Cartwright Classic tournament being played at Elk Grove High School. 

They’ve started the season with a 5-1 start, with their lone loss coming at the hands of the Woodcreek Timberwolves during their third game of the tournament. 

This is the fifty-second year of the tournament where the Herd started tournament play with an overtime win over McClatchy by a score of 67-64. 

Nearly half of the Herd’s points came from junior Noah Hargrave who dropped 33 points with seven rebounds and five assists. 

So far in this young season, Hargrave has scored 109 points to lead the Herd, while senior Danny Dennaoui leads in rebounds with 46 and senior Jason Raga leads in assists with 15. 

The Herd’s first league game is on Jan. 8 against Delta League newcomer the Laguna Creek Cardinals with more scheduled pre-season games against Oakmont, Colfax and Hillsdale to come. 

Franklin: Another team that has started their season on a good note is the Franklin Wildcats with a perfect 5-0 record so far. 

They’ve shown their dominance as in their first matchup against Cordova in the Jack Scott Tournament hosted by Rio Americano, the Wildcats beat their opponent by a score of 106-34. 

They went on to beat Oak Ridge by a score of 68-61 in the championship to repeat as champions of this tournament. 

No stats have been entered for this season, but the Wildcats will continue their pre-season schedule at the Wildcat Winter Classic that the team will host at Franklin High School beginning Dec. 12, after press time. 

The Wildcats' first Delta League game is on Jan. 8 against Cosumnes Oaks, as they look to improve on their 8-4 league record last season and third-place finish.

Laguna Creek: The newcomers to the Delta League are the Laguna Creek Cardinals who through five games hold a 2-3 record. 

Despite the three losses, the Cardinals have shown their fight which was exemplified in their 74-72 loss to Christian Brothers. 

They were led by sophomore Jaylan Virgil who scored 34 points, who also leads the Cardinals with 127 points. 

Junior Koa Jones leads the team with 33 rebounds and senior Sayid Davis leads with 17 assists to show the mixture of young talent and experience on this squad. 

In preparation for their first Delta League game against the Elk Grove Thundering Herd, the Cardinals have pre-season matches left against Vacaville, Pleasant Valley, Bear Creek and Oak Ridge. 

The Cardinals will look to replicate their success in the Metro League last season with a 9-3 record and second-place finish to carry over into their new league. 

Monterey Trail: Coming off a 12-0 Metro League season, it will be interesting to see if the Mustangs can translate this into the Delta League. 

There’s nothing slowing down the Mustangs so far this preseason as they start their season with a 4-0 record. 

Through their first three games, the Mustangs’ opponents posted a 35% FG%, 25% 3FG% and 32 turnovers forced to show their defensive efficiency. 

The offense has also been pretty spread out as freshman Devaughn Dorrough leads with 61 points, senior Rashawn Inglemon follows with 55 and senior Ahzeil Franklin with 32. 

The Mustangs prepare for their inaugural Delta League game against Sheldon on Jan. 8 with tournaments at Clovis West High School in Fresno and the Desert Holiday Classic in Rancho Mirage High School. 

Pleasant Grove: So far this season for the Eagles, they sport a 3-4 record coming off a 10-16 record from last season. 

They participated in the Jack Scott Tournament at Rio Americano High School where they picked up a loss in their opening game against Oak Ridge but took wins against El Camino and Fairfield. 

Senior Jordan Thai leads the Eagles with 64 points, senior AJ Breslin leads with 18 points and Thai leads with 11 assists. 

The Eagles have time to pick up steam and improve to a positive record before their first league game against the Franklin Wildcats on Jan. 10. 

Sheldon: The Huskies have not had much action this pre-season as others at this same point and sport a 1-1 record. 

Their latest game at the time of publication came with their first win as they hosted the Bakersfield Christian Eagles and took the victory by a score of 65-60. 

The Huskies are coming off a 20-10 season and second-place finish in the Delta League where they are looking to improve on their quarter final exit in the playoffs. 

No other games are listed on the schedule for the Huskies till Jan. 3 against Clovis West which will be followed up by a game against Vanden. 

This is all in preparation for their first league game of the season against the Monterey Trail Mustangs on Jan. 8, one of the strongest teams in the league despite being newcomers.
 

Bradshaw Christian: So far, the Pride have yet to get into the win column through six games. 

They currently sport a 0-6 record with losses in pre-season matchups which included the Saints Tournament in Clarksburg. 

Once tournament play was over, the Pride came in last place as they lost the seventh-place matchup against Rio Vista. 

Sophomore Rianna Patel leads the Pride in scoring with 30 points and sophomore Vivian Wong leads in rebounds with six. 

The Pride have time to adjust and get into the win column before the start of the Sierra Valley Conference 

Cosumnes Oaks: Momentum has been gained by the Wolfpack as they’ve started the pre-season on the right foot with a 5-2 start. 

Their wins have come against Bella Vista, Rocklin, West Park, Rosemont and River City. 

It was in the River City tournament where the Wolfpack fell to Foothill by a score of 55-38. 

So far this season, the Wolfpack is led by junior Caitlin Subejano as she’s racked up 160 points through six games played. Subejano also leads in assists with 25.

According to MaxPreps, Subejano ranks third in the state as she’s averaging 29.6 points per game. 

Three Wolfpack players lead the team in rebounds with 28 including Subejano, junior Sophia Mendenhall and junior Sarah Hughes. 

The Wolfpack have scheduled matchups against Vacaville, Rosemont, Kennedy and Ponderosa before taking on the Franklin Wildcats in their first Delta League game on Jan. 8.

Elk Grove: The Thundering Herd have not been able to find their footing so far in this pre-season as they start their season at a 1-4 record. 

They won their first game against Del Campo by a score of 38-27 but have a string of consecutive losses against Oakmont, West Park, Tokay and Stagg.

No stats have been entered into MaxPreps but the Herd’s season continues as they prepare for the start of their Delta League season against the Laguna Creek Cardinals on Jan. 8. 

Franklin: So far this season, the Franklin Wildcats have not broken into the win column. 

The Wildcats have suffered losses at the hands of Folsom, Antelope, Christian Brothers and Kennedy. 

The most points scored in a game by the Wildcats have been 28 points which came against Kennedy. 

No stats have been entered into MaxPreps for Wildcat players. 

The last game listed on MaxPreps before the start of their Delta League season is against Grant on Dec. 9, after press time. 

The Wildcats start league play against the Cosumnes Oaks Wolfpack on Jan. 8. 

Laguna Creek: Although there’s not much success to look back on as they finished last season with a 4-20 record, the Laguna Creek Cardinals are looking to reverse their fortunes in their new league. 

The newest addition to the Delta League has brought a 3-2 record so far in the pre-season. 

One of their wins came against Galt where they dominated by putting up 80 points as a team. 

Only three of their games have been logged with stats on to MaxPreps where freshman Alyson Aguirre-Hernandez leads the Cardinals in points with 34. 

Junior Jestine Tofi leads in rebounds with 34 and Aguirre-Hernandez leads with seven assists. 

The Cardinals have plenty of pre-season left to arrive at Delta League play with momentum which includes the Manteca High School Christmas Showcase where they will start the tournament against Tracy. 

The Cardinals will begin Delta League play against the Elk Grove Thundering Herd on Jan. 8. 

Monterey Trail: The other newest member of the Delta League is the Monterey Trail Mustangs who posted a 17-11 record last season and will look to improve their third-place finish in a new league. 

So far this season, they have posted a 2-1 record with wins coming against McNair and St. Francis. 

Against McNair, the offense dropped a season-high 78 points. 

No stats have been entered into MaxPreps but the Mustangs continue their pre-season as they prepare for their first Delta League game against the Sheldon Huskies on Jan. 8. 

Pleasant Grove: Through their first five games, the Eagles have posted a 3-2 record with wins against Fortune Early College, Wood and Grant. 

In their first game of the season against Fortune Early College, the Eagles were led by flag football standout junior Kate Myers with 17 points, seven rebounds and seven steals. 

Myers leads the team this season with 113 points, 41 rebounds and 22 assists. 

Before their first league game, they have matchups against Lodi, Sacramento, Chavez and tournament play in the Chavez Christmas Classic in Palo Cedro. 

Their first league game is against the Franklin Wildcats on Jan. 10. 

Sheldon: Despite a 9-19 record last season, the Huskies have started strong with a 6-2 record so far in this young season. 

In one of their recent games in the Oakmont Rotary tournament, they dropped 90 points on Foothill en route to a dominant win. 

In this game, freshman Brooklin Kimmons led the Huskies with 19 points, sophomore Kayloni Knowlton led with eight rebounds and sophomore Zoe McAfee led with three assists. 

It’s Kimmons who leads the team this season in points with 115, Knowlton with 28 rebounds and McAfee with seven assists. 

In preparation for Delta League play, the Huskies have games scheduled against Oakmont, Granite Bay, El Camino, Rio Americano, Lodi, Vanden and Inderkum.

The Huskies start their journey in the Delta League on Jan. 8 against Monterey Trail.