Soccer teams win Section Championships

By Sydney Andrade Expresss sta writer

It was an exciting week for Winters High School Athletics with both the men’s and women’s soccer teams winning the second round of playoffs and securing the Northern California CIF Section Championship titles on Saturday. Both teams competed in the NorCal CIF Regionals on Tuesday, Feb. 28.

Women’s soccer

Last Tuesday, Feb. 21 the women’s soccer team won their playoff game against Colusa High School, at home, by a score of 8–0.

This was the third time Winters faced Colusa, and they went into the game optimistic. While Colusa came determined to stay in the game, holding the Warriors at 2–0 at halftime, the Warriors quickly dominated Colusa in the second half adding six more goals to their total.

Yarethzy Sanchez and Izabella Bermudez scored the first two goals of the game off assists by Andrea Cojean and Ava Muir-Vickrey in the first.

“In the second half, we found our rhythm and scored six more goals to seal the semifinal victory,” said head coach Chip McKenna.

Samantha Ramirez added three goals in the second half in addition to Muir-Vickrey, Andrea Cojean and Elena Ortiz each scored one. The Warriors’ defense did an excellent job protecting their goal and clearing any of the attempts Colusa made to take a shot.

“Everyone got significant playing time which is great to provide our young, less experienced players with opportunities in higher pressure settings,” said McKenna.

This victory was extremely exciting for the Warriors because it allowed them to compete for the Section Championship Title, which is the ultimate goal.

On Saturday, Feb. 25, the women’s soccer team took the title of Section Champions, winning the game against Hamilton High School by a score of 3–0.

“The game versus Hamilton started well. We dominated possession for the first 15 min but our nervousness began to show,” said McKenna. With a tied score of 0–0 going into the second half the girls quickly convened at half-time and the results showed. During the second half, the Warriors had more controlled passing and finally had goals scored by Ava Skinner, Samantha Ramirez, and a penalty by Muir-Vickrey to seal the victory.

“The defense played well again and kept a clean sheet, but they were rarely challenged.

Sammy Ramirez was, again, key for us in the midfield, but the whole team contributed to the effort,” said McKenna.

The women advanced on to play Lowell High School in San Francisco to compete in the NorCal CIF Regionals Division V Soccer Championship on Tuesday, Feb. 28.

Men’s soccer

On Tuesday, Feb. 21, the men’s soccer team won their home playoff game against Maxwell by a score of 9–1.

It was a slow first half as the Warriors not only battled against Maxwell but also had cold and windy playing conditions. It was the second half of the game when they were finally able to use the wind to their advantage, scoring seven goals.

Agustin Covarrubias was the lead scorer for the day with three goals. Alejandro Murillo had two goals, while Noel Gutierrez, Salvador Torres, Sebastian Pedraza and Esai Garcia each scored one.

“Gustavo Herrera, a midfielder for the Warriors, had a great game and made five assists. He had great vision and excelled at finding the spaces and open players,” said head coach Fernando Cervantes.

Garcia, Luis Lara and Sebastian Rodriguez were also key players defensively and did a great job protecting both Jairo Barajas and Bryan Angel at goal.

This victory against Maxwell allowed the men’s soccer team to advance into the

Joe Trotter Financial Advisor

#7 East Main Street, Suite E Winters, CA 95694 530-795-3929 ed w a r d j o n es c o m

Of The

Augustin Covarrubias

Augustin Covarrubias, a Winters High School senior, is Pisani’s Athlete of the Week. Covarrubias has played on the WHS men’s soccer team the past four years and earned his spot as a starting midfielder, forward and captain. “Augustine demonstrates great leadership on and off the field. He is one of the lead scorers and also takes charge on defense when needed to help even things up,” said head coach Fernando Cervantes.

vans, HD, RVs extra Must present this ad at time of write up.

Championships on Saturday, Feb. 25 where they won their home playoff game against Williams High School by a score of 4–1.

The men once again played in tough conditions, however, the cold temperature and slippery fields didn’t stop the Warriors from competing at the top of their game.

“We started a little off. I think we were just trying to do a little too much,” said Cervantes.

Williams scored first, which for some teams is very hard to recover from, but the Warriors didn’t allow it to get in their head.

Murillo got the Warriors started off with a goal in the first half, which gave the men the momentum they needed to take over the game.

“Williams beat us in the championships last year so we really wanted this one,” said Cervantes. The Warriors really put in the effort to communicate and play together as a team, Covarrubias stepped into a more defensive role and let his teammates do more of the work up top. After Murillo, Gutierrez scored two goals for the Warriors and Pedraza scored one which secured their title as Section Champions.

“I thought that everyone really stepped up and did a great job. Now we just need to carry that momentum into the game against Marshall without two of our key players who are out due to injuries they sustained in the Championship game,” said Cervantes.

Cl Nica De Ciudadan A Citizenship Clinic

¿ Tiene una mica y desea convertirse en ciudadano estadounidense?

¡ Acompáñenos en nuestra clínica gratuita!

Dónde: Centro Comunitario de Winters ( 201 Railroad Ave)

Cuándo: 11 de marzo ( 9- 11 AM)

Cómo: Los abogados presentarán los requisitos de ciudadanía y programarán citas para el 25 de marzo y el 8 de abril

Quién: Para los residentes de Yolo County que tienen bajos ingresos y/ o tienen más de 60 años

NOW

Do you have a green card and want to become a U S citizen? Join us for our free citizenship clinic!

Where: Winters Community Center ( 201 Railroad Ave)

When: March 11 ( 9- 11 AM)

How: Attorneys will present on citizenship requirements and schedule appointments for March 25 and April 8

Who: For Yolo County residents who are low- income and/ or over the age of 60 years old

Thursday, March 2

Joint Winters City Council/Planning Commission Meeting - Downtown Visioning Project Community Workshop, 6-9 p.m., Public Safety Facility’s Community Room

Winters JUSD School Board Meeting, 6 p.m., School District Office Building, Zoom Meeting info, check https://bit.ly/ WintersJUSDBoardAgendaCommunitySite

Thursdays

Eat Well Yolo Food Distribution, first and third Thursdays, 10 a.m. As supplies last, RISE, Inc., 200 Baker St. – Rooms 4 & 5, 530-668-0690

Friday, March 3 Capstone Basketball Tournament, 6 p.m. (Doors open at 5 p.m.), WHS Gym

Sunday, March 5

Grand Opening: Wide World of Winters' Sports Exhibit, 1–5 p.m., Program featuring Tom Crisp at 2 p.m., Winters Museum, 13 Russell St.

Monday, March 6 Winters Hispanic Advisory Committee, 6:30 p.m., City Hall Large Conference Room (Abbey Street entrance)

Tuesday, March 7 Winters City Council Meeting, 6:30 p.m., Council chamber (318 First St.), Zoom Meeting info, check www.cityofwinters.org/city-council-meetings_/

Wednesdays

Eat Well Yolo Drive – Through Food Distribution

Wednesdays, 3:30 p.m. As supplies last, Winters High student parking lot, off Railroad Avenue.

Upcoming

Wednesday, March 8

Winters Senior Commission on Aging Meeting, 6:30 p.m., City Hall Large Conference Room (Abbey Street entrance), check www.cityofwinters .org/winters-senior-commission-on-aging

Saturday, March 11 Community Health Fair, 9 a.m.– 1 p.m., Winters City Park

Monday, March 13

Winters Climate Action Commission Meeting, 6:30 p.m., Zoom Meeting info, check cityofwinters.org/climate-action-commission

Wednesday, March 22

Winters City Council Goal Setting Workshop, 9 a.m.– 2 p.m, City Hall Large Conference Room (Abbey Street entrance)

Library Services

Winters Library Open to Public (School in Session), Winters Community Library, Mon/Wed: 8 a.m.–6 p.m., Tue/Thu: 8 a.m.–8 p.m., Fri: 8 a.m.–5 p.m. , Sat: 1–5 p.m.

Teen Tuesday (ages 12-18), Second Tuesdays, 13:30 p.m., Winters Community Library

Bilingual Storytime (ages 0-5), Wednesdays, 10:30 a.m., Winters Community Library

Virtual English Conversation Group, Tuesdays, 2-3 p.m., One time registration required: Contact Nancy Pacheco 530-666-8019 or nancy.pacheco@ yolocounty.org

Mangonada Monday (ages 6-12), fourth Monday, 3:30 p.m.

Tech Thursdays, Second Thursday, 2-7:30 p.m., call 530-666-8005 to schedule an appointment

Afterschool Adventure (ages 6-12), Third Thursday, 3:30 p.m., Winters Community Library

Saturday Matinee, First Saturday, 2 p.m., Winters Community Library

All You Need is Love Romance Book Club, Second Saturday, 4 p.m., Hooby’s Brewing

Older Adult Programs

Winters Senior Foundation Chair Yoga Class for Seniors, Wednesdays, 9:30-11 a.m., St. Anthony Parish Hall (511 W. Main St.)

Winters Senior Foundation Social Gathering, Thurdays, 1-3:30 p.m., St. Anthony Parish Hall (511 W. Main St.) CANCELED March 23

Ongoing

Winters Friends of the Library meeting, first Monday, 7 p.m., Meeting details: https://wfol.org/

Rotary Club of Winters meeting, Thursdays, Noon, The Buckhorn Winters Museum public hours Thursday thru Sunday, 1-5 p.m., 13 Russell St.

Winters Open Mic, third Thursday of the month, 6 p.m. (sign-ups begin at 5 p.m.), 13 Main St.

Kiwanis Club of Winters meeting, fourth Thursdays, 6 p.m., Hooby's Brewing

Democracy Winters meeting, third Saturdays, 10 a.m.Noon, Meeting details in newsletter, contact info@ democracywinters.org

Alcoholics Anonymous meetings: » St. Anthony Parish Hall, 511 Main St. (back entrance) Tuesdays, 7-8 a.m. and Fridays, 7-8 a.m. » Yolo Housing office building, 62 Shams Way: Thursdays, 7-8 p.m. and Sundays, 9 a.m.

January housing report key points HOMES, Page 2

Charley checks the thermostat OPINION, Page 3

Member of the month FEATURES, Page 5

Redwoods, new friends and banana slugs

By Crystal Apilado Editor-in-Chief

For over 36 years, Winters Middle School sixth graders have had the opportunity to attend a week-long environmental educational experience through Exploring New Horizons Outdoor School in Santa Cruz. This year, sixth graders continued the long-time tradition at the Camp Sempervirens site from Feb. 6–10.

WMS made the switch to Camp Sempervirens from the Camp Loma Mar adventure last year when they brought both the sixth and seventh-grade classes to experience outdoor school following a break during the pandemic.

Sixth-graders had the opportunity to explore habitats at the beach and along the creek, hiked through the redwoods with their cabin groups, adventured on a solo hike, participated in the infamous mock town hall meeting and more. For many students, the camp

Sixth graders make their mark, clean creek

By Aaron Geerts Express sta writer

A handful of the sixth graders didn’t attend this year’s outdoor school trip, but that didn’t stop Winters Middle School teachers from providing them with an unforgettable school week outdoors with Mother Nature of their own.

This year, the sixth graders’ camping expedition took them to an outdoor school in Santa Cruz area redwoods. While the majority of the class was gone from Feb. 6–10, around 40 students stayed home. To pre-

Students pulled out a variety of items including toys, bottles and tires from the Putah Creek waters.

Courtesy photo vent fear of missing out, WMS teachers Morgan Perez and

Melanie Ellison opted to give them a take on a local educational experience outside.

“The overall goal of our week was similar to the outdoor camp’s. There was connecting with nature, leaving it better than we found it, and also developing friendships,” said Ellison. “That week, the students did some in-depth nature observation and documentation. There were also team-building activities like the human knot, capture the flag and kickball too. We just had them do outdoor, physical activities and wanted them to be outside and moving as much

See REDWOODS, Page 3 See CREEK, Page 4

Winters Friends of the Librar y Los Amigos de la Biblioteca de Winters

Fr uit Tree Sale

Venta de Árboles de Fruta

Sat. March 4 (rain or shine) 9:00AM UNTIL SOLD OUT E AR LY BIR D SA L E for members 8:30–9:00 AM Not a member? Join at the door! Park ing lot on Railroad Ave between Baker and Edwards almond apple apricot cherry nectarine olive peach plum pluot prune walnut

Bare root trees $20

Sab. 4 Marzo (llueva o truene)

I nformation:

VEN TA TEM P R A N A para socios 8:30–9:00 AM

9:00AM HASTA SE ACABA almendra manzana chabacano cereza oliva nectarina durazno ciruela pluot ciruela

California Association of Realtors

Special to the Express

Key points from C.A.R.’s January 2023 resale housing report include:

• At the regional level, all major regions recorded yearover-year sales drops of more than onethird. The Central Valley dropped the most of all regions at -43.3 percent as eight of the 12 counties in the region registered sales drops of more than 40 percent yearover-year in January.

Southern California (-41.1 percent) was another region in the state with a drop of over 40 percent, followed by the Far North (-39.6 percent), the San Francisco Bay Area (-36.9 percent), and the Central Coast (-35.1 percent).

• All counties tracked by C.A.R. experienced a yearover-year sales drop in January, with 45 counties plummeting more than 30 percent and 11 counties falling more than 50 percent from a year ago. Siskiyou (-73.8 percent) had the largest sales drop, followed by Mono (-73.3 percent) and Yuba (-63.6 percent). Only two counties — Glenn (-14.3 percent) and Kings (-19.7 percent) — out of 51 counties monitored by C.A.R. had a sales decline of less than 20 percent in January from the same month of last year.

• At the regional level, median home prices dropped from a year ago in all major regions, with the San Francisco Bay Area declining the most and by double-digits year-over-year. With prices sliding more than 10 percent in six Bay Area counties, the Bay Area’s regional median price was down 14.6 percent from a year ago and the dip in January was the largest price decline since July 2009.

Median prices in the state’s other regions experienced more moderate declines, with the Central Valley’s median price decreasing 6.6 percent, followed by the Far North (-3.4 percent), the Central Coast (-2.6 percent) and Southern California (-0.2 percent).

• More than four out of five counties experienced a decline in

Real Estate & Insurance Competitively Priced Insurance Auto - Home - Business - Farm Calif. Lic. 0F34259 Contact me with your Real Estate questions about property values, selling or buying. Tim Ireland (CA DRE #00546333),

CEO / Broker

26 Main Street * Winters, CA

Phone: (530) 795-4531 * Fax: (530) 795-4534 their home price from a year ago in January, with 15 counties posting drops of more than 10 percent yearover-year. Plumas (-23.9 percent) had the sharpest decline of all counties, followed by Mendocino (-23.5 percent), and Del Norte (-19.5 percent). Nine counties recorded an increase in their median prices from a year ago, with four counties growing by double-digits. Siskiyou had the biggest price gain of all counties, increasing 30.8 percent from January 2022, followed by

Mono (18.5 percent) and Glenn (18.0 percent).

• Housing inventory in California continued to rise in January to reach the highest level in 32 months. The statewide unsold inventory index (UII) was double the level of 1.8 months recorded in the same month of last year, surging to 3.6 months in January 2023, a level last seen in May 2020, when the state underwent a pandemic lockdown.

Unsold inventory increased from a year ago by 88 percent or more in all price rang- es, with the $500,000$749,000 price range gaining the most (112.5 percent), followed by the $1 million-and-up price tier (105.0 percent), the $750,000-$999,000 (100.0 percent) and the sub-$500,000 (88.9 percent).

• Weak housing demand continued to create carryover and elevate inventory on the surface, as 48 of the 51 counties tracked by C.A.R. registered an increase in active listings from January 2022. Five counties recorded a triple-digit, year-over-year gain in January as compared to 13 counties in December. Solano recorded the largest yearly growth of 163.6 percent, followed by Yuba (163.5 percent), Solano (119.9 percent), Amador (111.1 percent) and Placer (110.7 percent). Active listings decreased

Adobe/Stock image from a year ago in three counties, with Mono (-27.3 percent) dipping the most yearover-year, followed by Del Norte (-23.1 percent) and Plumas (-8.4 percent).

• The median number of days it took to sell a California single-family home was 33 days in January and 12 days in January 2022.

• C.A.R.’s statewide sales-price-to-listprice ratio was 96.5 percent in January 2023 and 101.2 percent in January 2022.

• The statewide average price per square foot for an existing single-family home was $371, down from $372 in January a year ago.

• The 30-year, fixed-mortgage interest rate averaged 6.27 percent in January, up from 3.45 percent in January 2022, according to Freddie Mac.

Sold

Park and Downtown Winters. Offered at $699,000.

ready to move forward. Lots located in area of million-dollar(+) homes. Seller owns 31 water rights. Call today for more details! Priced at $1,199,999. 5

Sold

GREAT BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY! Located right across the street from the Winters Hotel. Currently being used as a smog/mechanic shop. 9600 square foot lot! $995,000.

SUPER NICE HOME located on a very quiet cul-desac. Huge backyard with an amazing covered patio for entertaining. 3 beds and 2.5 baths. Remodeled kitchen and Master Bedroom. Appointment only. Offered at $659,000.

Sold

baths. Just over 2100 square feet. Centrally located close to all schools. Offered at $599,000. 3