Tyler Takeda/The Madera Tribune Matilda Torres’ Angelo Adame gets his Clovis East opponents’ shoulders to the mat for a second period pin Saturday at the Robert Arballo Invitational at Madera South. Adame was the top finisher among the three Madera schools with a third place finish. The Robert Arballo Invitational Hammer wrestling tournament has turned into one of the biggest tournaments in not only the Central Valley, but the entire state.  More than 50 teams converged to Ma

Wendy Alexander/The Madera Tribune Matilda Torres’ David Casas drives the lane in Thursday’s win over Firebaugh. He scored 22 points, including going 8-for-8 from the free throw line, all in the fourth quarter.  The Matilda Torres Toros boys basketball team jumped to a 22-13 halftime lead only to see it go away in the fourth quarter. However, the Toros closed the game with a 7-0 run to record a 55-50 victory over the Firebaugh Eagles in the Torres gym.  The Toros fell to a ba

The Matilda Torres Toros received a first-day bye in its Cen-Cal Invitational tournament, and opened with an easy victory over the Washington Union Panthers to advance to the semifinals on Friday.  The Toros forced 43 Panther turnovers Saturday night to cruise to a 58-14 victory that activated the running clock.  Eight different Toros scored, led by Kaylin Perez with 22 points, including Torres’ three 3-pointers, and had six steals. J’Lynn Mitchell added 12 points and seven r

The Madera South Stallions girls basketball team was already behind the eight-ball with starting guard Chloe Robinson falling ill, and missing Saturday’s game, but the offense couldn’t get going in a 31-20 loss to the Mariposa Grizzlies at the Cen-Cal Invitational at Matilda Torres.  The Stallions only took 30 shots in the game, including just five in the second quarter.  Madera South only had three players score in the game, led by Georiyah Gatewood with 11 points. Gatewood

After a nice victory over Buhach Colony in the first game of the Cen-Cal Invitational at Matilda Torres, the Madera Coyotes girls basketball team ran into the Kerman Lions, one of the favorites of the tournament.  The Coyotes scored only one point in the first quarter and were blitzed by the Lions in Saturday’s 46-19 loss.  The Coyotes shot just 16 percent from the field (8-of-51), including going 1-for-10 from 3-point land.

Wendy Alexander/The Madera Tribune Madera South’s Chloe Robinson tries to turn the corner in the lane Tuesday against the Sanger Apaches. Robinson scored five points in the 63-25 loss. Despite not getting a player into double-figures scoring, the Madera South Stallions had eight different players score in a 30-22 comeback victory over the Edison Tigers in the Madera South Showcase Showdown. Crystalina Buitron and Chloe Robinson led the Stallions with seven points each. Buitro

Elementary and middle school students throughout Madera County will battle it out during the fifth annual Madera County Battle of the Books.  Students from 22 schools in Madera County will meet at the Madera Fairgrounds on Wednesday to answer questions based on a list of 20 books that each team is responsible to read. There will be separate 3rd-4th, 5th-6th, and 7th-8th grade competitions. “We’re excited to expand Battle of the Books by welcoming middle school students into t

Tyler Takeda/The Madera Tribune Madera freshman Janyah Spotwood drives to the lane in a victory over the Reedley Pirates in last week’s Madera South Shootout showdown. Spotwood led the Coyotes with 11 points to go with nine rebounds and four steals. The Madera Coyotes girls basketball team jumped out to a 15-3 first quarter lead over the Reedley Pirates, and rode that to a 35-28 victory in the Madera South Showdown Shootout.  The Coyotes shot 30 percent from the field that in