Sports Rain doesn’t deter LA golf team; MV beats Branham in baseball
Shooting struggles cost Lancers in CCS title game against Mitty By Pete Borello Town Crier Staff Writer
S
t. Francis High had the depth, but Mitty had Stephen Meade and Aaron Gordon – and that was enough to upend the top-seeded Lancers in Friday’s Central Coast Section Division II boys basketball final. Behind 33 total points from guard Meade and center Gordon, the No. 2 Monarchs prevailed 56-50 in front of a close-to-capacity crowd at Santa Clara University’s Leavey Center. St. Francis’ depth won out the first three times these league rivals played this season – and in last year’s CCS final – but Friday’s game belonged to senior Meade (18 points on 7-of-12 shooting) and freshman Gordon (15 points, 6-of-6 shooting and 16 rebounds). The Lancers couldn’t match their scoring or efficiency. West Catholic Athletic League MVP Tyler Johnson led St. Francis with 14 points, but they didn’t come easily. The senior guard finished 7-of-21 from the field, struggling from 3-point range (0 for 4) and the foul line (0-5). All-league guard Spencer Britschgi was the other Lancer to reach double-digit points (10), and the senior shot 4-of-13 (1-for-6 on 3s). They weren’t alone in their shooting woes. In one of its lowest-scoring outputs of the season, St. Francis was 21-of-60 from the field – including an
SOCCER From Page 21
coach, whose second-seeded team beat No. 8 Willow Glen 3-2 Saturday in the Division II final. “The fans got their money’s worth.” Especially the St. Francis fans, who watched Nick Salvemini score the deciding goal with eight minutes left at Gilroy High. “My son stripped the defender and made a picture-perfect shot,”
icy 2-of-12 on treys – and 6 of 13 from the foul line. “Our offense wasn’t bad – we got several looks and just didn’t make shots,” said coach Mike Motil, whose team missed several point-blank attempts, “and they’re good defensively.” St. Francis led 8-5 at the end of a ragged first quarter. Johnson scored six of those points, capped by a banker off a spin move with 30 seconds left. The Monarchs went ahead with 5:30 left in the second quarter, 11-10 on a putback by the 6-foot-6 Gordon, and they led the rest of the way. Up 21-19 at halftime, Mitty doubled its point total in the third quarter. Meade had 11 points in the period and Gordon nine. St. Francis committed five turnovers in the third and trailed 42-34 at the end of it. Johnson opened the fourth with a successful drive, but Mitty’s Colin Wan matched it moments later. With five minutes to play, the Monarchs stretched their advantage to 49-39. The Lancers scored the next four points (Johnson putback and Pat Crowley baseline drive) to cut the deficit to six. They had four shots at drawing closer, but all of them missed – including 3s by Britschgi and Johnson. Mitty made free throws on its next two possessions, pushing the lead to a comfortable 52-43 with 1:31 to play.
the coach said of the 18-footer. “It was beautiful.” It was also the Lancers’ lone goal of the second half. St. Francis (14-4-6) led 2-0 at intermission on shots by Chris Fisher (assist Kyle Dunne) and Mikey Mitchell. “After those two goals, we hoped to put (Willow Glen) to sleep,” the coach said, “but they came out extremely intense in the second half.” Willow Glen (13-5-6) scored
By Pete Borello Town Crier Staff Writer
A
shorthanded Los Altos High golf team didn’t let the rain put a damper on its day. The Eagles beat rival Mountain View and Fremont March 4 at Shoreline Golf Links to remain undefeated. With standout sophomore Lauren Kim sidelined with a shoulder injury, Los Altos played the league match with only five players and still won by multiple strokes. The Eagles shot 204, Mountain View 210 and Fremont 235. Los Altos sophomore Zach Nicolet shot 38 to share medalist honors with Mountain View’s Noah Hoffman. “The first three holes of the match were played in a downpour,” said coach Dave Blasquez, whose Eagles improved to 4-0, “and the remaining six holes in a constant rain, so these 38s were quite remarkable.”
ELLIOTT BURR/TOWN CRIER
St. Francis’ Pat Crowley tries to shoot over Mitty’s Stephen Meade. St. Francis, suffering its first loss since Dec. 31, may get a chance to avenge it. Both teams begin play in the Northern California playoffs this week. The second-seeded Lancers (273) host Pleasant Valley or Rocklin 7 p.m. Thursday in the quarterfinals. Top seed Mitty (20-9) hosts Pinole Valley or Fairfield at the same time. “Their goal all year has been to get back to NorCal,” Motil said of his players, who could meet No. 1 Mitty March 20 in the regional final in Sacramento. “We still have an opportunity to do that, but it won’t be easy.” Contact Pete Borello at peteb@ latc.com.
midway through the half and again with nine minutes to go. Nick Salvemini soon answered, and “that helped bring them down to earth,” the coach said.
Spartans’ sour ending It was a bitter end to a season so sweet. Making its first appearance in the CCS semifinals, the Mountain View girls fell 2-1 to Woodside on a controversial penalty kick in the
Baseball Riley Moran drove in the tying run and scored the winner for Mountain View, which beat Branham 8-7. Moments after delivering a two-run triple with two outs in the sixth inning of Thursday’s game, the senior crossed the plate on an infield single by Connor Nunley to put the visiting Spartans ahead for good. Reliever Grant Appelgren earned the win for Mountain View (3-1). Brandon Farley picked up the save. Host Los Altos edged Milpitas 1-0 Thursday on Nicky Young’s fourth-inning RBI. Keegan Kliman earned the win and Mat Snider the save for the Eagles (4-1).
Lacrosse A first-half flurry led St. Francis to a 13-5 win at Saratoga March 2. The Lancers led 11-1 at the half. Seven players scored for St. Francis (3-0 record after Saturday’s 11-1 win at Los Altos), led by Stephen Evans’ three goals. Contact Pete Borello at peteb@latc.com.
closing minutes of the March 2 game at Valley Christian. The fifth-seeded Spartans (164-2) were whistled for tackling Woodside’s Chelsea Braun at the top of the box with approximately two minutes left, and she converted the PK into the winning goal. Mountain View coach Simon Cook said “there was definitely contact” on the play but not enough to call a foul – especially that late in the game and with so
much on the line. “The ref took any chance of us winning the game with that call,” he said. “He decided the game with a blow of the whistle, and not the girls.” Cook added that he was “proud of the way his girls played,” as they rallied from an early deficit to tie the game in the second half on a shot by Tavi Crum. Contact Pete Borello at peteb@latc.com.
SEVEN DAYS OF SPORTS: THE LOCAL HIGH SCHOOL SCHEDULE FOR MARCH 10-16 Thursday Northern California boys and girls quarterfinals at homes of higher seeds, 7 p.m. Saturday NorCal boys and girls semifinals at homes of higher seeds, 7 p.m.
3:30 p.m. Thursday Los Altos at Milpitas, 3:30 p.m. Monday Mountain View at St. Ignatius, 4 p.m. Tuesday Los Altos at Aragon, 4 p.m. Wilcox at Mountain View, 4 p.m.
Monday St. Francis vs. Sacred Heart Cathedral at San Francisco State, 3:30 p.m. Tuesday Mitty vs. St. Francis at Cuesta Park, 2:45 p.m. Pinewood at Crystal Springs Upland, 3:30 p.m.
Boys volleyball
Boys tennis
Track & field
Today Pinewood at Mountain View, 3:30 p.m. Thursday Milpitas at Los Altos, 3:30 p.m. King’s Academy at Pinewood, 3:30 p.m. Friday St. Francis at Menlo-Atherton, 3:15 p.m.
Today Sacred Heart Cathedral at St. Francis, 3 p.m. Thursday Los Altos at Los Gatos, 3:15 p.m. Mountain View at Gunn, 3:15 p.m. Saturday Mountain View, St. Francis at K-Bell Track Classic at Los Gatos, 8 a.m.
HIGH SCHOOL Basketball
Thursday St. Francis at Valley Christian, 6:30 p.m. Tuesday St. Francis at Sacred Heart Cathedral, 6:30 p.m.
Softball Today Mountain View at Santa Teresa,
Page 22 / Los Altos Town Crier / March 10, 2010
Baseball
Golf
Today Los Altos at Monta Vista, 3:30 p.m. San Francisco Waldorf at Pinewood, 3:30 p.m. Thursday Gunn at Mountain View, 3:30 p.m. Friday Monta Vista at Los Altos, 3:30 p.m. Saturday Aptos at Los Altos, 3:30 p.m. Tuesday Fremont-Sunnyvale at Mountain View, 3:30 p.m. St. Francis at Valley Christian, 4 p.m.
Today Cupertino vs. Los Altos at Shoreline Golf Links-Mountain View, 2:30 p.m. St. Francis vs. Bellarmine at San Jose Country Club, 2:30 p.m. Monday Santa Cruz vs. Los Altos at Los Altos Golf & Country Club, 3 p.m. Tuesday St. Ignatius vs. St. Francis at Shoreline Golf Links-Mountain View, 2:45 p.m.
Lacrosse Saturday Mountain View at St. Francis, 1 p.m.
Swimming & diving Friday Santa Clara at Los Altos, 3:30 p.m. Saturday Steve Yamamoto Invitational at St. Francis, 9 a.m.