Dons victorious after close basketball contest Dons victorious after close basketball contest (February 27, 2004)

Falcon girls beat Castro Valley to advance in NCS soccer
by Heidi Massie

With the Foothill gym bulging at the seams with fans, the much-anticipated final boys basketball game of the season between rivals Amador and Foothill proved more intense than anyone anticipated. Like a tennis match, each team volleyed, scoring to keep it a close game. The decision came in overtime when the Dons (19-7,10-2) outscored the Falcons (17-9,7-5) 10-5, and won 64-59.

Although the Dons had clinched the EBAL title the previous week, there was a lot on the line in the cross-town game. The Falcons had defeated the Dons in front of a home crowd in January, and Amador was looking to return the favor.

Foothill's game plan was to stop Amador's Andy Bocian and the Dons were focused on shutting down Foothill's Adam Greenaway. Both teams executed their game plans. Foothill held Bocian to 22 points while keeping him off the foul line. But the Dons also had Giulian Gusti who scored 20 and Stuart Yoshida with 16. Eric Pang held Greenaway to 10 points. Eric Haar scored the team high for the Falcons with 14.
Girls Basketball

Coming into last week's rivalry game, the Amador and Foothill girls were tied for second in the league. After the game, Amador took sole possession of second place with their 43-38 win. The Falcons went home tied for third with San Ramon Valley.

The Dons led most of the game but fought hard to keep ahead. Sara Vanderhorst scored 11 points and Elyssa Thome and Kristen Hart each scored 10. It was Hart who ensured the win when she scored two free throws in the final seconds of the game.

Foothill's Liz Chan did her job keeping her team in the game, scoring 19 points.

The freshmen Dons closed out their season stomping Foothill 46-26 and winning the EBAL title. Shutting down Foothill's Brittany Wolfe was Amador's key to winning the game. Amador's Candice Newell played defense at Wolfe's hip the whole game, wearing her down quickly and holding Wolfe to 2 points. Newell led the team scoring with 10 points.
Girls NCS Soccer

Foothill advanced to the 3A semi-finals after beating Castro Valley last Saturday 2-0. Val Arioto's shot on the goal was slowed by the goalkeeper, but Jill Sweetnam charged in to ensure the first goal. Sisters Carrie and Cristen Andrews worked together for a score when Carrie's free kick from 30 yards out flew over the defenders and Cristen kicked it in for the second goal.
Boys NCS Soccer

The Dons winning season came to an end when they lost to Berkeley 3-1 on Saturday.

At 14:39, Berkeley's forward Kamani Hill shot a penalty kick but Amador's goalie Andrew Gangnuss stopped it cold. The referee ruled that Gangnuss had stepped over the line, and Hill was awarded a second kick. Hill re-kicked and again was denied by Gangnuss. Again, the referee ruled that Gangnuss moved, and a third kick was awarded, which Hill converted for a 1-0 lead.

The Dons changed their offensive game plan in the second half, and at 76:03 Alex Amador took a Joel Crompton pass to cut the score to 2-1. The Dons continued to press but Hill scored again 80:24 to seal the Dons' fate.
Boys Wrestling

As expected, the Falcons ruled the EBAL Championships with six of their 10 finalists winning titles. Freshman Tommy Wipfli (119), Phil Boyer (112), Kevin Randel (140), Tom McCarrick (160), Kyle Foy (171) and Steve Rodenkirk (189) will advance to NCS this weekend.
Games scheduled week
Friday Boys NCS Wrestling, TBD
Saturday Boys NCS Wrestling, TBD
Tuesday - Saturday Boys and girls NCS Basketball; TBD

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