Foothill wins second match-up against Amador Foothill wins second match-up against Amador (February 25, 2005)

Falcons take the lead, never look back in crosstown rivalry
by Lori Nielsen

Three weeks ago, the Foothill varsity basketball team fell to crosstown rival Amador Valley in overtime. Rematched on their home turf, Foothill took the lead with the first basket and never looked back, winning the game 47-40.

The Falcons came out strong in the first quarter and the Dons had trouble sinking their shots and trailed 16-6 at the end of the first quarter. Amador fired back in the second period racking up seven points in the first minute and a half. The Dons never caught the Falcons, but they did keep up the pressure and closed the third period with a five-point run to cut the deficit to 34-28.

Foothill took control as the fourth quarter got under way. Sophomore Ryan Dadrass scored off the board, Bryce Alvari sunk a 15-foot jumper, and junior Brian McDonough struck from just inside the right baseline, widening the gap to 40-28 with six minutes left in the final quarter. High scorers for Amador were Mike Batty with 13 and Eric Pang with 12. The Falcon's leaders were Alvari with 12, and McDonough added 10.
Girls JV Basketball

The Foothill JV Lady Falcons ended a great season last Friday night against Amador Valley, finishing undefeated in league play. In front of the biggest crowd of the year, Foothill came out on fire putting up 18 first-quarter points behind the strong play of Jessica Berry, Jacie Lofland and Kendra Knudsen. Amador's Amanda Nespor kept the Dons close, contributing seven of their 12 points. The second quarter saw Foothill step up the pace a bit to take a 37-25 halftime lead.

Both teams played evenly in the third, scoring 12 each. In the fourth quarter, Amador made a huge run behind Ashley Louie's three-pointers and Brittany Casey's clutch freethrows to tie Foothill twice down the stretch. Brittany Hill pulled down a key rebound to start Foothill down the court with the score tied at 58 and less than 30 seconds remaining in the contest.

The chants from each side of the gym were deafening. As the clock ran down to six seconds, Allison Maduell received the ball and drove down the right lane to force an Amador foul on the shot. Shooting two shots with 1.1 seconds on the clock, Allison sank the game winning shot, and missed the second, running out the game clock and giving the Falcons their undefeated league championship. They finish 25-1 overall and 12-0 in league.
Boys Freshman Basketball

Boosted by a spirited crowd, the Foothill freshman boys basketball team was crowned East Bay Athletic League champion with its convincing 39-23 victory over crosstown rival Amador Valley. The Falcons were impressive on both ends of the court, highlighted by a balanced scoring attack and an inspired defensive effort, which shut down the Dons' offense the entire game. The Foothill back court rotation of Scott Clark, Cameron Dadrass, Brendan Duddy, Mike Ford, Dominic Hatchel, John Lynn and Dillon Martinez exhibited great patience in handling Amador's pressure and running the offense, while the front court combination of Tommy Cech, Shawn Chen, Matt Glassanos, Luke Greenaway, Kyle O'Connor and Nick Valenziano converted scoring opportunities and controlled the boards.

Coach Dan Schneider and assistant coach Paul Schneider have now secured their second straight EBAL freshman championship with a record of 23-2, 10-2 in league.
Varsity Wrestling

In last weekend's EBAL Tournament, Foothill took second in the team title to Granada, even though fielding only five players to their nine. First-place individual winners were Kellen Aura, Phil Boyer, Tommy Wipfli and Kyle Brierly. Amador Valley's Alex Boyovich also won his class.
Boys Soccer

The Amador Dons beat the Pittsburg Pirates 2-1 in a game marred with fouls, yellow cards and missed opportunities. Late in the game Joel Crompton made a penalty kick, evening the score to 1-1. The game went into two overtime periods and two sudden death periods with neither team able to score, forcing the game to be settled by penalty kicks. The Dons finished the kicks at a 5-3 advantage and the 2-1 victory to advance to the quarter final game against De La Salle.
Girls Soccer

Foothill dominated the North Coast Section quarter-final match against the Berkeley Yellow Jackets, winning 3-0. The Falcons quickly found the back of the net as Christy Payne drove in a corner kick. Erin Wylie added the second goal with help from Naomi Lambert. Danielle Sweeney added a third in the second half. The Falcons now advance to the NCS semi-finals.
Schedule Tuesday Boys Tennis California at Foothill; 3:30 p.m. Softball Berkeley at Amador; 3:30 p.m.
Wednesday Baseball Washington at Foothill; 3:45 p.m.
Thursday Boys Tennis Livermore at Foothill; 3:30 p.m. Baseball Deer Valley at Amador; 3:30 p.m. Softball San Leandro at Foothill; 3:30 p.m. Mission San Jose at Amador; 3:30 p.m.

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