Coming into last Saturdayís game against the Spartans from De La Salle, the Foothill Falcons knew they would have their work cut out for themselves. De La Salle came into the game unbeaten in 165 games and 163 wins against Northern California teams since 1992. The Spartans had won 40 straight NCS playoff games and were ranked No. 1 by USA Today and No. 3 by MaxPreps.com in their respective national high school football rankings. During another strong season for the De La Salle offense, the team averaged 403 yards per game during the regular season and topped that off with nearly 900 more yards of offense in two NCS playoff games.
However, the Falcons were not about to give up without a fight. The Falcons lived and played exactly as prescribed by Coach Matt Sweeneyís philosophy, “the team that wins the battle along the line of scrimmage, the team that has the more physical players, will win.” Sweeneyís 21st season as head coach was highlighted by a sensational defense that held teams to only 179 yards per game during the regular season. While the defense overwhelmed opponents, the offense showed unbelievable balance gaining more than 1,400 yards both rushing and passing. Rob Andrews was the leading rusher with 700 yards and 15 touchdowns; Jordan Johnson had 50 catches and 702 yards receiving to go with his 10 TD receptions.
The question facing the Falcons was whether their defense could handle the relentless pressure from the Spartan offense. Was the 323 yards per game that the Falcon defense allowed in its two playoff wins, both struggles, an ominous sign of what would happen against the powerhouse from Concord?
In the first quarter the Spartans took a 7-0 lead on a 5-yard TD run from Tim Maupin. Not to be denied, the Falcons fought back with special teams leading the charge. Johnny Millard blocked a De La Salle punt giving the Foothill offense the ball at the Spartan 2-yard line. Rob Andrews rewarded the effort with a 1-yard TD run to tie the game. From there the Spartans took over the game scoring two touchdowns in less than two minutes to take a 19-7 halftime lead. After a scoreless third quarter, the Spartans added two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to make the final score 33-7, giving De La Salle their 15th-straight NCS 4A title.
Amador girlís soccer continues to roll
The Amador Valley Girls Soccer Team continued to string together wins and entered league play this week with a record of 6-0-1. The four-game road trip to Santa Barbara would have to be labeled a huge success as the team returned to Pleasanton with wins against Carpenteria (6-0), San Marcus (1-0) and Dos Pueblo (3-2), and a tie against host Santa Barbara (0-0). The highlight certainly was the sloppy field 1-0 win over defending CIF Champions San Marcus.The Dons were inspired by the return of injured senior co-captain Liz Lewis and allowed only two goals during the trip. Lindsey Ellison, Michelle Avendano and Nicole Garrity led the defense. Goalies Kelsey Baxter and Laura Burton continued their strong start to the season and have now allowed only two goals through seven games. Midfielders Kassidy Fitzpatrick, Christina Hernandez, Sarah Steele and Marisa Fraticelli, as they have in every game, controlled the pace of the game.
Amador Basketball Classic
Started in 1961, the Amador Basketball Classic is the longest continuous running eight-team basketball tournament in California. Jason Kidd, when he was at St. Joseph, and Leon Powe, at Oakland Tech, are just two of the local high school stars that have played in the tournament. Two teams, Merced and Cordova, have been coming to the Tournament for nearly 20 years.The field for the 45th tournament was strong once again. All but LincolnñStockton (replaced by Lincoln-San Francisco) returned from last yearís field. The returning teams were Merced; Ygnacio Valley, coached by Pleasanton native Mike Hansen; defending ABC Champion Oakland Skyline; Terra Linda, who finished 24-4 last season; Rancho Cordova; and local power Hayward.
In their first round game against Merced, Amador took a 17-8 lead at the end of the first quarter and never looked back as they cruised to a 74-41 victory. The Dons put the game out of reach in the third quarter outscoring the Bears 24-3. Amador displayed excellent team basketball on both offense and defense. The passing was sharp, leading to several easy baskets and open-look jumpers. The defense was intense and caused several Merced turnovers that allowed Amador to score in transition. Fourteen different Dons players scored in the game, led by Shannon Riddell with 15.
In the semi-final game Amador defeated Lincoln-SF 76-40. The Dons used an 18-2 second quarter to break the game open. As they did in the first round, the Amador defense and passing game paved the way to victory. Michael VanderHorst scored 15 points to lead the Dons including a highlight reel 23-foot hook shot that was tossed at the basket as he was saving a ball from going out of bounds. Nick Vuoto added 13 points and Matt Juillerat recorded six assists in the win.
The Amador boys varsity ended its run through the ABC Tournament field with a hard-fought 54-43 loss to Terra Linda-San Rafael in the finals on Saturday night. The Dons played solid team basketball to take the runner-up spot in the 45th ABC annual tournament. Mark Warren and Mike VanderHorst were named to the All-Tournament team.
Amador Valley frosh girls win championship
The Amador Valley freshman girlís basketball team slipped past Carondolet in the championship game 31-28 to win the Cougar Classic tournament last week. Chelsea Luther and Kelsey Martin were both named to the all tournament team. Britannia Bloom was selected the tournamentís most valuable player.Foothill boys basketball wins West Coast Classic
The Falcon boys varsity basketball team will enter league play 6-0 this week after winning the prestigious West Coast Classic boys basketball tournament. The Falcons earned their way to the championship game with wins over McClymonds (57-38) and Berkeley (75-73).Saturdayís championship game against Valley Christian was a dog fight with neither team leading by more than five points through the first three quarters. Leading 47-44 entering the fourth quarter, the Falcons put the pedal to the metal in pushing the lead to 10 with two minutes remaining in the game before settling for an eight-point win, 74-66.
Ryan Dadrass, who scored 17 points in the final game, was named tournament MVP. Steven Pratt was also named to the all-tournament team.
Seahawks swim to great times at home meet
Although the weather was variable, the performances were not. More than 160 Seahawks swimmers participated in the first home meet of the season and swam to outstanding times. The following young swimmers took the home pool advantage to place or swim best times:Analese Chinn, 8, swam to second place in the 25 Free and 25 Back, and third place in the 50 Back (all best times).
Eva Chung, 9, swam all new best times to place first in the 100 IM, 50 Free, 100 Breast; and third in the 50 Back and 50 Fly.
Madeleine Dierickse, 6, swam all new best times.
Akul Goyal, 8, swam to third place in the 25 Breast.
Lily Gribbel, 8, had a great time this weekend, swimming to first in the 25 Back, 25 Breast, 50 Back, and 25 Free. She also capped it off with second place wins in the 50 Free and 50 Fly.
Regis Lachance, 8, knew only the #2: taking second in the 25 Breast, 50 Back, and 25 Free.
Wolfgang Lachance, 6, placed third in the 25 Breast.
Aaron Li, 7, swam to first place in the 25 Breast.
Jasmine Lin, 8, placed first in the 50 Free.
Kayla Lindsay, 8, had some great swims, placing first in the 50 Free and 50 Fly, and second in the 25 Back.
Vickie Luo, 5, swam all new best times.
Rishab Nair, 7, took second in the 25 Back.
Nadia Nguyen, 8, swam to second in the 25 Breast and 25 Free (all new best times).
Jonathan Ong, 9, swam all new best times.
Annalisa Parker, 9, placed first in the 50 Back and 100 Back.
Adrien Rooney, 7, swam to second in the 50 Back and 25 Free, and third in the 50 Free and 25 Back.
Maxime Rooney, 8, actually took first place in all of his events: 50 Free, 50 Fly, 25 Back, 25 Breast, 50 Back, and 25 Free.
RJ Scott, 9, took second in the 100 Back, and 3rd in the 100 IM.
Annalise Stevenson, 9, swam all new best times.
Blake Tucker, 7, took third in the 50 Free and 25 Back.
Nicholas Tucker, 9, placed first in the 100 50 Back and 100 IM, and 3rd in the 200 Free.
Michelle Wang, 7, swam all new best times.
Brody West, 8, placed first in the 25 and 50 Back, and took 3rd in the 25 Free.
Seahawks take 3rd in Junior Olympics
The Pleasanton Seahawks took third place at the 2006 Junior Olympics meet held Dec. 1-3 in Pacifica. Many of the Seahawks swimmers swam personal best times with several earning berths in finals while also setting several team records.Chris Guido won the high point award for the 13-14 year old boys with appearances in multiple finals, including a win in the 1000-yard freestyle. Andrew Seitz won the 200-yard freestyle also for the 13-14 boys.
Tory Houston won the 200-yard Breaststroke, and Rachel Knowles used a great kick at the finish to take third place in the 200-yard Individual Medley. Nick Silverthorn had five first-place finishes and broke the 10-Under boys Pacific Swimming Record in the 200 Individual Medley.
