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When Valley View Elementary School in Pleasanton partnered with the Ballistic United Soccer Club and the Get on the Bus program that helps bring the game of soccer to underprivileged kids, there were simple things they had hoped to accomplish.
It wasn’t just the experience of playing the wonderful game of soccer, but it also encompassed academic aid, nutritional help and learning life lessons.
It was a success right off the bat. But along the way something else happened – the team got good.
Following a great performance in the regular season, as well as strong effort at the Davis tournament last fall, the team was selected to participate in the Cal North winter league to represent Ballistic in the Under-12 Division.
The players practiced up to three times a week and played on Saturdays, which meant the players had to endure the elements – including the heavy rain and winds.
The season consisted of a total of 10 games that were all played at neighboring communities, such as Walnut Creek, San Ramon, West Contra Costa, Mount Diablo and Danville, with no home games in Pleasanton.
Valley View won eight of the games, scoring 37 goals, with the defense recording three shutouts. The results are not final, but it appears the group will finish atop the standings.
Foothill boys’ volleyball
The Foothill boys’ volleyball opened East Bay Athletic League play in fine form, sweeping matches against San Ramon Valley and Dublin.
In the 25-21, 25-15, 25-13 win over San Ramon Valley, the Falcons got good play from Cameron Hitchan, who had 10 kills in his first game back from an ankle injury.
Other highlights came from Jeremy Sun (6 kills, 3 digs) and Ian Neuman (5 service points, 2 kills).
Next up was a 25-16, 25-19, 25-18 win over Dublin. Highlights came from Noah Mitzenmacher (20 receptions, 7 digs), Yun Bae (17 assists, 10 service points, 6 kills) and Caden Stedman (4 kills, 2 blocks).
Foothill softball
The Falcons were able to get in three games last week, going 2-1.
The first game of the week was a 7-2 win over Castro Valley. Senior Marissa Anderson was 3-for-3 at the plate, including a double and drove in a pair of runs. Freshman Alexa Sponsel had a double and drove in a pair as well. Senior Kyla Springer had a pair of hits in three at-bats.
Next up was a tough 9-5 loss to the talented Freedom squad on March 7.
A trio of juniors had good games for the Falcons. Kaycie Burdick had three hits and scored three runs, while Ellie Novitske also had three hits and drove in two runs. Sophia Burdick had a pair of hits.
Finally, the week ended on a good note with a 13-0 win over American.
Freshman Brea Olsen had two hits, Anderson had two hits and drove in three runs, and sophomore Jessie Gadd added a hit that brought in a pair of runners.
Foothill boys’ lacrosse
The Falcons remained unbeaten at home with a 13-2 win over Cardinal Newman.
The offense was explosive with senior Wyatt Lam scoring five goals, junior AJ Becker scoring three, and junior Darrin Lau and senior Tyler Walsh each scored twice.
Freshmen Karter Williams and Nico Lau shared the spotlight in the center, winning 75% of the face-offs for the Falcons.
Foothill saw a strong defensive performance by seniors Graham Zander and Josh Taylor, who were both able to contain the Cardinal shooters and clear the ball effectively.
Editor’s note: Dennis Miller is a contributing sports writer for Embarcadero Media Foundation’s East Bay Division. To contact him about his Pleasanton Preps column, email acesmag@aol.com.
