December 13, 2007

SPORTS

Leland plays stellar soccer, but ends with a tie

By Gary van den Heuvel
Sports Writer

Both a Live Oak defender and Leland's Robbie Aleuy react to the ball as it was kicked in the air during their game on Friday afternoon at Live Oak in Morgan Hill.

The Leland High School boys’ soccer team had a lot to feel good about after their game at Live Oak on Friday. They’d played stellar defense, kept pressing the attack and constantly threatened the Live Oak goalie. But after 90 minutes, the Chargers could only take bittersweet solace in the fact that despite outplaying the host Acorns, the end result was a 0-0 tie.

“This year I didn’t know much about them. Last year we were pretty evenly matched,” said Leland head coach Rich Kubec.

“So far, this season we’re playing pretty well,” he continued. The Chargers have a record of 2-1-2 on the young season. “The guys went out and played hard. We won most of the individual battles. We had the ball in their end for most of the game, but we just couldn’t finish.”

Leland seemed to have little trouble setting up scoring opportunities; it was the act of putting the ball into the net that never happened.

After a scoreless first half, the Chargers turned up the offensive heat. Senior forward Adam Levine had several chances inside the Acorn goal. Levine’s fancy footwork enabled him to consistently weave through the constantly besieged Live Oak defenders, but, like the rest of the Charger offense, he kept sending shots wide or high.

Leland's Jonathan Chavez maneuvers around a Live Oak defender during the game. Photos by Daniel Miranda

The play-making Levine had two corner kicks thwarted and had a scoring chance negated when he inadvertently kneed the downed Acorn goalie in the head with the ball rolling free. On another shot, he was able to angle the ball around two Acorn defenders – the way a golfer can strike a tee shot with “draw” – only to see it saved.

On the other side of the field, Leland goalie R.J. Aitken was having a far less eventful game, most of it spent watching the action at the opposite end of the field, although he did have his own dramatic moments.

In one sequence, Aitken was out of position making a save attempt. Ten yards in front of the net the ball popped free from his control. It was a scary moment for the Chargers until Leland kicked the ball safely out of bounds, setting up a Live Oak corner kick. On the corner kick Aitken made the save to thwart the threat.

Leland continued to advance to ball against the Live Oak defense but scoring threats by Brent Mine, Spencer Haar, Juan Boyzo, Robbie Aleuy and Nathaniel Polussa, among others, came up fruitless.

“We have the guys this year to compete,” said Kubec. “We just need to focus on our finishing. We feel defensively we’re solid; in the middle we’re solid. “We’re creating opportunities, but we’re not putting it in the net.”

Almaden Valley Youth Soccer League taking unique approach

By Carol Rosen
Editor

The Almaden Valley Youth Soccer League has come up with a two-tiered approach for under 9-, 10- and 11-year-old players that want to play competitively.

The new system takes a different approach toward selection and training for these young players. First of all, tryouts will be held on two separate weekends, Jan.5-6 and Jan. 19-20 at Steinbeck Middle School. Professional trainers and coaches will be watching and choosing the players. These judges are independent and have no emotional relationships or ties to the players and thus will look for talent and emotional development instead of being influenced by various factors.

“We want to be able to nurture the talented players we have to the next level,” said Neil Diaz, director of coaching for the league. Sometimes, he said, “coaches choose their players by their children or their children’s friends. That is great for recreational, but it doesn’t always benefit the more talented players.”

“It’s an independent program, part of the select program, but we’ve changed the structure to help attract players,” Diaz added. “We are basically outsourcing the tryouts by using people who don’t know the players so they are not biased in their choices.”

Once the four tryouts are completed, the players will be divided by skill levels. The best 16 players will be on the select team; the next 16 will be on the competitive team and so on if there are enough to make another 16-player team.

Diaz stressed that these tryouts are only for players that want to play competitively, “this is an opportunity to train these players professionally and parents can get feedback on how their children are doing. There still will be the recreational league for the 1600 players that want to participate in the less competitive games.

Coaches for the more competitive players will be found through qualified local United States and European coaches, most of whom are former soccer or semi-professional players. “Their qualifications are very important,” he added. “They must be qualified by the United States Soccer Federation, the National Soccer Coaches of America and/or have qualifications from European soccer federations.

The new program is the brainchild of Frank Nesci, who brought up the original idea as well as John Jessum, the league president and Diaz.

Interested players should go to the Almaden Valley Youth Soccer League Web site at www.almadensoccer.org. Steinbeck Middle School is located at 820 Steinbeck Road at Santa Teresa and Blossom Hill Roads.

Pioneer wins Wildcat shootout at Los Gatos tourney

By Gary van den Heuvel
Staff Writer

Pioneer's Andrew Springer, Christian Ceaser, Mike Beltramo and Shawn Bundlie hold up the Championship trophy after defeating the Wildcats at the Los Gatos Wildcat shootout on Friday night in Los Gatos. Photos by Daniel Miranda

The Pioneer High School boys’ basketball team ran up and down the court last Friday Dec. 7, raining jump shots all over the host Los Gatos Wildcats in a 73-55 win in the championship game of the Los Gatos Wildcat Shootout.

Tournament MVP Mike Beltramo was particularly damaging to the Wildcats following his first-round 30-point explosion against Branham with 23 points against Los Gatos, 18 of them coming from six three-pointers.

The Mustangs scored the first six points, then raced out to a 16-3 lead. Los Gatos coach Sean Cummings called for a timeout to settle down his team, which was being run ragged by Pioneer’s breakneck pace. The time-out provided a quick fix as the Lions slowed the tempo down and narrowed the deficit to 19-15 by the end of the first quarter.

“We’re a team that can put up the points,” said Pioneer head coach Joe Berticevich. And in the second quarter, the Mustangs shifted back into overdrive behind the all-tournament backcourt of run-and-gunners Beltramo and Nick Maggipinto. After Los Gatos had nearly closed the gap at the end of the first quarter, Pioneer broke the game wide open again.

Pioneer's Su Grewal drives by Los Gatos' Garrett Blackwell on his way to the basket during the game.

At halftime the Mustangs led by 18 points and the spirited Los Gatos home crowd was coming to the realization that their Wildcats were overmatched.

The Mustangs’ performance met the standards of their coach. “I expect the team to come out that strong,” said Berticevich. “Defensively we did a good job. We only had three turnovers in the first half and that was key.”

The second half remained relatively drama-free, but Los Gatos finally got within shouting distance with four minutes left in the game on a three-pointer by forward Evan Vandenberg. Vandenberg, who scored 12 points, was one of two all-tournament players representing Los Gatos, the other being guard Greg Walters, who led the Lions with 18 points.

Los Gatos’ rally was too little, too late, and Pioneer coasted in for the tournament championship win.
“We held our own,” said Berticevich. “Give credit to our guys. They worked hard, we got offensive rebounds, defensive rebounds, and we played a complete game.”

Beltramo was quick to credit this win to the whole team’s performance. “We just wanted to play hard, play good defense. Shots were falling so it all came together.”

Leland loses in overtime for third place at Los Gatos tournament

By Gary van den Heuvel
Sports Writer

The Leland High School boys’ basketball team had a shot at some early season revenge. Their opponent on Dec. 7 was the Saratoga Falcons, which had outlasted the Chargers in a close battle the previous week at the Westmont Invitational. Leland led much of the way but went dry in the last few minutes to lose a heartbreaker.

Cody Tyson of Leland goes up for the basket during their third place game against Saratoga on Friday night at the Los Gatos Wildcat Shootout in Los Gatos. Photos by Daniel Miranda

The second matchup against the Falcons came in the third-place game at Los Gatos High School’s Wildcat Shootout Tourn-ament, and it was much like the first game between the two teams – a seesaw affair featuring relentless hot streaks as well as exasperating cold stretches for both sides.

For Leland it was another disappointing result, as a fourth-quarter lead was lost in an overtime in which they suddenly couldn’t score. Sar-atoga took the third-place trophy with a 64-54 victory.

“We wanted to compete harder,” said Leland head coach Steve Sean-del. “Both times they beat us they were tougher down the stretch – they were able to make plays and prevent us from doing so.”

Saratoga built and maintained a lead in the first half and at halftime had a 30-24 lead behind the offense of guard Keon Ghafouri, who led the Falcons with his running the floor and poised shot making, as well as Steven Walker, Edmund Ye and Jamie Turley.

The third quarter bore no resemblance to either of the previous two, as Saratoga went completely flat, scoring only three points. Leland seized the momentum with 15 points in the quarter, seven by forward Ryan Selness and five from guard Drew Marino.

Marino, normally the Chargers’ top shooter, had trouble getting good shots against the Saratoga defense during the game, shooting only four for 17 from the floor and finishing with 10 points.

Leland's point-guard Matt Vera drives to the basket for a lay-up during their game with Saratoga.

“Drew should be our offensive leader, but he is struggling early in the year,” said Seandel. “We don’t have a lot of other options, so teams like Saratoga are able to focus their attention at stopping him. Hopefully guys like Greg Hipwell, Adam Mackey and Trevor Marino [Drew’s younger brother] can step up and become reliable offensive threats, this will take a lot of pressure off Drew.”

In the fourth quarter the Falcons switched the “on” button back for their offense, producing a 21-point quarter and retaking the lead at 52-49 on Ghafouri’s steal and lay-up (while being fouled), followed by Chris Chiou’s offensive rebound off Ghafouri’s missed free throw, and subsequent layup.

With 16 seconds left, Hipwell, who led Leland’s scorers with 12 points, sank a 3-pointer to tie the game at 54-all. A buzzer-beating attempt to win the game came for naught when Trevor Marino missed a 3-pointer.

“We played well in stretches but didn’t in other stretches,” said Saratoga coach Mike Davey. Saratoga knew they needed to step up their game. In overtime, the sluggishness from the third quarter was nowhere in evidence for the Falcons, who outscored the Chargers 10-0 to end the game 64-54 for Saratoga.

“I really think that we are not in good enough condition to play at a reasonable level for an entire game,” said Seandel about his team’s hot and cold performance. He knows that Leland, now 4-3 on the season, has their work cut out for them.

“Because we were moved up to the A League, I think it will be a very long year if we don’t start doing little things better. We are not doing enough of those things now – and that has to improve for us to have a chance.”

High School Sports Schedule Dec. 14 – Dec. 20

Leland

Friday – Boys’ soccer at Branham, 3:15 p.m.

Tuesday – Boys’ basketball at Willow Glen, 7 p.m.
Tuesday – Girls basketball at Wilcox, 7 p.m.
Tuesday – Girls’ soccer at Piedmont Hills, 3:15 p.m.

Wednesday – Boys’ soccer at Overfelt, 3:15 p.m.

Thursday – Girls’ soccer at Leigh, 3:15 p.m.

Pioneer

Friday - Boys’ frosh/soph basketball at Del Mar Tournament, TBA
Friday – Boys’ soccer at Sobrato, frosh/soph and varsity 3:15 p.m.
Friday – Girls’ basketball at Gunderson, 7 p.m.

Saturday - Boys’ basketball at Fremont Sunnyvale Tournament in Fremont, TBA
Saturday – Boys’ frosh/soph basketball at Del Mar Tournament, TBA
Sunday - Boys’ basketball at Fremont Sunnyvale Tournament in Fremont, TBA

Monday - Boys’ basketball at Fremont Sunnyvale Tournament in Fremont, TBA

Tuesday - Boys’ basketball at Fremont Sunnyvale Tournament in Fremont, TBA
Tuesday - Boys’ frosh/soph Basketball at Homestead Tournament, TBA
Tuesday – Girls’ soccer vs. Leigh, JV and varsity at 3:15 p.m.

Wednesday - Boys’ basketball at Fremont Sunnyvale Tournament in Fremont, TBA
Wednesday - Boys’ frosh/soph Basketball at Homestead Tournament
Wednesday – Boys’ soccer vs. Andrew Hill, frosh/soph and varsity 3:15 p.m.

Thursday - Boys’ basketball at Fremont Sunnyvale Tournament in Fremont, TBA
Thursday - Boys’ frosh/soph Basketball at Homestead Tournament
Thursday – Girls soccer at Evergreen, JV and varsity 3:15 p.m.
Thursday – Girls basketball at Monterey, 7 p.m.

For more information about Leland and Pioneer sporting events, go to:

Pioneer Athletics: www.phsathletics.com
Leland Athletics: www.lelandathletics.com
Blossom Valley Athletic League: www.bval.org

Sports Briefs

Bret Harte Lacrosse is now forming teams for spring 2008
We still have room for 6-8 grade boys to play Lacrosse in the Almaden valley. Enrollment at Bret Harte Middle School is not required, but does ensure first priority for registration. Act quickly, space is limited. Registration and info at www.brethartelax.com.

For questions, contact Wayne Schatz at 623-4691

U10 Girls’ Select Soccer Tryouts
Santa Clara Sporting is looking for girls who love to play soccer in a competitive and fun environment. We focus on individual player development in a team setting. Your daughter will be coached and trained by experienced coaches who have special training and licenses for coaching young players. Neither team charges any coaching or training fees of any kind. We have two teams playing Class 1 select and both are expanding their rosters. Your daughter must be born on or after August 1, 1997. We’re looking for 4 – 5 girls for each team. Both teams have a track record of success including 2nd place at last year and this year’s Norcal State Cup. If you are ready to have your daughter step up to a challenging and FUN soccer environment, please contact either Jim Lawrence at 408-204-7020, sjlaw@aol.com or Dave Ballard at 408-600-4531, dballard12@sbcglobal.net. Tryouts are Dec. 11 and 12 from 5 -7 p.m. Location: Central Park in Santa Clara at the grass field adjacent to the International Swim Center at 2625 Patricia Dr., Santa Clara 95051 (behind the Santa Clara City Library). For more information, visit www.scsc97.com.

Almaden Valley Girls’ Softball League holds Sign-ups
The Almaden Valley Girls’ Softball League is holding sign-ups. Our league is a Santa Clara County-wide League and available to all Santa Clara County girls which means we are not restricted by territory. The age range is 5 to 16 years.  We welcome all applicable ages and every skill level.  We will be holding sign-ups on the following dates at Greystone Elementary School, 6982 Shearwater Drive in San Jose.:

Saturday, Jan. 5, 2008, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Wednesday, Jan. 9, from 6 to 9 p.m.

For more information, please visit our website at www.avgsl.org.


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