SPORTS

Pioneer boys’ hoops win at Los Gatos
Wildcat shootout

Mustangs take tourney with three victories

By Ken Lotich
Staff Writer

The Pioneer Mustangs garnered top honors at the Los Gatos Wildcat Shootout with a 60-54 victory against Saratoga, a 66-64 win against Leigh, and a 66-48 win against Live Oak in the championship game. The tournament took place Dec. 8-10.

Pioneer’s Nolan Maggipinto drives past a Saratoga defender during a 60-54 overtime win in the Los Gatos Wildcat Shootout on Dec. 8. Photos by Ken Lotich

In the opening contest, Pioneer came from behind in the final quarter to pull out a 60-54 overtime victory against Saratoga.

Going into the fourth quarter, the teams were deadlocked at 43-43. Saratoga, known for its rapidly changing defensive schemes, put on a full-court press late in the third quarter to gain some momentum after being down most of the game.

Pioneer responded by implementing full-court pressure in the fourth quarter.

Down 52-50 with 1:48 to go, Nolan Maggipinto got loose on a backdoor pick, easily nailing a layup to put the game at 52-52.

After Saratoga hit a bucket at 1:32, Pioneer’s Kyle Fager grabbed a steal, and fed the ball to Kevin Denardi, who hit a layup, which ended up being the final basket at the end of regulation, tying the game at 54-54.

In the four-minute overtime quarter, Pioneer took down a noticeably tired Saratoga squad, shutting them out and taking home a 60-54 victory.

Senior Andrew Lerma led all scorers with 17 points. Denardi pitched in with 11 points in the game.

“The whole team gave a great effort,” Denardi said after the game. “Saratoga’s a tricky team to play.”

Maggipinto, who hit a key bucket near the end of the game, said Pioneer’s tough defense is what garnered the win.

“We were pretty well disciplined out there,” Maggipinto said. “Saratoga is a tough team to play—they really make you work.”

Maggipinto said near the end of the game, the Mustangs turned up the intensity, which helped them gain clutch performances.

“We executed very well during the stretch,” Maggipinto said. “Saratoga isn’t a big team, but they play extremely hard.”

Head Coach Joe Berticevich said the up-tempo play of Saratoga is something that’s hard to compete against.

“If you don’t attack the press, it’s tough to beat a team,” Berticevich said. “We like to pick up the tempo when that happens, and it’s something we work at during practice.”

Berticevich said the effort by his squad was commendable, and he hopes to see more games with the same intensity.

“The guys worked their butts off,” he said. “They have to be ready to play this way—in league, every game’s going to be like this.”

League play lingers
With the wins in the Los Gatos Wildcat Shootout, Pioneer sits at 8-1 overall, with league play beginning at 7 p.m. on Jan. 4, 2006 at Oak Grove.

Oak Grove, the second place finisher in the Mt. Hamilton Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League last season, finished one spot higher in the standings than third-place Pioneer, who tied for third with Westmont High School at 7-5.

Pioneer’s Kevin Denardi plays defense during a 60-54 overtime win over Saratoga on Dec. 8. Denardi scored 11 points in the win.

“It should be a real tough game against Oak Grove,” Denardi said. “We just have to go out there and play hard.”

The 6-foot-1 Denardi transferred from Archbishop Mitty High School, and played himself into the starting five for the Mustangs.

Joining Denardi are seniors Ryan LaCorte, Fager, Lerma and Maggipinto.

“We’re shooting for the league championship,” Maggipinto said. “If we put forth a good effort every game, there’s no reason why we can’t get there.”

Oak Grove is highly favored to take the league title this year, said Berticevich, but the division is so competitive that one slip up can make it anyone’s game.

“Besides Oak Grove, everyone else is in there,” Berticevich said. “If we don’t play our game the way we can, we’ll end up at the bottom. If we play well, we can make a run at the top.”

Pioneer will participate in the Fremont Sunnyvale Holiday Tournament on Dec. 17-21 at Fremont High School, located at 1279 Sunnyvale-Saratoga Road in Sunnyvale.

Chargers’ losing streak at three with 72-46 loss to Leigh

Leland outscored 41-17 in the second half; Leigh’s Weber
sparks offense with 14 points in third quarter

By Diego Abeloos
Sports Editor

The Leland boys’ basketball team dropped its third straight game following a lopsided 72-46 loss to Leigh in the opening round of the Los Gatos Wildcat Shoot-out on Dec. 8.

Leland’s Scott Lucas, shown here in a game earlier this season, led the Chargers with 14 points in a 72-46 loss to Leigh in the opening round of the Los Gatos Wildcat Shoot-out on Dec. 8. Photo courtesy www.mikejanes.com

The Leigh offense took over in the second half of the game, outscoring the Chargers 41-17 in the final two quarters of play. Leland (1-3 overall) was led by Scott Lucas, who contributed 14 points, while Leigh received a game-high 25 points from point guard Chris Weber, including 15 in the second half and 14 in the third quarter alone.

Turnovers helped fuel Leigh’s offensive effort in the second half, as the Chargers committed 23 turnovers throughout the game, including 19 in the second half.

“You have to play four quarters and you have to play intelligent,” said Leland Head Coach Dave Frandsen. “You can’t come out during a close game in the beginning of the second half and have five straight turnovers. You can’t do those things.”

Although the Chargers stuck close in the first half, trailing by two at the half at 31-29, the second half belonged to the Longhorns, who put together a 16-0 run to end the third quarter to go up 56-35.

The 16-0 run was led by Weber, who contributed 10 of the 16 points, including two 3-pointers.

“In the third quarter, the offense finally got going a little bit,” said Leigh Head Coach Greg Wolf. “We played better man-to-man defense. Chris Weber, our point guard, took over the game and basically started getting us to run some offense.”

Wolf said he wanted to keep feeding Weber’s hot hand throughout the third quarter, calling plays to get the ball to his point guard as much as possible during the scoring run.

“He’s the one who can lead the offense and he has great court vision,” Wolf said of Weber. “Whether he’s shooting the ball or getting it to his teammates, he’s the consummate team player for us.”

Meanwhile, the Leland offense struggled to find a rhythm in the second half, including a spell in which the Chargers just six points in the third quarter.

“A lot of what they caught fire on was on what we were doing wrong,” Frandsen said of Leigh’s offensive outburst in the second half. “If we could’ve corrected what we were doing wrong, they wouldn’t quite have gotten what they got.”

The fourth quarter proved to be the same story for the Chargers, as Leigh started out on a 10-4 run, bumping the lead to 27 points at 66-39 with 4:51 left to play.

After back-to-back 3-pointers from Leland’s Brennan Walker cut the lead to 66-45 with 3:19 left to play, the Longhorns put together another scoring run, this one a small 6-1 run to close out the contest at 72-46.

“Everything that could go wrong went wrong tonight,” Frandsen said. “To go from four turnovers in the first half to 23 overall, that means you had 19 in the second half. Not a good night.”

Sports Briefs

Lacrosse coaches needed for local club
South Valley Lacrosse Club is looking for two coaches for its fifth through eighth grade teams. Minimal lacrosse experience is acceptable because the club has a training program.  South Valley Lacrosse Club is in its second year and has a lot of positive parent support.  Fun activities are planned for the season, including turf time during the San Jose Stealth home game. Have fun with a wonderful sport, work with a great group of kids, and even get paid for it!

Please contact Joy Bender at joy.bender@prodigy.net or 408-679-1297.

San Jose Strikkers hold softball tryouts
The San Jose Strikkers, a 18U Youth Girls Fast-Pitch Softball team, will hold summer tryouts on Jan. 8 and 15 at Oak Grove High School. Tryouts for pitchers and catchers begin at 9 a.m. Tryouts for all position players begin at 10:30 a.m.

For more information, call Frank King (408) 406-8191 or Richard Fangonilo (408) 274-9301, or e-mail fgking25@aol.com or rfangonilo@sjm.com.

High School Sports Schedule

Leland High School
Friday – Varsity girls’ basketball at Pinewood Tournament, time and opponent TBA
Friday – JV girls’ basketball at Burlingame Tournament, time and opponent TBA
Friday – Frosh/soph boys’ soccer vs. Oak Grove, 3:15 p.m.

Saturday – Wrestling at James Lick Varsity Tournament, all day
Saturday – Varsity girls’ basketball at Pinewood Tournament, time and opponent TBA

Tuesday – Varsity girls’ basketball at Los Gatos, 7 p.m.
Tuesday – JV girls’ basketball at Los Gatos, 5:30 p.m.
Tuesday – Varsity girls’ soccer at Las Lomas Tournament, time and opponent TBA

Wednesday – Varsity girls’ soccer at Las Lomas Tournament, time and opponent TBA
Wednesday – Frosh/soph boys’ basketball vs. Live Oak, 3 p.m.

Thursday – Varsity boys’ basketball at Bellarmine Tournament, time and opponent TBA
Thursday – Varsity girls’ soccer at Las Lomas Tournament, time and opponent TBA
Thursday – Frosh/soph boys’ basketball vs. Los Gatos, 2 p.m.
Thursday – Varsity girls’ basketball vs. Menlo-Atherton, 7 p.m.
Thursday – JV girls’ basketball vs. Menlo-Atherton, 5:30 p.m.

Pioneer High School
Friday – Varsity girls’ basketball at Oak Grove Tournament, time and opponent TBA
Friday – Varsity boys’ soccer at Leigh, 3:15 p.m.
Friday – Frosh/soph boys’ soccer at Leigh, 3:15 p.m.

Saturday – Varsity boys’ basketball at Fremont Tournament, time and opponent TBA
Saturday – Varsity girls’ basketball at Oak Grove Tournament, time and opponent TBA
Saturday – JV girls’ basketball at Monta Vista Tournament, time and opponent TBA
Saturday – Frosh/soph boys’ basketball vs. Fremont at Homestead Tournament, 9:30 a.m.

Monday – Varsity boys’ basketball at Fremont Tournament, time and opponent TBA
Monday – JV girls’ basketball at Monta Vista Tournament, time and opponent TBA
Monday – Frosh/soph boys’ basketball at Homestead Tournament, time and opponent TBA

Tuesday – Varsity boys’ basketball at Fremont Tournament, time and opponent TBA
Tuesday – JV girls’ basketball at Monta Vista Tournament, time and opponent TBA
Tuesday – Frosh/soph boys’ basketball at Homestead Tournament, time and opponent TBA

Wednesday – Varsity boys’ basketball at Fremont Tournament, time and opponent TBA
Wednesday – JV girls’ basketball at Monta Vista Tournament, time and opponent TBA
Wednesday – Frosh/soph boys’ basketball at Homestead Tournament, time and opponent TBA

Thursday – Varsity girls’ basketball at Willow Glen, 2 p.m.
Thursday – JV girls’ basketball at Willow Glen, 12:30 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

For more complete and up to date schedules on CCS playoffs, go to:
www.cifccs.org

Leland girls’ basketball takes two out of three at Monta Vista Tournament

Chargers take fifth place at tournament, seek more offense from the low post

By Diego Abeloos
Sports Editor

In their first significant string of action this season, the Leland Chargers took two out of three in the Monta Vista Tournament Dec. 8-10, garnering a fifth-place finish.

Leland’s Kristen Yoshioka looks for an open teammate while running the offense during a 51-41 win over Seaside. Yoshioka led the Chargers with 18 points. Photo by Diego Abeloos

After dropping a 52-37 loss to Burlingame in the opening round of the tournament, the Chargers bounced back to take wins over Seaside and Monta Vista by scores of 51-41 and 45-34, respectively. The Chargers (3-1) came into the tournament with just one game under their collective belts in the 2005-06 season, a 47-43 win over Milpitas on Nov. 29.

In the round-two game against Seaside, the Chargers were led on offense by guard Kristen Yoshioka, who scored 18 points, while also getting six points each from Meggie Yoshioka and forward Amber Barbieri.

Still, Leland Head Coach Wade Nakamura said he was concerned by his team’s play, in particular the disproportionate amount of offense between the post players and backcourt players.

In the tournament-opening loss to Burlingame, Nakamura’s low-post players combined for just five points. Al-though the low post game fared better in the win over Sea-side, combining for 14 points, Nak-amura said he still wants to see more balance in his offense.

In the win over Seaside, the Leland offense also managed to shoot just 29 percent from the floor.

“We have to shoot the ball better,” said Nakamura. “We shot 18 for 62 in the field. We missed probably eight to 10 opportunities for layups, so we have to shoot the ball better. … I think we made a real good effort to feed the ball into the post tonight, and some of our post players were not prepared to do anything with the ball. That has to change.”

Nakamura said part of the team’s shooting problems were attributable to the fact that the offense has relied on the outside shot for most of its scoring in the early portion of the season, something defenses quickly pick up on in any given game.

“It’s always hard when you have to live and die by the outside shot,” Nakamura said. “You’re either going to make it or miss it, and we missed a whole lot tonight.”

Leading 33-25 at the half, the Chargers traded baskets with Seaside for the first four minutes of the third quarter before getting a modest 5-0 run on a layup and 3-pointer from Kristen Yoshioka in a span of 11 seconds, setting the score at 42-30 with 1:38 to go.

At the start of the fourth quarter, with the score at 43-33, the Chargers got another timely 3-pointer from Kristen Yoshioka with 6:13 left in the game, bumping the lead to 13.

Soon after however, the Chargers weathered a short 6-2 scoring run by Seaside in just over one minute of play, cutting the lead to 48-39.

The Chargers then finished up the win by hitting three of five shots from the free-throw line in the final two minutes of play, while the defense held Seaside scoreless for just under three minutes before allowing one final layup with 31 seconds left, setting the final score at 51-41.

Nakamura said he hopes to see continued progress in the low-post play, calling the effort against Seaside “better” than the contributions made in the loss to Burlingame the day prior. Nakamura added that part of the struggles in the low-post game are due to a lack of experience in the group. Of the handful of post players on the roster, only three (Barbieri, Pam Wolfe and Jovanna Cobos) have previous experience at the varsity level. Of those three, only Barbieri has experience as a starter, getting about 10 starts last season as a junior.

“We’re going to continue to do what we’ve been doing,” Nakamura said. “We work on guard play and post play everyday in practice. It’s just that we have inexperienced players inside. Pam (Wolfe) and Jovanna (Cobos) probably played only about 15 minutes combined all of last year. It’s a lot to ask of them to step in and feel comfortable right away.”

Chargers boys’ soccer opens league with a 3-0 win

Leland takes down Mt. Pleasant

By Ken Lotich
Staff Writer

The Leland boys’ soccer team opened Mt. Hamilton Division play with a 3-0 shutout of Mt. Pleasant on Dec. 16.

“Their fitness is going up,” said first year Head Coach Rich Kubec about his team after the game. “They’re doing what I expect of them. Anytime we can win a game 3-0, it’ll make me happy.”

Kubec comes to Leland with coaching experience in the Peninsula Soccer League, as well as playing experience at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and semi-professional leagues.

With the win, the Chargers sit at 2-3-1 overall and 1-0 in league. The team is hoping to better its 2004-05 endeavor, which had them at 13-5-6 overall, and 7-2-5 in league.

Leland’s Ramon Fonseca dribbles the ball past a Mt. Pleasant defender during the Chargers’ 3-0 league-opening win on Dec. 9.

In the league opener against Mt. Pleasant, the Chargers were quick to pull the trigger. In the fifth minute of the game, Alex Todd dished the ball off to Peter Rodriguez, who slammed the ball past Cardinals’ keeper Adam Ramirez for the first goal of the game.

Rodriguez, the team captain, is a senior in his fourth year on the varsity squad.

In the 17th minute, Stevie Munoz shook past several defenders and drew the keeper out of his box. Munoz faked right and then tapped the just wide left of the goal.

On his next tries, Munoz would hit the jackpot.

In a similar scenario, Ramirez was drawn out again at the 60th minute, with Munoz shooting the ball into the left side of the net. This time the ball hugged the net, putting the Cardinals up 2-0.

Munoz, a senior in his second year on the varsity squad, wasn’t done yet.

In the 70th minute, Todd headed the ball in the middle of the field, which was received by Munoz, who took it to the left side of the field in Cardinals’ territory. As Ramirez came out of the box, Munoz struck the ball into the right side of the goal, good enough to close the game out at 3-0.

Leland had 11 shots on goal in the game, with several close attempts. Danny Jones had a close goal attempt a few minutes before Munoz’s first goal. In the 57th minute, Jones was one-on-one with the keeper, but shot the ball just a bit wide to the left.

The Leland defensive put forth a strong defensive effort, Kubec said. The Chargers’ fullbacks stopped several Mt. Pleasant scoring attempts, including one toward the end of the game in the 74th minute, where several Cardinals were clustered around the ball near the goal.

Munoz, with two goals on the game, said the Cardinals put forth a challenging contest for the Chargers.

“They’re a real good team with talent,” Munoz said. “In the second half, they came back strong. We pulled it out in the end.”

Rodriguez said the Cardinals played an intense, physical contest, which is something he expects to see from a lot of teams in league play this year.

“At first they were a little bit mellow,” Rodriguez said. “Then they got more physical and were more anxious to score.”

Rodriguez added the Chargers are very capable of going to the top of the league standings.

“We’re going to see if we can win this whole thing,” he said. “Right now everything is working well for us.”

On the defensive side of things, Kubec said be on the lookout for Sakib Vahora and Ramon Fonseca to make an impact in the backfield.

With the decisive win, Kubec said he is hopeful for the team’s chance at a run for the league title.

“We should be right in the mix to win the league,” Kubec said. “Oak Grove and Yerba Buena should be tops with us.”

Leland hosts Oak Grove at 3:15 p.m. on Dec. 16. Its next league game is on Jan. 4, 2006 at 3:15 p.m. at Leigh. If you’d like to see the entire season schedule for any Blossom Valley Athletic soccer squad, go to www.bval.org and click the link for boys’ varsity soccer.

Lady Chargers win Peggy Renberg Holiday Classic

By Leland girls’ soccer player Evelyn Powery
Special to the Times

Facing six games in two days would seem impossible to some soccer teams. But with coaches Dave and Greg Pitzen, two brothers new to Leland, the games would only serve as an opportunity too good to pass up.

The Leland Chargers won the Peggy Renberg Holiday Classic in Fresno over the weekend, putting together a 5-0-1 record in the tournament. The Chargers took a 1-0 win over Madera to clinch the championship game.

“We want to play this tournament so we can get some games under our belt,” Dave said, “and we know we’ll use it to our advantage to become closer as a team.”

Pitzen’s wish was soon to come true when the fierce competition began last Friday with a game against Buchanan High School, a team that had won the Peggy Renberg Holiday Classic in Fresno the previous year. At the end of a hard-fought battle, goals by Claire Thompson and Sara Chehrehsa kept the Chargers in the game for a 2-2 tie, disrupting Buchanan’s previously flawless 6-0-0 record.

All fears of not gelling as a team were erased in the next games on Friday, when the Chargers pulled out a 6-0 win against Hanford West High School and a 3-0 win against Golden West.

By solidly winning the second and third games on Friday, the Chargers were able to secure a No. 1-seeding for Saturday’s competition.

Goals were spread across the board, achieved by Karina Cavanna, Sara Chehrehsa, Brittany Ivanco, Serena Powery, and Jen Tkach. On Saturday morning, Jen Tkach, Katelyn Tyson, Chelsey West, and Leslie Williams contributed goals in the 4-0 win over McClain High School, which continued to prove that the team was coming together successfully.

In the semifinal against Centennial High, a 1-1 tie (goal by AJ Huffman) meant that penalty kicks would decide which team would advance to the championship. As the kicks came down to the wire, goalkeeper Denelle Spencer blocked a shot and AJ Huffman knocked a ball in for the win.

The championship game against Madera High School was a complete fight all the way through, with Olivia Mangin, Michelle McKiney and Megan Unger playing as strong forwards and Stephanie Kato, Jessica Kolte, and Michelle Man creating havoc in the midfield.

By the end of the game, a goal by Chehrehsa finalized the 1-0 championship. The Chargers shut out four teams in the weekend, backed by goalkeeper Denelle Spencer and defenders Katie Campbell, Katelyn Tyson, and Morgan Wampler. The defense was missing Kate Dixon, who faithfully came to support the team and watch the tournament after tearing her ACL and meniscus two weeks prior.

With a successful 5-0-1 weekend, the Chargers knew that because of this tournament, they were well on their way in their quest to be closer than ever as a team and would consistently and confidently fight hard for the rest of the season.

BVAL All-league honors for Fall

Leland girls’ field hockey – Santa Teresa Division
Sharan Kalla – Coach of the Year
Jessica Kolte – First-team All-league
Ashleigh Adams - First-team All-league
Sara Adams - First-team All-league
Ashley Bandanza - First-team All-league
Whitney Reyes – Second-team All-League
Claire Thompson – Second-team All-league

Leland football – Mt. Hamilton Division
Lance Gemette – Junior of the Year
Daniel Schroeder - First-team All-league offense
Mellis Barota – First-team All-league defense
Adam Ondi – Second-team All-league offense

Leland girls’ volleyball – Mt. Hamilton Division
Grace Chang - First-team All-league
Chaulet Scala - First-team All-league
Caryn Mohr – Second-team All-league
Joyce Chang – Second-team All-league

Leland boys’ water polo – Mt. Hamilton Division
Mike Monsees – Coach of the Year
Raymond LaRochelle – Junior of the Year
Eric Hsu – Sophomore of the Year
Shane Keno - First-team All-league
Jon Foote - First-team All-league
Justin Booth - First-team All-league
Max Dobrushin – Second-team All-league
Brian Luu – Second-team All-league

Leland girls’ water polo – Mt. Hamilton Division
Eric Rise – Coach of the Year
Christy Stibbe – MVP
Elena SantaMaria – Junior of the Year
Courtney Gold – Freshman of the Year
Courtney Monsees - First-team All-league
Tina Revels - First-team All-league
Allison Mossing - First-team All-league
Heather Sheridan – Second-team All-league
Rebecca Pele – Second-team All-league
Pioneer football – Mt. Hamilton Division
Shaun Souza – Senior of the Year
J.J. Goulden – Special Teams Player of the Year
Nick D’Antonio – Utility Player of the Year
Chris Foley - First-team All-league offense
Eric Sanchez - First-team All-league offense
C.J. Miller - First-team All-league defense
Eddie Hsieh - First-team All-league defense
Jon Silva - First-team All-league defense
Chris Brookmeyer – Second-team All-league offense
Ken Dorset – Second-team All-league offense
Jerry Barnes – Second-team All-league defense
Dan Alvord – Second-team All-league defense
Steven Lopes – Second-team All-league defense

Pioneer girls’ volleyball – West Valley Division
Heidi Isaacson - First-team All-league
Katie Town – Second-team All-league
Erin Lee – Second-team All-league

Pioneer boys’ water polo – Mt. Hamilton Division
Kevin Zondervan – Senior of the Year
David Atala - First-team All-league
Richard Gutierrez - First-team All-league
Zealand Hatch – Second-team All-league

Pioneer girls’ water polo – Mt. Hamilton Division
Elyssa Samson – Sophomore of the Year and First-team All-league
Taylor Feezor - First-team All-league
Rebecca Wallworth - Second-team All-league
Elizabeth Hartland - Second-team All-league

Share your news

Do you have a sports story to share? Contact the sports department at 494-7000 x 217 or by e-mail at diego@timesmediainc.com or fax to Almaden Times Sports at 494-7078.