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Match stick: Del Mar's Breanne Condie, battling for the ball in a game against Homestead in the Willow Glen Jamboree, is one of the many senior returners for the Dons this fall.
Photograph by Ivan Kashinsky
Del Mar chases another hockey crown
Despite moving up, Dons women have title hopes
By Dick Sparrer
It was quite a year for the Del Mar girls field hockey team in the fall of 2000. And head coach Gene Sampson is looking for more of the same for his Dons as they move up a division in the Blossom Valley Athletic League.
Del Mar posted an 8-2 record to win the West Valley Division championship last fall, and the Dons notched a 10-5 mark overall.
"Last year was the first time Del Mar has won a [field hockey] division title in school history, so that was great for us," said Sampson, the coach of the year in the division.
"In winning, we moved up a division," he added, "and I have confidence in this team to finish first or second this year."
Sampson has good reason for such confidence. He has 10 returners back from that championship team of a year ago, including division most valuable player Morgan McGill.
McGill is one of three seniors who are returning all-leaguers for the Dons. She was joined by Lindsey Menkemeller and Hilary Mercante on the all-league squad in the West Valley Division last year.
Sophomore Veronica Sykes is another top returner for the Dons this season. Sykes was the freshman of the year in the division in 2000.
Seniors Breanne Condie, Deryn Fuller, Meghan Gordon, Ashley Magana, Michele Martin and Andrea McClendon round out the list of varsity returners for the Dons this fall.
Juniors Brittany Erwin and Lisa Warthan and sophomores Kristina Calvert, Melissa Giles, Lauren Holm and Jamie Pereyda are other top varsity prospects.
The Dons opened the Santa Teresa season with a win and a tie last week.
McGill scored off a Martin assist to help the Dons pull out a 1-1 tie against Monta Vista.
Earlier in the week, the Dons had blanked Leland 3-0. Menkemeller scored twice, both times off Martin assists, and Martin knocked in a goal off a Holm assist.
Del Mar also fought Lynbrook to a scoreless tie in a nonleague game last week.
The Dons had opened the season with a solid fourth-place finish at the Willow Glen Jamboree.
In other local action, Prospect got off to a 1-0-1 start in the Santa Teresa Division with a 1-0 win over Leland and a 1-1 tie against Leigh.
The Panthers, 2-1-1 for the year, had blanked Willow Glen 2-0 in an early season nonleague game.
Westmont, meanwhile, has lost four straight games to open the season.
The Warriors lost 4-1 to Willow Glen, 2-0 to Los Altos and 2-1 to Westmont in games last week.
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Campbell, California
