The Cupertino Courier
Sports
Trask stars for Pioneers in loss to Falcons
By ELI SEGALL
Pound for pound, Cupertino senior Jimmy Trask is one of the top football players around.
On offense, defense and special teams, Trask's lightning speed and thunderous hits often leave opponents scratching their heads. Some wonder what just smashed into them, while others stand confused by the flash with a 22 on its back.
Yet on Oct. 27, Cupertino's homecoming game against Saratoga, the Pioneers succumbed 41-14 to a squad led by its own secret weapons.
Down 14-0 early, the Pioneers had to battle from behind.
Starting from the 50-yard line, Scott Savory, Trask, quarterback Yuekai Yu and running back Mikey Bednar took turns carrying downfield.
Wide receiver Andrew Nguyen made a big catch, ducking to avoid an oncoming Falcon who dove right over him. Chase Hill pulled in a 14-yard pass after Yu faked a hand-off, rolled left and put one right in his chest. The push ended with a 6-yard touchdown run by Bednar, at 11:03 of the second quarter, bringing the score to 14-7.
Saratoga hit resistance from Cupertino strong safety Aris Harutyunyan, who broke the line for a sack, and linebackers Trevor Criddle and Troy Milton, who kept the offense stagnant. Saratoga lined up for a field goal, but Trask crashed through to block the kick.
Trask's speed and determination on the play reflected his performance throughout the contest.
"Jimmy puts his heart on the line," Fitzpatrick said. "He gives his all out there."
After some short runs, Yu launched a 19-yard pass to wide receiver Kash Erfanian. Trask took the next snap, cut left, right, then left again, and carried 13 yards to Saratoga's 25-yard-line. Advanced further by a Falcons personal foul, Yu connected with Milton on the 1-yard-line, and then ran it in himself with 17.2 seconds left in the half. Criddle kicked the extra point to tie the score, 14-14.
Yu displayed great perseverance on the drive. He completed four passes, scrambled for any yards he could gain and steamrolled the Falcons defense for the score.
"We've got one of the best quarterbacks in the league," Fitzpatrick said. "Today we got some good blocking and he showed what he could do."
The contest between the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League's El Camino Division rivals brought Cupertino's record to 1-6-1 overall, and 0-5 in league play. On Nov. 3, at 7:30 p.m., the Pioneers host Fremont.
Girls volleyball
Sparked by sophomore Katherine Fischer's 26 kills and encouraged by a boisterous home crowd, Homestead rallied from two games down to surprise Los Gatos on Oct. 26 and drop the Wildcats from a first-place tie. The Mustangs, who lost 17-25 and 22-25 before winning 26-24, 25-16 and 15-9, improved their De Anza record to 6-4.
Homestead finished the week in a tie for second place with Los Gatos, one game behind Los Altos and Palo Alto.
Meanwhile, in the El Camino Division, Monta Vista entered the final week of the season with a 9-1 record and a one-half game lead in front of Milpitas (9-2). The Matadors, with wins over Lynbrook on Oct. 30 and at Cupertino on Nov. 2, would win the El Camino crown and earn automatic entry into the CCS championships.
