Cats win, clinch volleyball title
Sullivan, Conry nail all-tourney honors
By Dick Sparrer
There's one match left in the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League (SCVAL) season for the Los Gatos boys volleyball team.
But all that was on the line for the Wildcats when they headed to Fremont on Tuesday night was whether or not they would wrap up an undefeated league season.
The league championship? Oh, the Cats wrapped that up last week with an impressive four-game win over Homestead.
The Wildcats beat the Mustangs for the second team this season in league play to clinch the SCVAL crown.
Los Gatos turned back the Mustangs 15-6, 15-12, 7-15, 15-6 to improve to 11-0 in league play. Homestead slipped to 8-2.
"It was great to win two straight against Homestead, and to take the top position in the league," said a happy Gatos coach, Tom Jack, after his Wildcats beat the Mustangs. "Both wins were convincing, with all [players] making contributions," added Jack, whose Cats beat the Mustangs at home earlier in the year and at Homestead last week.
Shaun Sullivan blasted 24 kills to lead the Wildcats to the important win over Homestead. Max Haueter, Neil Perry and Fletcher Anderson chipped in with seven kills each, and Haueter led the Cats with three service aces.
Earlier in the week, Los Gatos had whipped Santa Clara 15-4, 15-2, 15-13 on senior night at the Gatos gym. Haueter led the Cats with eight kills and four service aces. Mason McKown and Sullivan supported with seven kills apiece.
The two wins helped Los Gatos clinch its fourth championship in seven years. The Wildcats have now won titles in the West Catholic Athletic League, Blossom Valley Athletic League and the SCVAL. The Cats have finished second in the other three years, all three times behind Homestead.
After clinching the league title with the win over the Mustangs, Los Gatos nailed a fourth-place finish at its own Los Gatos Invitational Tournament on Saturday in the LG gym. Sullivan and Michael Conry were named to the all-tournament team for the Cats.
The Wildcats beat San Lorenzo Valley 15-10, 15-10 and Pleasant Valley of Chico 15-10, 15-10 in pool play, but lost 15-2, 5-15, 15-11 to St. Francis.
Gatos came back to beat Soquel 10-15, 15-10, 16-14 in the playoffs, but lost a 17-16, 15-12 heartbreaker to St. Francis. The Lancers went on to play Serra for the tournament championship, losing 11-15, 15-8, 15-13.
Los Gatos went on to lose 15-11 to Mt. Madonna to end up in fourth place. Bellarmine, Homestead, Soquel and Bear River of Grass Valley tied for fifth.
The tournament featured "16 of the top high school boys volleyball teams in Northern California," said Jack.
A week earlier, the Los Gatos junior varsity volleyball team finished fourth in a 14-team tourney hosted by the local boys in the Gatos gym.
Sophomores Keith Catanese and Michael Robards and freshman Sam Moisenco each won spots on the all-tournament team after leading the Cats to the fourth-place finish at the Los Gatos Invitational.
Gatos opened the tourney with wins over Oak Grove (15-9, 15-4), San Lorenzo Valley (15-3, 7-15, 15-2) and Sir Francis Drake of Marin (15-0, 15-4) in pool play.
The Cats were seeded No. 2 in the championships and opened with a 15-4, 15-4 win over Washington of Fremont. But Los Gatos lost 15-11, 15-12 to Bellarmine in the semifinals and 15-7, 10-15, 15-12 to Oak Grove in the third-place match.
The young Wildcats, like the varsity, are 11-0 in league play heading into the last match of the season.
Los Gatos, California Since 1881
Los Gatos team captain Michael Conry celebrates his club's win over Homestead, which gave the Cats the league title.
