Sophomore William McAlister played No. 1 singles for the Los Gatos tennis team that won the league championship this spring. McAlister also won the El Camino Division singles title to advance to CCS.

Photograph by Kathy De La Torre

McAlister wins singles title--again

Wildcats open CCS volleyball playoffs

By Dick Sparrer

William McAlister won the league singles championship a year ago as just a freshman on the Los Gatos tennis team.

So, to prove it was no fluke, he went out and did it again as a sophomore!

McAlister made it two straight singles titles with three straight-set wins at the league tournament on April 26.

But this year the individual crown was even sweeter for the Los Gatos sophomore. Because it came along with a league championship for the Wildcats.

Los Gatos wrapped up a 12-0 record in the El Camino Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League with a 6-1 win over Santa Clara on the last day of the regular season. McAlister posted a 6-2, 6-0 win at No. 1 singles to lead the Cats to the victory.

With the championship, Los Gatos qualified for the Central Coast Section team tournament, and the Cats opened the tourney in style with an impressive 6-1 win over Salinas.

Singles wins by Lee Gerston (6-2, 6-3) at No. 2, Michael Franchi (6-3, 6-3) at No. 3 and Victory Larsson (6-2, 6-2) at No. 4 started the Cats on the road to the CCS win.

Los Gatos added doubles wins by Brandon Fong and Adam Clark (5-7, 6-1, 6-4) at No. 1, David Reagan and Thomas Helleboid (6-2, 6-7 [5-7], 7-6 [8-6]) at No. 2 and Geoff Hubbard and Drew Froehlich (3-6, 6-2, 6-1) at No. 3.

But the Cats finished the season with a 14-3 record after a tough 6-1 loss to top-rated Monta Vista in the second round of the CCS tourney. Only McAlister could manage a win for Gatos, taking a 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 victory at No. 1 singles.

McAlister and the doubles team of Franchi and Larsson will now advance to the CCS individual tournament by virtue of their outstanding performances at the El Camino Division tournament.

McAlister took the singles crown for the Cats, and Franchi and Larsson teamed to take the doubles title.

McAlister won in straight sets over opponents from Fremont (6-2, 6-0), Mountain View (6-2, 6-3) and Fremont (6-2, 7-5) to nail his second straight singles championship.

Franchi and Larsson had just as easy a time in the doubles tourney. The Gatos pair won 6-2, 6-2 over a Mountain View duo, won by default over a Homestead pair in the semifinals, then beat a Mountain View twosome 6-2, 6-3 in the title match.

McAlister and the Franchi-Larsson doubles team will now advance to the CCS tournament on May 14.

Los Gatos tennis standout Lee Gerston won at No. 2 singles in his club's 6-1 win over Salinas in the CCS playoffs.

Photograph by Kathy De La Torre







Cats slip to 5-2

Losses to Saratoga and Homestead have spoiled an otherwise perfect spring season for the Los Gatos boys volleyball team.

The Wildcats were rolling along with a 4-0 record before running head first into powerful Homestead. The Cats got back on the winning track with a victory over Mountain View, but then lost to Saratoga to slip to 5-2 in the De Anza Division of the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League.

Shaun Sullivan was the kill leader in back-to-back wins over Saratoga and Fremont that helped the Cats push their record to 4-0. Sullivan had 15 kills in an 11-15, 15-4, 15-7, 15-12 win over the Falcons and he came back with eight in an easy 15-2, 15-11, 15-6 in over the Firebirds.

But Gatos lost a tough 15-12, 10-15, 15-13, 15-7 decision to Homestead and, after a 15-7, 15-10, 15-4 win over Mountain View, lost 15-11, 15-10, 15-9 to Saratoga.

Branon, Bayne lead Cats

Trevor Branon and Michael Bayne led the Los Gatos golf team to back-to-back wins over Lynbrook recently to help the Wildcats improve to 9-3 in the El Camino Division of the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League.

Bayne, a senior, fired a 1-over par 31 at the Deep Cliff Golf Course to lead the Wildcats to a 167-174 win over the Vikings, and Branon, a junior, carded a 2-over 36 at LaRincoñada to lead the Cats to a 202-218 win over the Vikes.

Tough losses for Cats

Tough losses to first-place Wilcox and to Saratoga last week knocked the Los Gatos baseball team out of third place in the De Anza Division.

The Wildcats slipped to 7-9 in division play and Saratoga, with a win over Milpitas last week, climbed over Gatos and into third with an 8-8 mark.

Wilcox broke open a 9-9 game with four runs in the bottom of the sixth and went on to nail a 13-9 win over Gatos last week. The Chargers, who have run away from the rest of the De Anza Division pack, improved to 15-0 in league play.

It marked the third straight loss for the Wildcats, who lost 5-2 to Gunn and 5-2 to Saratoga before falling to Wilcox. The losses to the Titans and Falcons proved much more costly for the Cats, because they came against clubs Los Gatos hoped to catch or stay ahead of in the league race.

Gunn all but clinched second place in the division with the win over Gatos. The Titans improved to 10-3 in the division and pulled four games up on the Wildcats with, at the time, as many left to play.

The loss cost the Cats any hopes of finishing second, and then the loss to the Falcons dropped them out of third.

The Wildcats close out the regular season with two games this week. The Cats were to host Cupertino on Monday and will visit last-place Monta Vista on May 9, 3:30 p.m. Wins in each of the two games are critical for the Wildcats if they hope to have a shot at winning a berth in the CCS playoffs.

The loss to Saratoga was especially tough on the Cats. The Falcons jumped on Gatos for four runs in the first and another run in the second, and the Wildcats could answer back with just two in the third.

Markus Willard and Tony Frangadakis had two hits each in the game for the Wildcats and Ben Shanker doubled home a pair of runs.

Steve Sweeney homered and singled to knock in three runs and Frangadakis ripped a two-run homer, but the Wildcats lost 13-9 to Wilcox. Joey Warren doubled and singled twice in the game and Willard ripped a double.

Willard had three hits and Warren ripped a pair, but the Wildcats dropped a tough 5-2 nod to the Titans.

Prior to the three straight losses, the Cats had won two league games in a row following spring break. The Cats topped Gunn 7-5 and edged Milpitas 2-1.

Big 6-foot-7 senior right hander Matt Swanson combined with Shanker to toss a 1-hitter in the 2-1 win over the Trojans. Swanson picked up the win and Shanker nailed his second save.

Alex Rollin was the winning pitcher and Shanker came on in relief to claim his third save in the 7-5 win over Gunn.

Warren and Sweeney each doubled and singled for the Cats. Sweeney drove in three runs in the win and Travis Howell knocked in a pair.

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