By Dick Sparrer
Saratoga is a water polo favorite in the El Camino Division of the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League this fall. And the Falcons proved it when they opened the league season with a lopsided 23-7 victory over Homestead last week.
Jon Cox fired in five goals, and Jaison Carter added four to lead the Falcons to the easy win over the Mustangs.
Daniel O'Connell supported with three goals for the winners, and David Breitenbach, Simon O'Connell, Hormoz Parineh and Robert Carter pitched in two goals each. Gerald Askew and David Kim rounded out the scoring with a goal apiece.
Saratoga dominated Homestead in every period on the road to the win. The Falcons jumped out to a 6-3 lead in the first period and stretched that advantage to 11-4 by intermission. Saratoga finished the game by out-scoring Homestead 10-3 in the third.
With the potent scoring attack and senior standout Travis Englemen in the goal, the Falcons are heavy favorites to win the division this fall.
"We have a very strong team," head coach Steve Sherry said. "This is the strongest team we've had in 10 years at Saratoga. We should win the league going away."
Sherry actually went beyond predicting a league championship by indicating that his Falcons should climb into the Central Coast Section's top 10 rankings this fall and figures his squad has a "decent chance of winning the Division II CCS title."
After opening the league season with the win over Homestead, the Falcons came back with a solid showing at the rugged Monterey Bay Tournament over the weekend.
Saratoga won just two of five games, but all five games were extremely close. The Falcons beat Gunn by two goals, and the other four games were all decided by a single goal.
S. O'Connell canned five goals, and J. Carter added three in the 11-9 victory over the Titans. Breitenbach joined in with two goals, and Kim added one.
David Prendergast and S. O'Connell had two goals apiece, and Kim and D. O'Connell had one each, but the Falcons lost a 7-6 heartbreaker in overtime to Leland.
The Falcons outscored Harbor 4-1 in the final period but came up a goal short in a 7-6 loss. J. Carter and S. O'Connell had two goals each, and Breitenbach and David Schneider added goals for the Falcons.
Saratoga lost another overtime decision, falling 11-10 to Hollister. S. O'Connell led the Falcons with four goals. J. Carter hit three, D. O'Connell two and Schneider one.
The Falcons wrapped up the tournament with a tight 11-10 win over Menlo School in overtime. S. O'Connell poured in four goals, and Breitenbach, J. Carter and D. O'Connell had two each. Askew chipped in with one goal.
The Falcons are 9-6 for the year.
Lynbrook girls win
The Lynbrook girls' water polo team continues to swamp opponents.
The Vikings ran their Santa Clara Valley record to 3-0 and their overall mark to 7-4-1 with a convincing 21-7 victory over Saratoga last week.
This article appeared in the Saratoga News, October 2, 1996.
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