Saratoga News Saratoga wins in CCS hockey, tennis playoffs By Dick Sparrer Lynbrook, Los Gatos and Saratoga all secured pretty good spots in the Central Coast Section field hockey play-offs this fall. And for good reason--they earned it! The three are the top seeds in the CCS tournament that winds up with a championship match on Nov. 21, 11 a.m., at Los Gatos High School. Lynbrook is seeded No. 1 in the play-offs after cruising through the regular season unbeaten. The Vikings finished first in the Mt. Hamilton Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League, finishing just ahead of Los Gatos. The Vikings opened the CCS event last week with a 3-1 win over St. Ignatius. SI beat Homestead 2-1 in the first round, winning the right to face Lynbrook in the quarter-finals. The Vikings, like Los Gatos and Saratoga, earned a first-round bye. Heather Lamb gave the Vikes the early lead when passes from Sara Hohenshelt and Chrissy Bailey set her up for a goal. Bailey then scored off a Hohenshelt assist, and the Vikings led 2-1 at the half. Senior Pooja Mehta knocked in an unassisted goal in the second half to provide some insurance, and the Vikes had locked up the win. Lynbrook moves on to face Live Oak on Nov. 17, 1 p.m., at Los Gatos in the semi-finals. The Vikings take a 14-0-3 season record into the match. Los Gatos and Saratoga will collide the same day. The Wildcats, 14-1-3 for the year, will host the Falcons, 14-2-2, at 2:45 p.m. on Tuesday. The winner will square off with the Live Oak-Lynbrook winner on Saturday. Gatos finished second in the Mt. Hamilton Division on its way to the CCS play-offs. Los Gatos is seeded No. 2 in the event. The Cats opened the post-season with a 2-0 win over powerful Willow Glen last week. The Rams finished the year 12-4-3. Saratoga entered the CCS tournament seeded #3 after winning the championship in the Santa Teresa Division of the BVAL. The Falcons finished the regular season with a 13-2-2 record and went 9-1-2 in the division to finish a notch ahead of runner-up Willow Glen in the standings. Saratoga clinched the title last week with a tight 2-1 win over Monta Vista. Junior Jen Ramos scored off an assist from senior Kristy Mincey to give the Falcons a 1-0 lead in the match, and senior Tina Lai made it 2-0 when she scored off an assist from sophomore Keala Meyer. The Falcons led 2-0 at the half, but Monta Vista scored a goal in the second half to make it close. Saratoga, though, held on for the win, and clinched the league title. The Falcons could have clinched the championship with a tie. They finished a game up on the Rams in the final standings. Saratoga earned a first-round bye in the CCS play-offs, opening up in the quarter-finals last week. The Falcons scored in overtime to edge rival Prospect 1-0. The Panthers were seeded No. 6 in the post-season. Falcons net win Saratoga opened the CCS tennis tournament with back-to-back wins over Los Altos and St. Francis. The Falcons, 20-5 for the year, were to face Menlo in the semifinals Monday at Courtside. Amanda Wise rolled to a 6-0, 6-0 win at No. 3 singles, and Sheetal Modi won 6-1, 6-1 at No. 4 to spark the Falcons to the 4-3 win over Los Altos. Nancy Walker and Angi Chua teamed for a 6-4, 6-3 win at No. 1 doubles, and Jessica Cone and Melinda Peterson won 6-4, 6-2 at No. 3. The Falcons came back with a 5-2 win over the Lancers. Camille Behnke pulled out a tight 6-4, 7-6 (7-2) win at No. 1 singles. Wise won 6-3, 6-3 at No. 3, and Modi won 6-4, 6-1 at No. 4. Chua and Walker combined for a 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 win at No. 1 doubles, and Peterson and Cone won 6-2, 6-4 at No. 3. [ Back to Contents Page | Saratoga News Home Page | Archives ] This article appeared in the Saratoga News, November 18, 1998. ©1998 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.