Saratoga News

Westmont girls survive

The boys team ends up fourth in own tourney

By Dick Sparrer

They were playing in different tournaments, but things started out much the same for the two basketball teams from Westmont.

The Westmont girls opened the Pioneer Classic with an impressive 53-44 win over Live Oak to move into the tourney semifinals, and the Westmont boys edged Fremont 46-43 to advance to the semis of their own Westmont Tournament.

A win in second-round play would mean a trip to a tournament championship game for either team. But as it turned out, one made it and the other didn't.

The Warriors managed a 59-54 win over a solid Monta Vista team to move into the finals of the Pioneer Classic.

But the Westmont boys dropped a 57-47 decision to Los Gatos to slip into the third-place game in its own tournament. The Warriors ended up losing 56-47 to Piedmont Hills to wind up fourth in their own Westmont Tournament

The Westmont girls, on the other hand, clinched a second-place finish at Pioneer, losing a 47-45 overtime heartbreaker to Santa Cruz in the finals.

Melissa Newberg poured in 18 points, but it wasn't enough for the Warriors against Santa Cruz. Sheryl Mahaffey and Melissa Taylor chipped in with six points apiece, and Lauren Costanzo added five. Lindsay Hahn and Emillia Ortiz dropped four points each and Linda Matar hit two.

The Warriors took a slim 6-3 lead in the first period and were clinging to that three-point lead after three quarters, 27-24. But Santa Cruz outscored Westmont 14-11 in the fourth to tie it, 39-39, then outpointed the Warriors 8-6 in the extra period to win by two.

Newberg and Mahaffey, who were each named to the all-tournament, put up some big numbers in the first two games for the Warriors.

Newberg pumped in 20 points, and Mahaffey buried 19 in a tourney-opening 53-44 win over Live Oak. Mahaffey drained five three-pointers in the game.

The Warriors held a commanding 36-24 lead at intermission, but the Acorns cut the lead to four by the end of the third, 40-36. Westmont turned it up in the fourth, though, topping Live Oak 13-8 to clinch the win.

Taylor and Costanzo added three points apiece in the win, and Sabine Bosklopper, Ortiz, Matar and Alyssa Parsons had two each.

Mahaffey came back with 26 points, including a tournament record-setting seven three-pointers, to lead the Warriors to a 59-54 win over Monta Vista in the semifinals. Mahaffey's 12 three-pointers for the tourney is another Pioneer Classic record.

Newberg pitched in 13 points in the win, and Ortiz had eight. Costanzo added five, Taylor four, Parsons two and Hahn one.

Westmont's boys, meanwhile, opened their own tournament with a tight win over Fremont, but then lost to Los Gatos and Piedmont Hills to settle for fourth overall.

Westmont tourney

Willow Glen won the Westmont Tournament title with a 69-49 win over Los Gatos in the finals.

Los Gatos had opened the tourney with a tight 61-57 overtime win over Prospect.

Thomas Turner and Jerome Ort tossed in 12 points apiece to lead all Prospect scorers in the game. Barry Sharpe chipped in with seven points, Mike Suarez hit six, Danny Baucus five, Gil Vasquez and Lee Robinson four apiece, Eric Ostgarden three, and Antonio Park and Justin Karren two each. Suarez drilled a couple of three-point buckets and Sharpe, Baucus and Ostgarden hit one each.

The Panthers lost another heartbreaker a game later, falling 35-34 to Fremont.

Robinson was the top scorer for Prospect but scored just six points. Baucus had five; Sharpe, Ort and Park four each; Ostgarden and Suarez three apiece; Turner and Thomas LeUnes two each; and Karren one.

Falcons seventh

The Saratoga boys' basketball team ended up seventh in the Menlo Shootout. The Falcons lost 63-49 to Marin Academy and dropped a 52-49 heartbreaker to Mitty before knocking off Carlmont 65-61 in overtime in their final game of the tournament.

Michael Black and the Weger brothers, Micah and Luke, led the Falcons to the tight win over the Scots in the seventh-place game. Black topped all scorers with 18 points for the Falcons, with the Wegers combining for 29 more. Luke Weger pumped in 17 points, including a couple of three-pointers, and Micah Weger added 12.

Ryan Anderson supported with eight points in the win, and Olive L'Abbe hit seven.

The Falcons opened up a 22-13 lead in the first period, but the Scots chipped away by three points in the second, two more in the third and finally, four in the fourth to tie it 55-55. Saratoga outscored Carlmont 10-6 in the overtime period, though, to pull out the win.

Saratoga saw a four-point lead melt away in the final period against Mitty a night earlier. The Falcons were up 40-36 heading into the fourth, but were outscored 17-9 by Mitty and lost 52-49.

M. Weger led the Falcons with 19, including a pair of threes, and L. Weger hit a three on his way to 11 points. Black tossed in six points in the game with Matt McKenna getting four.

L'Abbe had the hot hand, hitting 13 points, but the Falcons lost 63-49 to Marin Academy in their tourney opener. M. Weger joined L'Abbe in double digits with 10 points, and L. Weger added seven, including a three.

Prospect wins

Lyndsey Najima jammed 14 points, including a pair of buckets from three-point range, to lead the Prospect girls' basketball team to a 49-36 win over Gilroy, the host team in the Mustang Classic.

Elizabeth Harkins joined Najima in twin figures with 11 points, and Adela Sojtaric supported with eight points. Jennifer Sitter added five points in the win.

Prospect improved to 3-0 in the young season with the victory.

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