After all, many of the state's top teams were entered in the tourney, and his Panthers are having a less than spectacular season in the rugged Mt. Hamilton Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League.

What's more, Prospect faced a tough slate of Mater Dei, St. Francis-La Cañada and Bishop O'Dowd of Oakland in the tourney.

Still, it wasn't a bad week for the Panthers.

Prospect lost 11-0 to state powerhouse Mater Dei to open the tourney, but they lost a tight 2-0 nod to St. Francis-La Cañada and wrapped up the week with an impressive 1-0 win over O'Dowd.

It was a big day by Aaron Jacks that sparked the Panthers to the win over Bishop O'Dowd. He went the distance to toss a two-hitter and also ripped three hits for the Panthers.

Jacks used just 84 pitches to dispatch O'Dowd. He struck out six and walked just three.

The clubs were locked in a scoreless tie through five innings before Prospect scored the game's only run in the sixth. Steven Kong reached on an error and raced to third on a single by Jacks. Joey Puccinelli chased Kong home with a sacrifice fly to right.

That was all the support Jacks needed. He blanked O'Dowd over the final two innings to nail down the win, pushing his mound record to 3-5 this season.

Jacks struck out the side in the fifth and allowed just one baserunner in the sixth. He struck out the first batter he faced in the seventh before allowing a runner on a walk. The next hitter hit a line drive to second, but Kong grabbed it and threw to first for a game-ending double play.

Jacks had the three hits to lead Prospect offensively. Greg Ramirez and J. Puccinelli each singled for the Panthers.

Some of the sweetness of the tournament win was lost, though, when superstar shortstop/pitcher Kyle Bonvechio fouled off a pitch that struck him in the mouth.

Prospect had lost a tough 2-0 nod to St. Francis-La Cañada earlier in the week despite getting a strong pitching performance from Steven Vidal, who was tagged with the loss despite whirling a complete game. He allowed just four hits and struck out five while throwing just 76 pitches. Three of the St. Francis hits came in the second, though, good for a two-run rally.

Prospect had just two hits in the game, singles by Ted Piggins and Tony Puccinelli.

Prospect, 7-14 for the year, had opened the tourney with the 11-0 loss to Mater Dei. Piggins had two hits and Bonvechio singled for Prospect in the loss.

It was an eight-run rally in the fourth that proved to be Prospect's undoing.

Prospect gets back to Mt. Hamilton Division action this week. The Panthers visit Mt. Pleasant on April 30 and host Oak Grove on May 2 in a pair of 3:30 p.m. games.


Warriors win

Westmont rolled to a lopsided 14-2 non-league win over Fremont last week. The Warriors pushed their season record to 13-6 with the victory.

Coach Jason Miller's crew jumped on the Firebirds for five runs in the second inning to take control of the game. Fremont answered with a run in the third, but Westmont picked up two more in the fourth, then broke the game open with seven runs in the sixth.

Junior hurler Ricky Meinhold tossed a three-hitter for the win. He struck out nine as he ran his season record to an impressive 8-1.

Meinhold got more than enough support from his friends, who pounded 11 hits in the win, including a pair of home runs.

Mike Gorski singled twice and homered to drive in two runs for the Warriors and Mitch Monroe singled and homered to plate four runs.

Bryan Adragna had a big day at the plate for Westmont with a single and a double to knock in three runs. Greg Oswald doubled home two runs in the win and Brandon Simon also doubled.

Westmont gets back to Santa Teresa Division play this week.


'Toga tops Spartans

Chris Hornberger evened his record at 2-2 last week when he tossed the Saratoga baseball team to a 2-0 win over Mountain View in the El Camino Division of the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League.

Buck Wright had two hits for the Falcons and Jon Anderson doubled. Saratoga had just four hits in the game, but the Falcons held the Spartans to only four hits.

Saratoga scored single runs in the second and sixth to pull out the win.

The Falcons, 13-10 for the year and 7-4 in the division, were to visit Monta Vista on April 29 and will be back in action on May 6 when they host Los Altos at 3:30 p.m.


Falcons sixth

The Saratoga golf team finished sixth in the team standings last week at the Monterey High Invitational golf tournament at the Rancho Cañada Golf Course. The Falcons finished just two strokes behind Aragon and Palma, who tied for fourth in the tourney.

Matt Marshall and Aaron Burke each carded 75s to tie for 10th individually in the tournament. Jeff Dwyer of De La Salle and Anthony Valdez of North Salinas each finished at 70 to tie for first.

The El Camino Division play last week, Marshall fired a two-over par 38, but the Falcons lost 159-164 to Milpitas. The Trojans are now 9-1 in the division and Saratoga slipped to 9-2.

Westmont, meanwhile, lost twice in Mt. Hamilton Division play. Brent Picard fired even par with a 36 at San Jose Muni, but the Warriors lost 159-175 to Branham. Westmont lost 149-164 to the Bruins later in the week at Santa Teresa.

Branham improved to 11-1 with the two wins and Westmont slipped to 7-5 in league play.


Boosters auction

The Saratoga High School Sports Boosters will host its biggest fundraiser, the 23rd annual Auction & Dinner, to support SHS sports programs. The event is slated for May 18 from 2 to 8 p.m. at the Mountain Winery. Tickets are $100 per person with limited seating.

Guests will be treated to a gourmet dinner by Chateau La Cresta, as well as unlimited beverages and hors d'oeuvres. A silent and live auction will be held, offering multiple weekend getaways, concert tickets, and sports memorabilia.

Proceeds pay for uniforms, sports equipment, coaches, trainers, other staff members, and clinics. For more information on purchasing tickets, contact Sue Vetrone at 408.446.0714 or Sarah Rothenberg at 408.867.5810.


Karin leads Falcons

A.J. Kerin won 7-5, 6-2 at No. 1 singles to lead the Saratoga boys tennis team to a tight 4-3 win over Palo Alto in De Anza Division play week. The Falcons are now 14-8 for the year.


Warriors win

Senior outside hitter Patrick Hipolito hammered down seven kills to lead the Westmont boys volleyball team to a 15-2, 15-4, 15-11 win over Leigh last week in Santa Teresa Division play.

The Warriors improved to 6-0 in the division and to 12-8 for the year with the win. Westmont closes out the league season this week. The Warriors were to host Gunderson on April 29 and will visit Lincoln on May 1, 6:30 p.m.

In Mt. Hamilton Division action, Prospect pulled out a 5-15, 15-5, 15-8, 15-12 win over Branham. Danny Okazaki drilled eight kills to lead the Panthers, who pushed their league record to 3-4 and their season mark to 9-9.

Saratoga, meanwhile, lost a 15-3, 15-6, 15-10 decision to Los Gatos in the De Anza Division of the SCVAL. The Wildcats improved to 9-0 with the win while the Falcons slipped to 1-6.