By DICK SPARRER
Games don't come much bigger than this one.
When Fremont and Mountain View collide on Feb. 19, the championship will be on the line in the El Camino Division of the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League--thanks in no small part to Homestead.
Homestead? What could a team that sports a rocky 2-9 record in the division have to do with the championship?
Plenty. The Mustangs played both the contenders last week. They lost 54-41 to rival Fremont on Friday night, but they opened the week with a 29-27 upset win over Mountain View.
Last week's results leave the ball in Fremont's court--literally. The Firebirds will host Mountain View on Feb. 19, 7 p.m., with the title on the line.
Fremont and Mountain View are locked in a virtual tie for first place in the division. The Firebirds are 9-2 following wins over Wilcox and Homestead last week, and the Spartans are 8-2 after losing to the Mustangs.
Wednesday's game is the last one of the regular season for the Firebirds. A win would clinch the league championship for Fremont.
But even if the Firebirds should lose, they still have a shot at a title tie. Mountain View still has a Feb. 21 date with Saratoga, so the Spartans need to win twice this week to claim sole ownership of the league title.
And really, it's all because of Homestead.
Senior forward Brian Blasquez pumped in 11 points and Jammie Belion added eight to lead the Mustangs to the 29-27 win over the Spartans. Dat Lai added five points in the win, and he and Belion each buried three-pointers.
Jimmy Olevson chipped in with four points for the winners and Steve Papoulies hit one.
Homestead slipped to 2-9 in the division a couple of days later after the 54-41 loss to Fremont.
The Firebirds improved to 9-2 with the two wins last week. They opened up the week with an exciting 52-46 overtime win over Wilcox.
The 'Birds battled back from a 31-28 halftime deficit to tie it 46-46 by the end of regulation. Fremont then blanked Wilcox 6-0 in the overtime period to clinch the very important win.
Jabbar Burton poured in 19 points and Darren Lang added 13 to lead the Firebirds past the Chargers. Rich Lockmanese supported with eight points, Melvin Rabena had five, Reynold Carlos three and Ben Skinner and Tully Banta-Cain two apiece.
Fremont is now 18-7 for the year.
Homestead Girls
In girls' competition last week, Homestead rolled past Los Gatos 46-36 to improve to 7-2 in the De Anza Division of the SCVAL and to 19-3 for the year.
Hilary Parker had the hot hand for the Mustangs with 18 points. Michele Wald joined her in double figures with 10 points.
Yvonne Chen supported with seven points and Brie Ahern finished with five. Each one buried a three-pointer. Yumi Minn added four points, and Erin Morikawa hit two.
Fremont split in El Camino Division play, falling 58-50 to first-place Cupertino before blasting Mountain View 55-43. The Lady Birds are now 4-8 in the division.
La-Nolia Ufondu pumped home 16 points to lead the Lady Birds to the win over the Spartans. Natalie Woo supported with nine points, and Chi Tran hit seven. Beatriz Corro tossed in six points, and Charlotte Salvacion tossed in a three on her way to five points.
Sarah List finished with four points, Kim Johnson three, Cory Rodriguez and Jessica Ackerman two each and Keri Trong one.
Tran poured in 13 points and Woo popped 10, but the Lady Birds lost by eight to Cupertino.
Ufondu supported with eight points, and Salvacion, Sheila Hess and List had four each. Johnson added three and Corro and Truong had two each.
This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, February 19, 1997.
©1997 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.