Photograph by Jacqueline Ramseyer
Good Opening: The Willow Glen field hockey team is off and running to a strong start this season.
Rams get going in 'tough league'
Presentation wins volleyball title in Walla Walla, Wash.
By Dick Sparrer
It was close, but the Willow Glen field hockey team just couldn't get to the .500 mark in league play a year ago.
The Rams posted a solid 7-4-4 season record, but in league play Willow Glen missed .500 by a single game, going 3-4-3 in the Mt. Hamilton League.
But with eight seniors on this year's squad, head coach Peggy Booth and her Rams are out to improve on that mark in the 2000 season. She knows, though, that won't be easy.
"It's a tough league," admitted Booth when asked to assess the rugged Mt. Hamilton League.
Booth is hoping her Rams will return to the form they showed in 1995 when they won a league championship, and they have some talented players returning to lead that effort.
Lindsey Rovai and Stacey Santomauro are three-year starters returning for their senior seasons. They're joined on the Willow Glen squad by solid seniors Samantha Bruni, Desirae Dagnino, Lisa Hunter, Allison Lake, Nikki Leader and Janae LoPresti.
The seniors all return from a team that won a berth in the Central Coast Section playoffs last fall. The Rams lost to Los Gatos on penalty strokes in CCS play.
And where will the Rams finish this fall?
"It's too tough to call," said Booth.
Willow Glen is off to a strong start this season. The Rams finished in the top five at their own jamboree, and they backed that up with three straight wins.
The Rams pounded Live Oak 5-1 in their regular season opener. Lake led the locals with two goals and Bruni supported with a goal and an assist. Rovai handed out a team-high three assists.
Santomauro and junior Wendy Crawford knocked in goals, and Leader and junior Jenny Holt each had assists.
Willow Glen made it 2-0 last week with a 3-1 win over Saratoga. Santomauro scored twice in the win, once on a penalty kick and later off an assist from Rovai.
Junior Stephanie Ogletree added a goal off an assist from junior Julie Drake.
The Rams won their third in a row with a tight 2-1 victory over powerful Leigh late last week. Rovai scored off an assist from Leader to tie the game 1-1, then the Rams scored the game-winner when a Rovai pass set up Lake for a goal.
Willow Glen faces a three-game slate this week. The Rams were to host Monta Vista on Monday and they will head to Westmont on Sept. 19, 3 p.m. Willow Glen is back home to host Del Mar on Sept. 21, 3 p.m., and the Rams will host Leland the following Tuesday.
Raiders top Rams
Gabe Candelaria pulled in a 5-yard touchdown pass from Bobby Hobbs, but it was too little too late for the Willow Glen football team last Saturday afternoon against Silver Creek.
The Raiders ran up a 41-0 lead before giving up a fourth-quarter touchdown to the Rams. Scott Wallberg kicked the extra point, and that would close out the scoring for Willow Glen in the 41-7 loss.
The Rams, now 0-2 in the young season, will try to get on the winning track this week when they visit winless Yerba Buena on Sept. 22, 7:30 p.m.
Rams split
The Willow Glen girls tennis team opened the league season with a split last week, beating Leigh 5-2 before losing to Westmont by the same score.
The Rams opened play in the Santa Teresa Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League with a 5-2 win over the Longhorns. Stacey Hannon won 5-7, 6-4, 6-2 at No. 1 singles to start the Rams on the road to the victory.
Kelsey Giambruno nailed a 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 win at No. 2 singles and Bianca Gomez won 6-1, 6-1 at No. 4.
Stephanie Mansfield and Kristina Ravo teamed for a 6-2, 6-3 win at No. 1 doubles and Jovanie Barraza and Nhuchi Tran won 1-6, 6-2, 6-2 at No. 3 doubles.
But the Rams slipped to 1-1 in league play two days later when they lost 5-2 to Westmont. Giambruno posted a 6-2, 6-0 win at No. 2 singles and Mansfield and Chu Huyhn teamed for a 7-5, 6-2 victory at No. 1 doubles, but those were the only wins Willow Glen could manage in the match.
Willow Glen had opened the year with a 4-3 nonleague win over Oak Grove. Hannon nailed a 6-1, 6-3 win at No. 1 singles and Giambruno won a thriller 6-2, 3-6, 7-6 (7-5) at No. 2.
Aubrey Schatz secured a 6-3, 7-5 win at No. 4 singled and Mansfield and Ravo rolled to a 6-3, 6-4 win at No. 1 doubles.
Panthers take title
The Presentation girls volleyball team won six straight matches to take the team title at the Northwest Invitational tournament in Walla Walla, Wash.
Amie Pfeiffer was named the tournament's most valuable player after leading the Panthers to a 6-0 finish. Teammates Linzy Caton and Julie Harris were also named to the all-tourney team.
Harris buried eight kills in the championship match against Mead of Washington. The Panthers pulled out a 15-9, 15-10 win to clinch the crown.
The Panthers, 10-1 for the year, had beaten Menlo 15-2, 15-9 in the semifinals behind 11 kills by Pfeiffer.
Presentation opened the tournament with a 15-8, 16-17, 15-5 win over Mead, Caton drilling 15 kills, and they came back with a 15-4, 15-2 win over Lake City of Idaho. They beat Pacso, Wash., 15-7, 15-12 and Hermiston, Ore., 15-8, 15-4 to reach the semifinals.
The Panthers had opened the year by going 4-1 in the Milpitas Spikefest, ending up second to Mitty in the Gold Division.
Presentation knocked off Los Gatos 2-15, 15-12, 15-10 in the semi's, but then lost 11-15, 15-5, 15-9 to Mitty in the finals.
Rams net wins
Jesse Hopkins and Angela Garrotto helped the Willow Glen girls volleyball team to two wins in three matches last week.
Hopkins and Garrotto blasted six kills apiece in a 15-4, 15-10, 15-12 win over Pioneer.
Hopkins came back with 14 kills, but the Rams lost a tough decision 16-14, 14-16, 15-3, 10-15, 15-5 to Wilcox.
It was Garrotto's eight kills that sparked the Rams to a 15-11, 15-12, 15-4 victory over Gunderson later in the week that evened Willow Glen's season record at 2-2.
Willow Glen, California Since 1992
