Airborne: Willow Glen's Megan Braga sets the ball for the front line in the Rams' win over Prospect last week.




Photograph by Skye Dunlap







Rams win tennis title

Volleyball team upsets Prospect

By Dick Sparrer

It hasn't happened since 1983, but it happened again last week... the Willow Glen girls tennis team has clinched a league championship.

The Rams won twice last week to push their record to 13-0 in the Santa Teresa Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League and their overall mark to 17-0.

But not only is Willow Glen unbeaten as a team, the Rams also boast an undefeated singles player and an unbeaten doubles team.

Kelsey Giambruno ran her league record to 13-0 with a couple of league victories last week at No. 4 singles, and the doubles team of Stephanie Mansfield and Chen Huynh won a pair of matches last week to push their season mark to 13-0 at No. 3 doubles.

Willow Glen clinched the league title with a tight 4-3 win over Valley Christian last week.

The Rams had beaten the Warriors in the first round of the Santa Teresa season, but that was Valley's only loss heading into play last week. VC needed a win over Willow Glen to force a first-place tie in the division.

But senior Cheryl Mah and Giambruno, a sophomore, each won in singles play and the Rams added two doubles victories to pull out the important win over the Warriors.

Mah posted a 6-1, 6-0 win at No. 1 singles, and Giambruno pulled out a tight 6-2, 7-6 (10-8) at No. 4 to start the Rams on the road to the win.

Neda Dowlatshahi and Tram Nguyen teamed for a 6-3, 6-1 win at No. 1 doubles, and Mansfield and Huynh wrapped things up with a 6-0, 6-1 at No. 3 doubles.

That was the big win for the Rams, but they didn't let down two days later, rallying for a 6-1 win over Overfelt.

Mah, Cindy Ngo, Reyna Hernandez-Cervantez and Giambruno won in singles play to clinch the Willow Glen victory.

Dowlatshahi and Nguyen added a win at No. 1 doubles, and Mansfield and Huynh won at No. 3.

Girls Volleyball

Katrina Battaglia nailed 15 kills to lead the Willow Glen girls volleyball team to a four-game win over Prospect in the Santa Teresa Division of the BVAL last week.

The Rams topped the Panthers 15-9, 8-15, 15-9, 15-13, sticking Prospect with its first loss of the league season.

Willow Glen lost 15-13, 15-7, 15-6 to Oak Grove later in the week. The Rams are now 4-4 in the division and 11-8 for the year.

Presentation, meanwhile, improved to 7-1 in the Mt. Hamilton Division with a 15-6, 15-2, 16-14 win over Valley Christian. The Panthers are 18-1 for the year.

Field Hockey

It took Willow Glen a while to record its first win of the league season in girls field hockey play. But when they did, the Rams did it in style.

Willow Glen rolled to a 5-0 win over Saratoga last week to push their record to 1-2-2 in the Mt. Hamilton Division and to 5-2-3 for the year.

Kellie Arnone knocked in two goals and added an assist to lead the Rams to the victory. Colleen Wozny supported with a goal and an assist for Willow Glen.

Stacey Santomauro and Jenny Holt also scored goals in the win, and Lindsey Rovai, Janie Demkowski and Ali Lake added assists.

The Rams had lost a tough 3-1 nod to unbeaten Prospect to open the week. Santomauro scored the lone goal for the Rams in that one.

Cross Country

Nicholas Fill finished seventh in the boys race, but Willow Glen dropped a pair of West Valley Division decisions to Valley Christian and San Jose last week.

Fill covered the 2.95-mile course at Montgomery Hill in 20:13 to finish seventh among all West Valley runners.

Laura Jackson was eighth in the girls race in 27:04, with Michele Casteneda 16th in 29:02, but Willow Glen fielded an incomplete team in the girls division.

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