Willow Glen Resident
Sports
Photograph by Zach Beecher
Big Night: Willow Glen's Kyle Schroeder (left), driving to the hoop in a game earlier this year against Live Oak, had a big night when he poured in 25 points to lead the Rams to a 64-56 win over Branham last week.
Tharp, Tsukiji deadly from 3-point range
By Dick Sparrer
Some basketball players are dangerous when they back down inside the paint. Others are dead-eye shots from the free-throw line.
But that doesn't describe Willow Glen scoring threats Hayley Tharp and Samantha Tsukiji. The two Willow Glen girls are deadly as soon as they step onto the court.
Tharp and Tsukiji can score from everywhere, and they did just that last week when they tossed in nine three-pointers apiece in two games to lead the Rams to a record-setting week.
Tsukiji bombed five threes and Tharp had three in a clash with Independence, and Tharp came back with six from outside the arc and Tsukiji had four against Branham.
Alyssa O'Brien supported with a pair of threes in the win over the 76ers as the Rams set a school record by averaging 10 threes over a two-game week.
Tharp's individual total of six threes was another school record.
"When she takes her time, squares up and is balanced, Hayley is dangerous from the outside," said Willow Glen girls coach Amy Gannon.
"The girls have been making their opponents extend their defense in an effort to stop our perimeter threats," said Gannon of Tharp, Tsukiji, A. O'Brien and Brittany O'Brien, "but that hasn't phased the girls.
"Before league started, we averaged about five threes a game; as of our last six league games, we are up to eight."
Unfortunately for the Rams, though, all those threes led to just a split last week in the Santa Teresa Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League. The Rams topped Independence 56-39, but lost 51-45 to Branham.
Tharp scored all 18 of her points from behind the three-point line, but the Rams came up six points short against the Bruins. Tsukiji had four threes among her six field goals to finish with 16 points.
Daisy Quintero added four points for the Rams, and B. O'Brien and Meghan Wilson had three apiece. A. O'Brien hit one.
The loss left the Rams 3-3 in the division and 5-11 overall as Branham improved to 5-1 in league play.
Willow Glen had rolled over Independence 56-39 to open the week. Tsukiji had 19 points, including the five threes, to lead the Rams. Tharp and A. O'Brien chipped in with 11 points apiece. Stephanie Serna popped six points, B. O'Brien five and Wilson and Quintero two apiece.
The Rams, who were to host Prospect and visit Oak Grove this week, will be home against Live Oak on Jan. 30 and against Silver Creek on Feb. 1. Both games begin at 7 p.m.
Boys win a pair
Steven Skavdahl and Kyle Schroeder put up big numbers last week to lead the Willow Glen boys to back-to-back wins over Branham and Andrew Hill.
Skavdahl tossed in 18 points to lead the Rams to a 50-32 win over Hill, and Schroeder poured in 25 and Skavdahl added 17 to pace Willow Glen to a 64-56 win over the Bruins.
The two wins helped Willow Glen improve to 5-1 in the Santa Teresa Division and to 13-5 for the year. The Rams, who were to visit Leland on Jan. 23, will host Sobrato on Jan. 26, 7:30 p.m., before heading to Live Oak on Jan. 30, 7 p.m.
Schroeder had the hot hand for the Rams to the eight-point win over the Bruins last week. He had a couple of threes among his eight field goals and he added six points at the free-throw line. Skavdahl also had two threes among six points and added three free throws.
Anthony Rodriguez had seven points, including a three, and Jimmy Renneke added six. Evan Bishop hit five points, Brian Chunn four and Billy Hahn two.
Skavdahl canned four threes among seven field goals to finish with 18 points in the 18-point win over the Falcons. Hahn added eight points, including a pair of threes, and Schroeder and Chunn had six apiece. Rodriguez finished with four and Bishop, Ricky Huynh, Daniel O'Shaughnessy and Renneke had two each.
Night soccer at WG
The talented Willow Glen soccer teams will be showcased on Jan. 26 when the Rams throw the switch for a little soccer under the lights.
The Willow Glen girls will be on the field at 5 p.m. to face Westmont with the boys varsity taking the field at 7 p.m. for a game against Independence. The day of soccer begins at 3:15 p.m. when the Willow Glen boys frosh-soph team host Independence.
The girls finished play last week with a win and a tie to improve to 5-2-2 in the Santa Teresa Division. The Rams, 7-4-2 for the year, were to open this week against Lincoln before hosting Westmont on Friday.
Sophomore Taylor Lundquist knocked in three goals, two off assists from Danielle Yaconelli and one off a pass from Evelyn Cervantes, to lead the Rams to a 4-0 win over Oak Grove. Burree Cowherd scored a goal off a Chelsey Sikk assist to round out the scoring for Willow Glen.
Earlier in the week, Cervantes had scored off a Lundquist assist, but the Rams could manage just a 1-1 tie with Prospect.
The boys, meanwhile, are coming off of a tough week. The Rams were blanked 2-0 by Branham, then lost 2-1 to Mt. Pleasant. Willow Glen is now 7-6-3 for the year and 3-3-3 in the Santa Teresa Division.
