Willow Glen Resident

Sports

Rams Abdalla, Corona getting back on track

By Dick Sparrer

Willow Glen's Mohamed Abdalla and Marcos Corona were two of the best runners in the Central Coast Section during the 2006 cross country season.

Well, not much has changed.

It's the track season now, and the Rams are off and running again as two of the top competitors in CCS.

Both were winners when their local high school played host to the Willow Glen Invitational on March 4, and Abdalla was a winner again last weekend when the best athletes in the section got together at Los Gatos High School for the Kiwanis-Bellarmine Classic.

Abdalla, a junior standout for the Rams, won the 3,200-meter run at the K-Bell meet, stopping the watch at 9:18.19 to lead his squad to a 10th-place finish in the team standings.

Abdalla had run 4:21.99 to win the 1,600, and Corona covered two laps in 1:59.36 to take the 800 at the Willow Glen Invitational a week earlier. Evergreen Valley won the team title, with the Abdalla-Corona led Rams second.

Junior Michelle Moran romped to a win in the girls 800 in 2:31.97, and Stephanie Serna heaved the shot put 34-7 for a win to lead the Willow Glen girls as their own invitational meet. The Rams ended up sixth in the team standings at the meet.

Between the two invitationals, the Willow Glen teams opened competition in the Santa Teresa Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League.

Corona and Rafael Barriga were each double winners as the Rams ran past Westmont 77-50. Corona took the 800 in 2:02.0 and also ran to a win in the 3,200 in 10:47.53, and Barriga won the 400 in 54.7 and the 200 in 24.08.

Abdalla rambled to a win in the 1,600 in 4:24.34, and Jason Gibilisco sprinted to a first in the 100 in 11.79. Gibilisco and Barriga also teamed with Ricky Huynh and Ryan Metcalf for a win in the 4x100 relay in 47.7.

The Willow Glen girls, meanwhile, lost 79-47 to Westmont the same day.

Moran was a double winner for the Rams, taking the 1,600 in 5:41.47 and the 800 in 2:36.0. Serna was a winner in the shot put at 32-10, Kristina Rivera took the 3,200 in 14:02 and Burree Cowherd won the 100 high hurdles in 17.94.

Rams lose a pair

The Willow Glen baseball team lost a pair of games to Leigh last week to slip to 1-3 in the Mt. Hamilton Division and to 1-4 for the year.

Senior Mike Roseland and junior Jake Goetz were top hitters for the Rams in the 11-3 and 14-0 losses to the Longhorns.

Roseland ripped a pair of singles, but Willow Glen opened the year with an 8-6 loss to Mt. Pleasant.

The Rams split with Santa Teresa, winning 6-1 after losing 6-0, before losing two to Leigh.

Willow Glen will try to get back on the winning track this week against Live Oak. The Rams were to visit the Acorns on March 13 and will be home to face Live Oak on March 15, 3:30 p.m. The following week, the Rams play two against Leland, March 20 at Leland and March 22 at home.

Golfers win two

Nick Barbara fired a 45 on the par 35 Santa Teresa Golf Course to lead the Willow Glen golf team to a 253-270 win over Prospect. Earlier in the week, the Rams topped the Panthers 284-300 when Robby Sisco carded a 48 at Cinnabar Hills.

Chase leads Rams

Tobin Chase hammered home 21 kills to lead the Willow Glen boys volleyball team to a 25-13, 25-16, 20-25, 25-17 win over Monterey in a non-league match. The Rams improved to 1-2 with the victory.

Host families

Signing a professional baseball contract is an exciting experience for any young man, but the early years of his career can be difficult and lonely. Many of the players--most of them in their late teens and early 20s--find themselves away from home for the first time.

That's why the San Jose Giants, a Class A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants, looks for local families to take in their players each season.

The search is currently on for host families for the 2007 season that runs April 1 through Sept. 10.

Host families provide a player with a room, and the Giants provide season tickets and parking passes for all of the club's games at San Jose Municipal Stadium. The team also hosts picnics for the families and other events.

"It's really a great program," said Linda Pereira of the Giants.

For more information on the host family program, call Pereira at 408.297.1435, ext. 19.