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The Community Newspaper of Evergreen Valley / Silvercreek Valley since 1982 |
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April 7, 2007 Evergreen SportsFall Sports Awards night at Chaboya Middle School
Chaboya Lady Colts crowned 2007 Soccer League Champions The Chaboya Middle School Lady Colts girls’ soccer team won the Santa Clara County Eastside Junior High League Championship on March 27.
The team went undefeated with six wins and zero losses, while scoring a total of 29 goals and only allowing three goals all season. Prior to league competition, the Lady Colts won a four-game tournament held at Valley Christian School the first weekend in March. After defeating Harker and Mathson, they beat Valley Christian 1-0 to earn a spot in the championship game. Chaboya showed its endurance after playing three strong teams, and defeated Valley Christian 4-0 in the final match. EVERGREEN SPORTS
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| Evergreen shortstop Janel Salanoa tracks down the ball in a 6-2 loss to Piedmont Hills on April 3. Photos by Dan Miranda |
The loss left the Cougars with a 1-4 record in Mt. Hamilton Division play, something Evergreen head coach Lisa Baker isn’t altogether pleased with, after moving her team up from the Santa Teresa Division to start the 2007 season. Still, she said, the talent on the roster merited the move up.
“Like I told the girls today, there’s no down days,” Baker said after the 6-2 loss. “When you’re in A (Mt. Hamilton) Division, everybody’s tough. Whichever team comes out ready to play is usually going to win. If we had stayed down, we’d be on top of B (Santa Teresa Division), but I didn’t think the program should stay down another year.”
Trailing 1-0, the Cougars took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the sixth on a pair of heads-up plays. With runners on the corner, Baker called for a delayed steal by Priscilla Olmos at first base, forcing Pirates catcher Vanessa Estrada to throw down to second base. That prompted Jennifer Ames – on third – to take off for home plate, completing a double steal and plating the Cougars’ first run for a 1-1 tie.
Evergreen’s Jessica Ibanez promptly followed with a bunt single to Pirates pitcher Mary Ortega, who threw wildly to first base, allowing Olmos to advance from second base and cross home plate, giving the Cougars a 2-1 lead.
The sudden offensive production, said Baker, was much needed, as the Cougars stranded runners in four straight previous innings, which the head coach chalked up to poor fundamental play at the plate, such as failed bunt attempts.
“Those are the little things that make a difference,” said Baker. “Usually, you lose by a run, so we’ve really got to clean those things up.”
Still, the two-run inning wasn’t enough to quell the Pirates, who struck back with five runs in the top of the seventh off starting pitcher Holly Dauenhauer.
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| Evergreen's catcher Erika Sarabia blocks the ball at home plate as a Piedmont Hills runner scores in a 6-2 loss to the Pirates on April 3. |
Three straight hits – including a pair of bunt singles – plated a run to tie the game at 2-2. Later in the inning, with the bases loaded, pinch hitter Allanah Marquis delivered a two-run double to left field off Dauenhauer, as the Pirates regained the lead at 4-2.
After Dauenhauer settled down to get two quick strikeouts, Ortega stepped up and delivered a two-run single to center field to cushion the Pirates’ lead at 6-2.
Despite the tough seventh inning, Baker said she’s confident in Dauenhauer, a senior hurler who has brought plenty of leadership to the young Cougars team.
“I can always count on Holly,” Baker said. “…She’s my go-to. She’s been my captain for three years and there’s a reason why. I can always count on her. No matter where I put her, she does it.”
And despite the 1-4 record, Baker said she still sees plenty of promise in the near future for her squad.
“I thought we’d at least go .500, and we’re not yet halfway through the season yet, so we can still achieve it,” Baker said. “Of course, I have even higher hopes. I still want to be in the top four (of the league) and I still plan on going to CCS.”
McDonalds pitches in for Eastridge Little League
Ronald McDonald threw out the first pitch to signal the start of Eastridge Little League’s opening day on March 31.
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That pitch, however, paled in comparison to the one made by Rudy and Carmen Lemus, owner/operators of the local McDonalds on Tully Road, who generously donated funds to refurbish the dugouts at the Eastridge Little League field prior to the start of the 2007 season.
More than 300 people were in attendance to get a good first look at the newly revamped dugouts on opening day, which also featured a parade with all the teams’ floats, traveling through the neighborhood and ending at the field.
All told, there were five T-ball Teams, five Pee-Wee Teams, five Major Teams, and one Junior Team from Eastridge Little League taking part in the festivities.
Dignitaries in attendance included Blanca Alvarado, member of the Board of Supervisors of Santa Clara County, as well as representatives from the San Jose Police Department, Hillview Airport and the County Assessor Department.
Late comeback not enough as Sobrato rallies for 8-6 win over Cardinals
The Mt. Pleasant baseball team surged back for one inning, but it wasn’t enough, as the Sobrato Bulldogs handed the Cardinals baseball team an 8-6 defeat with a three-run inning in the bottom of the sixth on March 30.
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| Mt. Pleasant starting pitcher Erik Rivera unleashes a pitch during an 8-6 loss at Sobrato on March 30. Photo by Diego Abeloos |
With Sobrato leading 5-0, the Cardinals mounted a comeback in the top of the sixth inning that started with a two-run double from relief pitcher Daniel Serrano to cut the lead to 5-2. Later in the inning, with one out, the Cardinals strung together four straight hits, including an RBI single from Alex Newton to score Serrano, a single from Kris Kamperman, a two-run single from Anthony Torres off relief pitcher Tim Buich, and an RBI single Christopher Bravo to score Torres and give Mt. Pleasant a 6-5 lead.
“When we get our key guys up, we know they’re going to get on and they’re going to score for us,” said Cardinals head coach Tony Gonzales. “It’s momentum. Sometimes it catches, and these guys, it was one (hit) right after another.”
The lead, however, didn’t hold, as Sobrato struck back in the bottom of the sixth, putting consecutive runners on via a walk and a single before the Bulldogs’ Kevin Sullivan knocked a single to right field off Serrano, scoring one run, while a second run crossed the plate seconds later on an error in the outfield, giving Sobrato a 7-6 lead. The Bulldogs then padded their lead with a sacrifice fly to center field, scoring Sullivan from third for an 8-6 score.
“You’ve got to play more than one inning,” Gonzales said, referring to the team’s lone offensive output in the top of the sixth, “and that was our downfall today.”
Serrano took the loss in relief of starting pitcher Erik Rivera, who went four innings and allowed five runs for the no-decision.
Despite the loss, Gonzales said his team will rebound and hopes to contend for one of two playoff spots in the Santa Teresa Division. The loss, coupled with a 9-2 win over Independence on March 3, gave the Cardinals a 5-5-1 record in league play, just half a game behind Sobrato for third place. Still, the Cardinals will have some catching up to do, as Branham leads the league with an 11-0 record, followed by second place Oak Grove at 9-2.
“The division is tougher this year,” he said. “…But there’s no quit in these kids, and I think we’re going to come back. They make coaching easy.”
By Diego Abeloos
Leading by doing
Pat Tillman Foundation aims to make future leaders out of local communities’ youth;
second annual Pat’s Run set for April 29
By Diego Abeloos
Editor
After a successful inaugural event in 2006, Pat Tillman Foundation Executive Director Alex Garwood is expecting bigger and better things for the second annual Pat’s Run in San Jose, slated for April 29 at Leland high School.
That sentiment, however, extends not only to the event itself, but also to the continued efforts by Garwood and the foundation in helping to spread Tillman’s legacy. Tillman died on April 22, 2004 as a member of the U.S. Army Rangers in Afghanistan, after giving up his NFL career with the Arizona Cardinals to enlist in the armed forces with his brother Kevin.
The foundation, Garwood said, is continuing to provide avenues for others to make a difference. This year, the foundation partnered with Youth Re:Action Corps, a nonprofit organization based in Tempe, Ariz., in bringing programs to the San Jose Unified School District’s six high schools meant to give students the power, knowledge and tools to create social change within the school’s local communities.
“Last year, it was ‘this is the first run and we’re going to do these programs.’ Now it’s the second run, and it was so successful last year, it’s going to be successful this year and the programs are happening in the schools,” Garwood said of the foundation’s progress. “…It’s reality. It’s powerful because you have something tangible that you can point to.”
Giving youth the tools to make a change
All told, the Youth Re:Action Corps programs at SJUSD’s high schools bear a striking resemblance to the work done by the foundation’s Leadership Through Action program, currently taking place at Arizona State University, Tillman’s alma mater.
Both programs strive to educate students about local, national and global issues, and empower those students to tackle issues head-on. The students, in turn, are provided with the resource materials, training and mentors needed to accomplish their goals.
“It’s really about showing young people that they can create change in their community,” said Courtney Klein, executive director of Youth Re:Action Corps, of the programs at SJUSD’s six high schools, which launched in Sept. of 2006. “…It’s about believing in young people, and their ideas and voices.”
According to Katherine Princic, the Youth Re:Action Corps’ Southwest regional coordinator, the programs at SJUSD’s high schools have brought about several projects to create positive changes locally.
At Leland, a group of students identified the need for positive role models for young students as a key local issue. To that end, the Leland students partnered with SJUSD’s Williams Elementary School and its after school program in becoming role models for the school’s young students. Twice a month, the Leland students bring lesson plans and activities for the Williams students, teaching them about principals of leadership, diversity and generosity, among other ideals. In addition, Princic said, the Leland students are also striving to show the Williams students the value of community service.
At Pioneer meanwhile, a group of students has partnered with an ESL (English as a second language) class held on campus after identifying certain barriers—including language—between the school and the surrounding
community. Every Tuesday and Thursday evening, the group volunteers its time in helping the ESL students, mostly adults, practice English language skills through conversation and activities. In addition, members of the group also help in the class’ childcare program, so that the adult students can focus on their studies. The students, Princic added, have also planned a graduation ceremony for the ESL students on May 31.
“This is really the first step in wanting to make a larger impact,” Princic said of Pioneer’s program. “They’re hoping to continue in the following years and make it into something sustainable.”
Klein said the goal, ultimately, is to get young students to not only believe they can make a difference, but to get them to do something about it.
“It’s particularly powerful to see one young person or a group know that they have a voice and they can create change,” Klein said. “…The voices and energy these students have can rectify the problems these communities
face.”
And while identifying a problem is a step in the right direction, taking action, Garwood said, is something the Pat Tillman Foundation stresses as perhaps the most important aspect in bringing about change with issues.
“You can talk about doing something or you can read about leadership. That’s all well and good, but then you can take action,” Garwood said of the Youth Re:Action programs at the San Jose Unified School District’s six high
schools. “This is why Pat did it. There wasn’t a whole lot of, ‘well, I’m going to do this’ or ‘gee, maybe I should.’ I don’t think there were the ‘maybes’ or ‘I should.’ He did it and he did what he knew to be right. That’s the idea with these programs too. It’s providing them the tools, etc., so that they’ll be successful and then doing it. The doing is so important.”
The ultimate goal from the foundation’s perspective, Garwood said, is to not only develop future leaders through the program, but to also develop individuals who think for themselves.
“One of the key things about Pat, one of the key lessons, is that he very much helped you think for yourself,” Garwood said. “Our foundation is no different than that. Our goal is enabling these leaders and providing them with leadership, and getting them to do something. What they do is from their own volition. They need to do what they believe is right. We’re not telling them what to do.”
Running the streets of Almaden
As for the race itself, Garwood said he hopes to see it continue to grow, much like Pat’s Run in Tempe, Ariz. Last year, both races drew over 14,000 runners combined. Garwood added he hopes for an even bigger draw to Pat’s Run in San Jose in 2007. To that end, the foundation has made some subtle course changes for the 2007 run to accommodate more runners on the same track.
Beyond that however, Garwood said the event will remain the same, with a 4.2-mile run ending on the 42-yard line in Pat Tillman Stadium at Leland High School, as well as a 0.42-mile run for kids. All told, Garwood said the event is meant as a celebration of Pat Tillman.
“It’s amazing because the community rallied to support him, but then again, it’s not amazing because it’s Pat and we all should,” Garwood said of the inaugural Pat’s Run in San Jose last year. “We’re really pleased with the first year event and we’re looking forward to it again this year. …The core idea of celebrating Pat’s life, of getting out and doing something positive, whether it’s running or walking 4.2 miles and finishing on the 42-yard line at Pat Tillman Stadium at Leland, all those pieces are all the same, and it’s powerful.”
Garwood, who like Tillman also played football at Leland, said last year’s San Jose run had a different feeling from Tempe’s run.
“You felt like you almost knew everybody,” Garwood said. “…For us, it had a very Almaden feeling. You felt like everyone in Almaden was there; it seemed like there weren’t any televisions turned on (in Almaden), everybody was out at the race.”
Garwood said that while the community of Almaden has embraced Tillman and the foundation’s run, he would also like to see other San Jose communities come out in celebrating Tillman’s life as well.
“Pat, he’s from San Jose, he’s from Almaden, he’s from the South Bay, and we can all embrace that,” Garwood
said. “You look at, for example, the six high schools our program supports, they’re from everywhere too.”
As for what the future holds for the Pat Tillman Foundation, Garwood said the nonprofit organization will continue to work in making its existing programs better for future generations of young leaders.
“Part of the importance is to do something, but it’s also important to do it well,” he said.
For more information about the Pat Tillman Foundation, go to http://www.pattillmanfoundation.org. For information about signing up for Pat’s Run in San Jose on April 29, go to http://www.patsrun.com. To learn more about Youth Re:Action Corps and its local programs, go to http://www.yrcorps.org.
Evergreen: girls’ hockey hotbed?
San Jose hosts USA Hockey Junior Girls’ National Championship; strong showing by Evergreen residents at event
By Justin Petersen
Staff Writer
Evergreen had a small but impressive presence in, of all things, girls’ hockey, when San Jose became the first California city to host USA Hockey's Junior Girls’ National Championship March 28 through April 1.
The town’s resident junior hockey outfit, the Sharks, invited four age groups and 48 total teams from around the country into Logitech Ice Club downtown for the event.
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| San Jose hosted the USA Hockey's Junior Girls' National Championship March 28-April 2. The Junior Sharks Under-16 club advanced to the quarterfinals. Photo courtesy of HockeyShots.com. |
The tournament decides the top team by age nationally, for a sport that is spreading in popularity faster than a NHL slap shot.
“Our organization is relatively new,” said Junior Girls’ club president, Rod Romanchuk, an Evergreen resident. “We wanted to get our club on the map and show the girls what it will take to become winners on the
national level.”
California is part of the Sun Belt, which includes Florida, the West Coast and southern states where hockey has bloomed in popularity with the expansion of the National Hockey League and the success of teams in otherwise iceless territories such as Arizona.
By hosting the Nationals, San Jose teams in under-18, 16, 14 and 12-year-old divisions received automatic bids into national tournament play. Teams that traveled here otherwise, qualified in regional events preceding the finals.
The Sharks’ under-16 group proved to be the most successful, winning two of three contests versus Team Florida and heavily favored Shattuck Saint Mary’s of Minnesota, in the opening round.
Honeybaked—a tested team from Detroit—outlasted the Sharks 5-4 in the final opening round game, however.
Of the 12 teams in the division, only eight passed that point. Among them were the No. 3 seed Sharks, who advanced with the two victories.
The puck stopped there, however, when the Cal Selects defeated the Sharks in a quarterfinal match-up.
“The Cal Selects are probably one of the best teams in the United States,” said Romanchuk. “They are flat out better than us. They have been doing it for 20 years.”
Standouts on the under-16 team included Cori Myers and Paula Romanchuk.
Myers converted four goals and three assists in the tournament, finishing among the top five scorers in her age category.
Meanwhile, the younger Romanchuk, a Valley Christian junior, scored one goal and recorded six assists in the tournament.
Evergreen Valley High School sophomore Denise Perez showed promise for the club’s future in tournament
play.
The 15-year-old opened scoring in the tournament for the Sharks, poking in a deflected shot past Team Florida’s goalie, who had not been scored on in the tournament at that point.
“We had a set play off of the face-off, and the defenseman was supposed to pass it over to me,” said Perez. “She decided to shoot it and I was there to rebound. I tossed it over the goalie’s shoulder and it went in.”
Perez will return in the same age group next year.
“I think there are a lot of girls who are aware of hockey, and there are a growing number who participate,” said Romanchuk.
The lady Sharks were established six years ago by a group including Romanchuk, who assisted former San Jose Shark defenseman Tom Pederson in coaching the under-16 squad to the quarterfinals.
Romanchuk sought a team after he witnessed a girls’ squad compete favorably amongst an all-male roster at Logitech six years ago.
“Those girls were more talented than some of the other teams, and they thought they should play with the boys, because they were better than girls,” said Romanchuk. “Young girls go watch the Sharks and think, ‘I can do that.’ Now they have a vehicle to go out and play.”
Several players on the junior Sharks are also receiving attention from college scouts and hope to continue beyond the club. Perez, for one, hopes to attract the attention of a Division I university.
San Jose was the site of last year’s Western regional event, the Pacific Districts. Following positive feedback from teams and organizers, USA Hockey awarded San Jose with the National Event this season.
It doesn’t hurt that the big brother professional organization – the NHL’s San Jose Sharks - supports the club’s endeavor fully. Pederson is among several retired NHL players who coach with the junior organization.
Romanchuk brings game time experience to the coaching box, as well. He is a former standout on the ice who captured an NCAA Championship at the University of Wisconsin and who enjoyed a stint with the NHL’s Minnesota Northstars.
Tierra Bella volunteers ready for duty
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This sextuplet of Almaden Cycle Touring Club riders represent more than 200 volunteers who hope to make the 30th annual Tierra Bella Bike Tour on April 14 the best ever. The event (already sold out) attracts more than 2,000 riders for routs of 60k, 100k, 100 miles or 200k that start and end at Gavilan College in Gilroy. The circuitous tours, replete with food and rest stops, take riders though the scenic Evergreen, Santa Teresa and Almaden areas in San Jose, including the mighty Metcalf Road hill climb. Some also will reach the peak of Mount Madonna overlooking Monterey Bay. The riders/volunteers in the photo are (from left) Karen Bishop of Evergreen, Peter Wallace of Almaden, Leo Hartung of Almaden, John Mazzella of Blossom Valley, Cristin Sohm of Evergreen and Lisa Sharp-Piras of Santa Teresa. For more information on the ACTC and the Tierra Bella go to www.ACTC.org.
—By Karl Laucher
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