October 6, 2006

Evergreen Sports

Raiders No. 1 singles player Diane Lutran holds racquet high in singles

Silver Creek girls’ tennis wins at home, falls back on road

By Justin Petersen
Staff Writer

The Silver Creek girls’ tennis team trounced Mount Hamilton Division newcomer Live Oak, 6-1 on Oct. 3, allowing the Raiders to enjoy a brief breath of victory in the typically competitive A-league.

Silver Creek number one singles player Diane Lutran (right) poses with the team's vocal leader senior Sandy Mach at a recent match. Photo by Justin Petersen

Silver Creek (2-5) opted to remain in the MHAL after last season, according to longtime coach Gary Zellman, mostly to prep junior Diane Lutran, who Zellman has touted as the center of his program currently. He hopes that while Lutran hones her skills against some of the top public school players in the section, younger players develop, rebuilding the program that he took over 10 years ago.

“We had never had that option to move down before,” said Zellman. “We remained in the A Division so that Diane could play the best number ones in the area. Our hopes are for her senior year.”

Lutran is the Raiders’ No. 1 singles player, despite no club experience.

“With the strength of our league, many opponents she faces are USTA ranked players, but Diane didn’t learn that way,” said Zellman.

Lutran, who currently boasts a 5-5 record facing opposing schools’ top players in each match, knew nothing of tennis when she arrived in high school.

“She had a lot to learn when she got here,” said Zellman.

Lutran’s continued development is a sharp contrast to many number ones in the section who eat, sleep and breathe youth tennis as kids.

While Lutran remains the rock at the top, in the words of Zellman, senior Sandy Mach has also assumed a role of leadership.

“Regardless of how she does on the court, Sandy is an inspiration to other players,” said Zellman. “That makes my job easier. If there is ever an issue about uniforms or being on time, she takes care of that.”

While Zellman envisions a brighter future, the present is not all gloom. He said Silver Creek does not occupy the MHAL basement.

“We beat Live Oak and Oak Grove,” said Zellman. “I hope for four wins. That will be worth the A Division.”

Lutran won 6-1, 6-0 versus Live Oak. Two days later, versus Piedmont Hills, She saved a shutout, taking down the Pirates’ No. 1 singles player 7-5, 7-5, in a 6-1 Raiders loss.

SPORTS BRIEFS

St. Francis of Assisi Annual Golf Tournament October 12
The St. Francis of Assisi Annual Golf Tournament at The Villages Golf & Country Club will be held Thursday, October 12.

Golf Participants may register for the tournament by calling Rose Agerter at (408) 592-5051 or St. Francis of Assisi at (408) 223-1562. There will be a lunch for golfers, as well as a dinner and auction. Parish raffle tickets are also available at the event.

Golf Tee-off is scheduled for 1:30 p.m.

Prizes include a dream vacation or $5000, as well as a 42-inch HDTV or $2000 cash.

For information about the event, call Rose Agerter at (408) 592-5051 or St. Francis of Assisi at (408) 223-1562.

San Jose Vipers Lacrosse holding fall clinics beginning Oct. 21
The Vipers are growing up and down! Spring 2007 will include, Varsity, JV, Juniors, Pups and Pee-Wees. Come on out and play America's oldest team sport and the fastest growing game in California. No experience necessary. The San Jose Vipers Lacrosse club will be holding fall clinics for kids in the 3rd grade through 12th grade, beginning Oct 21 at Harker Middle School, 3800 Blackford Ave., 95117.   

Please visit www.viperslacrosse.net for more information or call Craig Bowers at (408) 674-8708.

Pat Tillman Foundation partners with youth organization to create positive change

The Pat Tillman Foundation announced a partnership with Youth Re:Action Corps, a Tempe, Ariz.-based nonprofit organization, to engage high school students in efforts to improve themselves and the world around them. The partnership will strengthen the Foundation’s efforts to carry forward Tillman’s legacy by inspiring young people to create positive change.

“The partnership with Youth Re:Action Corps will allow Pat Tillman’s inspiration and actions to reach high school students in California and Arizona,” said Alex Garwood, executive director of the Pat Tillman Foundation. “The Corps Teams will provide young people the guidance and tools to make positive changes in the world around them—something that is very much in line with the way Pat lived his life.”

Launched in 2005, Youth Re:Action Corps provides a high school-based program to educate young people about local, national and international issues, empower them to create plans for social change, and invest financially in their visions of a better world. The program was initially created with support from the Edson Student Entrepreneur Initiative at Arizona State University, Tillman’s alma mater.

Youth Re:Action Corps will launch the program in six high schools in San Jose on Sept. 29 and eight high schools in Arizona on Oct. 20. Each school will form a Corps Team of 15-25 students, representing academic, socio-economic and ethnic diversity, as well as mentors from the school and community.

With support from community mentors, the Corps Teams will venture outside their schools to survey the social problems and assets found within their community, through interviews and photos. The teams will choose one problem or issue to address as their Corps project. Youth Re:Action Corps provides student action guides, resource materials, mentors, training conferences and additional tools to guide the teams through the process of planning social change. The students’ social change plans are presented at a winter conference and are eligible for up to $1,000 in financial support.

The Pat Tillman Foundation and Youth Re:Action Corps will partner with San Jose Unified School District to bring Corps Teams to Leland (Pat Tillman’s alma mater), Gunderson, Pioneer, Lincoln, San Jose Academy and Willow Glen High Schools.

The partnership marks the second major leadership program supported by the Pat Tillman Foundation, following the development of the Foundation’s flagship program at Arizona State University, “Leadership Through Action.” The program, which was implemented in 2005, carefully selects Tillman scholars and provides an educational class to inspire and support them as they tackle real-world social problems.

EVERGREEN SPORTS SCHEDULES 10-10 to 10-20

Evergreen Valley High sports schedule
10/10 – Girls’ tennis at Mt. Pleasant, 3:15 p.m.
10/10 – Girls’ volleyball vs. Westmont, 6 p.m. varsity and 5 p.m. JV

10/11 – Boys’ water polo vs. Pioneer,
4 p.m. varsity and 3 p.m. frosh/soph

10/11 – Girls’ water polo vs. Silver Creek, 5 p.m. varsity

10/12 – Girls’ volleyball at Leland, 6 p.m. varsity and 5 p.m. JV
10/12 – Girls’ tennis vs. Yerba Buena, 3:15 p.m.

10/13 – Girls’ tennis second round of singles/doubles division play, time TBA
10/13 – Football vs. Westmont, 7 p.m. varsity and 4:30 frosh/soph

10/17 – Girls’ water polo vs. Mt. Pleasant, 4 p.m. varsity and 3 p.m. JV
10/17 – Boys’ water polo at Live Oak, 7 p.m. varsity and 6 p.m. frosh/soph
10/17 – Girls’ tennis at Willow Glen, 3:15 p.m.
10/17 – Girls’ volleyball vs. Mt. Pleasant, 6 p.m. varsity and 5 p.m. JV

10/19 – Girls’ water polo at Independence, 4 p.m. varsity and 3 p.m. JV
10/19 – Girls’ volleyball at Leigh, 6 p.m. varsity and 5 p.m. JV
10/19 – Girls’ tennis vs. Prospect, 3:15 p.m.
10/19 – Cross Country vs. Mt. Pleasant & Piedmont Hills at Montgomery Hill, 3:30 p.m.

10/20 – Football vs. Mt. Pleasant, 7 p.m. varsity and 4:30 p.m. frosh/soph

Mt. Pleasant High sports schedule
10/10 – Girls’ volleyball vs. Branham, 6 p.m. varsity and 5 p.m. JV
10/10 – Girls’ tennis vs. Evergreen, 3:15 p.m.

10/11 – Boys’ water polo vs. Leland at Live Oak, 6 p.m. varsity and 5 p.m. frosh/soph
10/11 – Girls’ water polo at Sobrato, 7 p.m. varsity and 6 p.m. JV

10/12 – Football at Del Mar, 3:30 p.m. frosh/soph
10/12 – Girls’ volleyball vs. Leigh, 6 p.m. varsity and 5 p.m. JV
10/12 – Girls’ tennis vs. Willow Glen, 3:15 p.m.

10/13 – Girls’ tennis second round of singles/doubles division play, time TBA

10/14 – Football at Del Mar, 1 p.m. varsity

10/17 – Girls’ water polo at Evergreen, 4 p.m. varsity and 3 p.m. JV
10/17 – Girls’ tennis at Pioneer, 3:15 p.m.
10/17 – Boys’ water polo vs. Pioneer at Independence, 5 p.m. varsity and 4 p.m. frosh/soph
10/17 – Girls’ volleyball at Evergreen, 6 p.m. varsity and 5 p.m. JV

10/19 – Girls’ water polo vs. Lincoln at Sobrato, 5 p.m. varsity and 4 p.m. JV
10/19 – Girls’ tennis at Westmont, 3:15 p.m.
10/19 – Cross Country vs. Evergreen & Piedmont Hills at Montgomery Hill, 3:30 p.m.
10/19 – Girls’ volleyball vs. Live Oak, 6 p.m. varsity and 5 p.m. JV

10/20 – Football at Evergreen, 7 p.m. varsity and 4:30 p.m. frosh/soph

Silver Creek High sports schedule
10/10 – Girls’ tennis vs. Independence, 3:15 p.m.
10/10 – Girls’ volleyball vs. Prospect, 6:30 p.m. varsity and 5 p.m. JV

10/11 – Boys’ water polo vs. Piedmont Hills at Live Oak, 4 p.m. varsity
10/11 – Girls’ water polo at Evergreen, 5 p.m. varsity

10/12 – Girls’ tennis vs. Leland, 3:15 p.m.
10/12 – Girls’ volleyball at Lincoln, 5 p.m. varsity and 3:30 p.m. JV

10/13 – Girls’ tennis second round of singles/doubles division play, time TBA

10/14 – Football at Santa Teresa, 2 p.m. varsity and 11 a.m. frosh/soph

10/17 – Girls’ tennis at Oak Grove, 3:15 p.m.
10/17 – Girls’ volleyball vs. Overfelt, 6:30 p.m. varsity and 5 p.m. JV
10/17 - Boys’ water polo at Independence, 3 p.m. varsity
10/17 – Girls’ water polo at Independence, 6 p.m. varsity

10/19 - Boys’ water polo at Sobrato, 7 p.m. varsity
10/19 – Girls’ volleyball at Independence, 3:30 p.m. varsity and 5 p.m. JV
10/19 – Girls’ tennis at Santa Teresa, 3:15 p.m.
10/19 – Girls’ water polo at Sobrato, 3 p.m. varsity
10/19 – Cross Country vs. Willow Glen, Santa Teresa, Leigh and Leland at Montgomery Hill, 3:30 p.m.

10/20 – Football at Westmont, 7 p.m. varsity and 4:30 p.m. frosh/soph

For more information on local games, log on to the BVAL Web site at http://www.bval.org/

REACH Youth Scholarship nomination forms available online from San Jose Sports Authority

Nomination forms for the San Jose Sports Auth-ority’s 2006 REACH Youth Scholarship Program, sponsored by Bridge Bank, which has provided college funds to 50 high school students over the past 10 years, are now available for downloading from the Sports Authority’s Web site at www.sjsa.org.

Last year, 31 Santa Clara County high school seniors were nominated, and six who overcame adversity through participation in sports were awarded scholarships through the REACH program, an acronym for Recognizing Excellence, Adversity, Courage and Hard Work. Scholarships are awarded based on an essay competition in which nominees explain how sports helped them overcome adversity.

The nominees and scholarship winners for 2006 will be honored at the REACH Awards Breakfast, chaired by former San Francisco 49er Ronnie Lott, on Thursday, May 3, 2007.

Only Santa Clara County high schools may nominate students for the award, with a maximum of five nominees per school. Nominees must then complete an essay and student information form.

Nominees must:

- Be high school seniors,

- Maintain a 2.5 GPA,

- Participate in at least one sanctioned high school athletic activity,

- Demonstrate community involvement,

- Show the ability to overcome adversity or obstacles to reach his or her goals.

Each nominee is required to write an essay of one to three pages based on his or her experiences. The essay should focus on the obstacles they have overcome and how sports have helped them achieve their goals. Essays will be judged on content.

Nominations must be postmarked by Friday, March 31.

Visit the San Jose Sports Authority Web site at www.sjsa.org for more information.

Cougars win big in league opener

Evergreen Valley takes 29-8 win over Del Mar in Santa Teresa Division opener

By Diego Abeloos
Editor

Cougar quarterback Derek Pauli threw for three touchdowns as the Evergreen Valley football team earned a 29-8 win over rival Del Mar in its league opening game in the Santa Teresa Division on Sept. 29.

Cougars quarterback Derek Pauli threw three touchdowns in Evergreen Valley's league-opening 29-8 win at home over Del Mar on Sept. 29.

The Cougars (3-1 overall) overcame three first-half turnovers and 12 penalties to secure the win, as Cougar running back Quinton Scott figured heavily in the Evergreen offense with 89 yards rushing and a touchdown, as well as three passes caught for 26 yards and a touchdown. Del Mar scored its lone touchdown late in the fourth quarter, trailing 29-0, with just eight seconds left in the game, and managed to convert a two-point try.

Cougars head coach Leo Olmscheid said he was pleased with the win, but noted that the Cougars have to cut down on mistakes in the future.

“It’s always nice to get a W,” said Olmscheid. “We didn’t play well, we didn’t play to our potential. They (Del Mar) are a good team but a young team. They have no seniors on that team whatsoever, so they’re only going to get better. We’re hoping that we’re going to get better, but we have to minimize our mistakes. We had a lot of mental mistakes tonight.”

Leading 7-0 at the half, the Cougars did the bulk of their work offensively in the second half, beginning with an eight-play, 63-yard drive highlighted by a five-yard touchdown pass from Pauli to wide receiver Nathan Goodrich on second-and-goal with 3:46 left in the third quarter for a 14-0 lead.

Olmscheid said he was happy to see Pauli establish himself early in the game as a threat to be reckoned with.

“He’s basically still a freshman playing varsity football,” Olmscheid said of Pauli, in referring to his quarterback’s inexperience in football. “He is a junior, but he has no quarterback experience. We wanted to get him going with some easy short passes, try and build some confidence, and from there, let him loose. He has the arm strength, but he’s still learning the game of football.”

The Cougars initially got on the scoreboard late in the first quarter after the Evergreen defense stopped the Del Mar Dons’ offense on fourth-and-seven from the Cougar 10. Justin Stephens led the Cougars on defense with 17 tackles on the night.

The Cougar offense answered back with its biggest play, in terms of yards gained, on the night, as Pauli found wide receiver Alex Kasinski open down the right sideline for an 85-yard touchdown pass on third-and-five from the Cougar 15 for a 7-0 edge with 2:56 left in the first quarter.

The Cougars went on to score twice more in the fourth quarter, taking their first offensive possession of the fourth after Evergreen’s Joe Merto blocked a Del Mar punt at the Del Mar 35, racing it back to the Del Mar 4.

After a delay of game penalty set the Cougars back to the Del Mar 8 on third-and-goal, Pauli found his Scott for another touchdown pass with 8:41 to go. Following the touchdown pass, the Cougars found luck on their side as well, as Stephens, the holder, raced into the end zone for a two-point conversion after a botched extra point attempt, giving Evergreen a 22-0 lead.

The Cougar offense then scored for its final time after the Dons failed to convert on fourth-and-11 at the Evergreen 42. This time, the Cougar running game did all of the work, rushing six times on the drive, which ended when Scott burst through the Del Mar defense for a 34-yard touchdown run with 4:22 left for a 29-0 lead.

“Quinton is an exceptional player,” Olmscheid said of Scott. “He’s got such great feet and balance. He’s tiny, but he has balance. A guy will hit him, and he’ll spin like a top, he’ll stay up and he’ll just break it. That’s what happened tonight.”