Sports Wrap Sports Wrap (March 04, 2005)

St. Francis loses in semis but finish high

St. Francis fell short in its bid for an eighth CCS girls soccer championship, losing 3-2 to Santa Teresa in the Division I semifinals on Feb. 24.

After a defensive lapse allowed the Saints to take the early lead on a breakaway goal, the Lancers immediately answered back. Senior forward April Grolle scored on a corner kick to tie the contest, and at the end of the first half, senior defender Megan Gray connected on a penalty kick to give St. Francis a 2-1 lead.

In the decisive half, No. 2 seed Santa Teresa overwhelmed the No. 3 seed Lancers, scoring twice on plays resulting from free kicks.

St. Francis had designs on a section title after steamrolling through its West Catholic Athletic League season and posting a 7-0 CCS quarterfinal victory over Homestead on Feb. 19.

The Lancers closed out their season with a record of 16-3-6.

Lancers taken out in first round

The St. Francis boys basketball team saw its season end in frustrating fashion, falling to Westmont 62-59 in the first round of the CCS Division II playoffs.

The No. 5 seed Lancers nearly overcame a 33-25 halftime deficit, but were outlasted by the No. 12 seed Warriors on Feb. 23.

Senior guard James Bisordi paced St. Francis with 17 points, and junior swingman Richie Scudellari added 14 points.

St. Francis finished its season with a record of 11-16.

Luck runs out on Eagles

After a late-season surge, the Los Altos boys basketball team found it had just enough to qualify for the CCS Division III field but not quite enough to pull off an opening-round win.

The No. 9 seed Eagles fell to No. 8 seed El Camino, 56-50, in first-round action on Feb. 23.

Los Altos had won five consecutive games, including a five-point victory over El Camino Division co-winner Saratoga on Feb. 9.

The Eagles completed its season with a 13-15 overall record and a share of third place in the lower division.

Spartans blame themselves for CCS loss

The Mountain View girls basketball team was eliminated from the CCS Division II playoffs, losing 54-28 in the first round to Los Gatos on Feb. 24.

No. 13 seed Mountain View, which had won four consecutive games, never found its rhythm against No. 4 seed Los Gatos. Although the visiting Wildcats posed an enormous challenge after posting a perfect 12-0 record in the upper De Anza Division, Spartan coach Judy Auclair said her team was responsible for its own undoing.

"We shot 17.5 percent, 7 for 43," said Auclair. "Very poor, worst all season. And it had nothing to do with their defense. Just us. Balls went all around the rim and never fell in."

Senior forward Michelle Peng led the Spartans with 11 points but sunk only two field goals.

Mountain View finished with an overall record of 15-11 and earned a share of second place in the lower El Camino Division.

Lancers rule the mat, Eagle also going to state

St. Francis had a standout showing at the CCS Wrestling Championships, placing fourth among 45 competing schools last weekend.

Four Lancers earned bids to the state championships with their performances. Senior Kevin Cunningham placed second in the 140 lb. weight classification, junior Joel Shaw earned third place in 145 lb., and seniors Jason Sapudar and Mike Morales placed fourth in the 130 and 189 lb. classess, respectively.

Senior Michael Aros (125 lb.) and junior Trevor Milligan (152 lb.) also placed sixth in their weight classifications.

The undermanned Los Altos wrestling team finished in the middle of the pack, placing 26th at CCS.

As has been the case throughout their season, the Eagles faced an uphill battle, with wrestlers competing in only seven of the 14 weight classes.

Senior Fernando Munoz earned fourth place in the 112 lb. group, good for an invitation to the state championships on March 4-5.
-- Scott Campbell

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