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It was a day to keep streaks alive as the Palo Alto Knights' Jr. Midgets posted a 14-0 victory over Elk Grove in American Youth Football action Sunday at Palo Alto High.

This team of Palo Alto players improved to 7-0 this season and lengthened their winning streak in California to 26 games. The Knights lost at the national championships (in Florida) in 2010 as Jr. Pee Wees and '11 at Pee Wees.

"This is a very focused and smart football team," said head coach Mike Piha. "We do not have a lot of speed . . . these players just know how to play the game and have completely out-powered all opponents."

Piha and his coaching staff have been together for 10-plus years, during which they have won eight league championships and advanced eight times to the national championships in Orlando, Fla.

"Coaching is a big part of youth football. Our offensive coordinator and co-head coach, Eric Borjon, is as good as they come," Piha said. "He has our players running high school-level plays and always out-coaches our opponents."

On Sunday, the Knights took the opening kickoff and drove 94 yards for their first score -- a five-yard run by Ethan Stern. He finished the day with his third consecutive 100-plus yard rushing game. The previous week, Stern had 130 yards rushing and scored two TDs in a 40-6 win over host Richmond.

The Knights' second score came on Stern's 11-yard run in the third quarter. The other Palo Alto teams lost to Elk Grove.

The Knights' defense came up with another stellar effort as it held a fast Elk Grove team under a 100 yards of total offense and defended their spread offense by putting pressure on the quarterback. Ty Cox, Stern and Jamie Cullen led the defensive effort.

The Knights will travel to Kezar Stadium in San Francisco on Sunday to play the San Francisco Seahawks, with action beginning at 8 a.m. The Jr. Midgets will put their undefeated record on the line against a 6-1 Seahawks' team at 2 p.m.

Women's volleyball
Senior outside hitter Allison Whitson from Palo Alto knocked down 19 kills and hit .302 to help UC Davis post a 25-23, 25-21, 25-20 sweep of host UC Irvine in Big West Conference action on Saturday night.

The Aggies even their overall record to 9-9 and improve to 3-2 in conference matches.

Whitson committed just six hitting errors on 43 swings en route to her .302 average.

On Friday, Whitson recorded a match-high 20 kills with 16 digs but UC Davis was unable to hold off Long Beach State after the first set, losing 19-25, 25-19, 25-22 and 25-19 in Big West Conference action.

For the weekend, Whitson finished with 39 kills and 24 digs in seven sets.

In Cambridge, Mass., Sacred Heart Prep grad Jesse Ebner had eight kills, four digs and two block assists in a starting role to help Yale defeat Harvard, 25-19, 25-18, 25-15 on Saturday. The Bulldogs lead the Ivy League with a 5-0 mark (9-5 overall).

A night earlier, senior Taylor Docter from Castilleja had nine kills and three blocks to help Harvard (2-3, 5-11) sweep visiting Brown. Docter had 10 digs in the loss to Yale.

Youth lacrosse
The MA Grizzlies, a youth organization serving boys and girls ages five through 15 is looking to hire coaches for the February-May season. The club fields teams for U9, U11, U13 & U15 boys and U9, U11, U13 girls.

The MA Grizzlies' program is directed by Matt Bond, a former attackman at Johns Hopkins (1991-95) and a coach at the youth and HS levels for almost 20 years in Maryland, Connecticut, England, Southern & Northern California.

The program is seeking energetic and enthusiastic head and assistant coaches for the start of the season on Feb. 1. Responsibilities include: serving as head or assistant coach, planning practices to instill strong fundamentals with a focus on player development, and collaborating with our other coaches to ensure program consistency.

Qualifications:
• Prior coaching experience strongly preferred, ideally with youth
• Proponent of Positive Coaching Alliance philosophy
• Strong leadership and motivational skills
• Other skills highly valued: organizational, communication, practice planning skills
• Knowledge of youth lacrosse rules for both the boys and girls game
• Ability to instill strong fundamentals in young players
• Available for afternoon/evening practices 2x week and weekend games.

Those interested can contact: menloathertonlacrosse@gmail.com

— Palo Alto Online Sports

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