A recipe for success A recipe for success (October 01, 2004)

Menlo School All-American goalie Jimmie Sandman and his teammates are cooking up something special this season

This is the fourth in a series of stories previewing the high school fall sports season. Today: boys' water polo.

by Keith Peters

Jimmie Sandman is not the guy opponents want to face. The Menlo School senior goalkeeper is as welcomed as an airport security checkpoint and just as difficult to get by.

Sandman is all arms and legs, with long hair to match. He is the last line of defense for the Knights. He makes defending tough on opponents and easy on his teammates.

"Our game has always revolved around our goalie," said Menlo School coach Jack Bowen. "We're expecting the same from him as all our other goalies."

While Menlo has been blessed with some very good goalies in the past - Robbie Burmeister was in the cage when Menlo won Central Coast Section Division II titles in 2000 and '01 - Sandman has taken the art of stopping opponents' shots to the next level.

"He's very consistent," Bowen said. "That's the earmark of a good goalie. Whether it's a championship game or just a scrimmage that doesn't count for anything, he plays the same. The team really relies on that."

Heading into this weekend's St. Francis Invitational, Sandman has helped Menlo build an 11-2 record this season. A fifth-team All-American goalie last season, Sandman now is regarded as one of the nation's best. He spent the summer as a member of the U.S. Youth National (Under-17) team that finished third in a tournament in Acireale, Italy. Sandman won MVP goalie honors.

"I thought it was an honor to be seen as one of the top goalies in the world," said Sandman, who will continue his education and water polo career at Stanford next fall.

"Being accepted early (to Stanford) brings a lot more responsibility," Sandman said. "You can't slack off . . . People now expect even better things of you."

That's something Sandman should be able to live up to said Bowen, himself a former All-American goalie at Stanford.

"An All-American goalie is a guy who blocks 80 percent of the middle of the cage," Bowen said. "He can block the corners and the tough angles. That's what's expected of you, and then there's the spectacular blocks you come up with."

Bowen said Sandman's position is like a quarterback in football or a point guard in basketball. Offense and leadership revolves around the guy with the ball. A block triggers a fastbreak counterattack and Sandman's job is then to fire a pass to get things started. This transition game is what makes Menlo so dangerous year in and out, and this season is no different.

Along with Sandman, Bowen has senior Andy Suiter and sophomore Ben Hohl - two left-handed baseball pitchers who throw strikes in the pool, too. Hohl already has 53 goals in 13 matches.

Menlo also has seniors David Bar-Gadda, Alex Seipp and backup goalie Steve Sepanaloo; juniors Dietrich Graumann, Pete Howard, Matt Hudnall, Kyle Hudson, Travis Read and Matt Wilson, plus sophomore Allen Reed. The Knights are deep enough that Bowen rarely starts his six strongest field players. This is the first time in five years that Bowen has used his players this way.

"We have a great goalie, a great hole set and a great group of guys," Bowen said. "It's a coach's dream . . . a recipe for success. Our goal is to be the best we can be. Right now, we're right where we want to be."

Menlo was ranked ninth in the state in the Orange County Register's Preseason Top 10, one of only two Northern California teams (Bellarmine was the other) selected.
Sacred Heart Prep

The Gators are coming off the finest season in school history, going 29-6 and winning their first-ever CCS Division II crown in 2003 with a 7-4 win over Menlo. Sacred Heart, however, lost eight seniors off that squad - including five starters. In addition, head coach Dante Dettamanti retired.

Dettamanti, however, left the returning Gators in good hands with former Stanford All-America Jeff Nesmith and SHP is once again a threat to win it all. The Gators are off to an 8-3 start following Tuesday's 20-14 thumping of Serra in a West Catholic Athletic League opener. Dylan Mobley and Doug Wigley led the way with six goals each, while fellow senior Ian Bausback added four.

"I think we've kind of surprised a lot of people this season," said Nesmith, who also has surprised himself. "I didn't expect to do this well."

Sacred Heart returns a solid core of players featuring seniors Mobley, Wigley, Bausback, Sergei Shev, Chris Rochester and Mike Marino. Up from the JV team along with Marino are goalie Alex Dunlevie, Kevin Deggelman, Campbell Browne, Rndy Ang, and Atilla Lazar. Freshman Tim Norton already has made a big impact, following in the footsteps of his graduated brother, Pat.

"Dante had a great group of kids last year, but this group might be just as good if they continue to play like a team," Nesmith said.

The Gators still rely on a suffocating defense, which gave Menlo fits in the recent Scott Roche Invitational where SHP forced the Knights to sudden death before losing. The Gators' only loss in the season-opening Schmitt Invitational was a two-goal setback to Menlo. Mobley and Wigley are proven offensive threats and Dunlevie has been solid in the cage. Mobley also was on the U.S. Youth National (Under-17) team during the summer.
Gunn

The Titans went 21-13 last season and reached the CCS playoffs before dropping their opener. Gunn, under new head coach Mark Hernandez, already is well on the way to extending its season this year.

The Titans are off to a 3-0 start in the SCVAL De Anza Division (8-4 overall) following Wednesday's 11-7 win over Monta Vista.

While Hernandez didn't give his team any style points for that win, it should give Gunn some momentum heading into this weekend's St. Francis Invitational. The Titans are 5-4 in tournament play this season, but have been facing some of the toughest teams in Northern California. That can only help when it comes to postseason play.

"We are looking forward to a competitive season," Hernandez said. "We return a strong core from a team that came within an overtime goal of winning last season's league tournament. If we have a strength, it's in the quality, big-game experience of our players."

Hernandez looks to 6-foot-7 senior Arjan Ligtenberg, yet another member of last summer's U.S. Youth National Team, as this season's leader from his two-meter position.

"He obviously is a difference-maker, someone for whom everyone who plays us must account for," Hernandez said.

Ligtenberg had four goals to lead Gunn past Monta Vista. Other key members include junior Brandon Johnson, who scored three times Wednesday, plus senior Nick Rouse, senior Anthony Young, junior Eric Stewart, junior Kyle Gertridge, junior Geoff Holman and junior goalie Matt Johnson.

Other contributors include sophomores Matt Prior and Chris Preston.

Hernandez says his starters "are solid, smart players who know how the game should be played. What encourages me most about this team is how they stick by each other, and how much they trust each other."
Palo Alto

The Vikings are improved from last season's 8-23 effort, but the team's youth is still showing up. Paly is off to an 0-3 start in the De Anza Division (3-9 overall) after falling to Cupertino on Wednesday, 7-4.

"We really need to improve on our record from last season," said head coach Jon Barnea. "This team has shown that they can play at a higher level at this point in the season than they were last year at this time. But, we are not getting the wins."

Junior co-captain Gregor Horstmeyer leads the team in all major offensive categories, including goals (28). He scored twice against Cupertino. Junior Mike Sorgenfrei has raised his game after scoring just six goals a year ago and has played every minute of every match.

Co-captain Gavan Cook is one of only three seniors on the team, along with James Snyder and Spencer Hsieh. Cook is joined in the starting group by junior Eric Vallone and Adrian Chow, plus freshman goalie Will Simon. Alexander Fodor and Robbie Nakamura are part of a 14-member junior class that will continue to get better.

Barnea is hoping to get others contributing to bolster the team's depth. This weekend's St. Francis Invitational will provide another learning process.

"We will continue to give our best effort, day in and out," Barnea said, "and hope that the cards fall in place."
Menlo-Atherton

The Bears went 16-16 a year ago and coach Ben Quittner says his team is shooting for a much-improved season, despite its youth.

"I wouldn't be happy with a .500 season," he said. "We did that last year with all those freshmen."

Quittner agreed, however, that his Bears are still very young.

"We have five seniors, but we don't have a junior class (just two players)," he said. "The sophomore class will carry this team for the next three years. We're basically building for the future."

It's hard to know what direction the Bears are headed this season since they've played only one match. They'll pick up the pace this weekend at the St. Francis tourney as a tuneup for next week's PAL Bay Division opener.

Leading the way for Menlo-Atherton will be senior goalie Sebastian Turner. The top field players include senior Michael Borcich, sophomore Todd Hazen, sophomore Jacob Morton, sophomore Peter Jacobs, senior Joe Leoni and senior Spencer Rohn. Junior Matt Wertz should see plenty of playing time.

Quittner believes the program is headed in the right direction, now that he has a summer program established through the SOLO Swim Club.

"We're going through some growing pains," Quittner said, "but I'm really happy with this team."

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