Publication Date: Friday, October 22, 2004
PREP WATER POLO
M-A girls
M-A girls
(October 22, 2004)visit Menlo
for a title
Undefeated teams
meet on Monday with
PAL crown at stake
by Keith Peters
With two matches left in the PAL Bay Division regular season, the stage is set for a showdown between the Menlo and Menlo-Atherton girls on Monday.
The perennial division champion Knights (5-0, 18-7) will host the Bears (5-0, 14-4) at 4 p.m. The winner likely secures the regular-season title heading into the league tournament beginning Nov. 4.
The teams have met once this season, with Menlo pulling out an 11-10 overtime victory in the second round of the Peninsula Challenge at Castilleja. Menlo coach Kyle Utsumi, however, was with the U.S. Junior National Team and missed the match.
"I still haven't seen them," Utsumi said of the Bears. "I doubt this will be the last time we play each other this year. Both teams should be in the CCS tournament."
Menlo had an easy tuneup week for next week's match, toppling Sequoia by 13-3 and downing Woodside, 12-3. Megan Burmeister had seven goals in the two victories while fellow sophomore Camy Sullivan added six.
Menlo-Atherton breezed to a 14-1 win over Woodside on Monday and then handled host Castilleja on Tuesday, 16-6, but received a tough test Wednesday from Burlingame before surfacing with a 9-8 triple-overtime victory.
Junior Kelly Eaton scored five goals in the nail-biter, including the game-winner off an assist from Heidi Kucera just one minute into sudden-death overtime. Last year, M-A and Burlingame played a marathon match that lasted eight overtimes.
Eaton scored 11 goals in the three wins this week while Kelly Fero added seven goals, Rita Bullwinkel six and Kucera five.
Castilleja (2-3, 10-17) had one victory in three matches this week, holding on for a 6-4 triumph over Burlingame before falling to Menlo-Atherton and then Aragon (8-4). Senior goalie Nikki Perlman had 15 saves in the victory.
In the SCVAL De Anza Division, Palo Alto (4-0, 20-5) clinched no worse than a tie for the division title with a 13-6 victory at Los Altos on Wednesday night. Senior Remy Champion and junior Phoebe Champion combined for six goals while Donna Kremer, Brittany Webster and Tanya Wilcox all scored twice for the Vikings, who can wrap up the regular-season championship next Wednesday with a win at Cupertino.
Gunn (2-2, 12-8) posted a solid 10-6 win at Mountain View as Di Eaton scored four goals and drew seven ejections, including a 4-meter penalty shot. Sophomore Tasha Walstra and Sera Garrison added two goals apiece for the Titans while goalie Courtney Cox had seven saves.
Boys
Menlo (4-0, 20-3) is two victories away from clinching the PAL Bay Division regular-season title and earning the top seed for the league tournament beginning Nov. 4.
The Knights play host to Menlo-Atherton (2-2, 11-8) on Monday at 2 p.m., then host Aragon (3-1) next Wednesday at 4 p.m.
Menlo picked up a forfeit win over Sequoia on Monday before romping past host Woodside on Wednesday, 18-4. Dave Bar-Gadda and Ben Hohl each scored five goals while Andy Suiter (3) and Pete Howard (2) also were among the many contributors.
Joe Leoni scored five goals for M-A in a 12-7 win at Woodside on Monday, but the Bears then fell to St. Francis (11-4) in a nonleague test and then Burlingame in PAL action Wednesday, 9-8.
In the SCVAL De Anza Division, Kyle Gertridge scored a season-high seven goals and Arjan Ligtenberg added five as Gunn (5-1, 18-8) closed out its division season with a 17-4 romp over Cupertino Wednesday night. Gunn scored 12 goals in the second half alone. Gunn likely will earn the division's No. 2 seed (behind first-place Los Altos) for the upcoming league tournament that begins Nov. 3 at Los Altos.
This weekend, Menlo-Atherton will join Palo Alto and host Sacred Heart Prep in the annual Sacred Heart Prep Invitational today and Saturday at M-A and SHP. The host Gators open today at noon against Serra while the Bears take on Leland at the same time at M-A. Palo Alto follows the M-A game, taking on Woodside. The championship match will be Saturday at 3:30 p.m. at SHP.
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