1ST PLACE
BEST SPORTS COVERAGE California Newspaper Publishers Association
NEW COACHES . . . The Priory will be a new girls’ soccer coach this season, with Ramiro Arredondo taking over for Armando Del Rio, who is leaving the school after accepting a full-time teaching position. Arredondo is returning to the Priory campus where he is considered one of the greatest soccer players in Priory history. He is a current member of the school’s Hall of Fame. He was a member of the U.S. Under-18 National Team pool and was captain of the Region IV ODP team for five years. After his club and high school career, Arredondo had an outstanding collegiate career as a midfielder at Cal, where he was named captain his senior year. He currently serves as Coaching Director of Cal Stars Premier and is coaching the MVLA Mutiny BU12 as well as the Alpine Strikers Blue & Red GU13 teams. Arredondo will join with his brother, Henry, also a former Priory soccer standout, to continue building on the school’s tradition of girls’ soccer excellence . . . Menlo-Atherton has a new boys’ water polo coach in Marco Palazzo, who takes over for Johnny Bega, who left to coach at Los Altos High. ON THE LINKS . . . Palo Alto’s Jayshree Sarathy recently captured the Girls 12-14 division at the Northern California Junior Players Championship at Rancho Canada East and West courses in Carmel Valley. Bradley Knox Jr. of Menlo Park was second in the Boys 14-15 division with Andrew Buchanan from Menlo School taking fourth. Brenna Nelsen from Castilleja tied for seventh in the Girls 16-17 after shooting a 70 on Rancho Canada East on the final day. Golfers accumulated points for double eagles, eagles, birdies and pars and bogeys, with winners determined by two-day point totals . . . .Palo Alto’s Patrick Grimes will return to the site of his championship performance in 2008 when he competes in the Trader Joe’s Junior Championships beginning Tuesday at Castlewood Country Club in Pleasanton. The field includes 99 juniors from 10 states in addition to Canada, Mexico and Brazil.
ON THE AIR Saturday Women’s soccer: FIFA U-20 World Cup: USA vs. Switzerland, 9 a.m., ESPNU
Wednesday Women’s soccer: FIFA U-20 World Cup: USA vs. Korea Republic, 9 a.m., ESPN2
www.PASportsOnline.com For expanded daily coverage of college and prep sports, please see our new site at www.PASportsOnline.com
Ben Dearborn of the Stanford Water Polo Club’s 18-under team earned all-tournament honors while helping his squad finish second at the U.S. Club Championships last weekend in Southern California. The Sacred Heart Prep graduate, who is headed for Princeton, helped Stanford go 4-1-1 in the tourney.
Room to improve after silver medal in club champs Stanford Water Polo Club’s 18U boys’ team shifts focus to Junior Olympics after taking second in national tournament by Keith Peters
J
on Barnea has an interesting way to look at his Stanford Water Polo Club’s second-place finish in the boys’ 18U division at the U.S. Club Championships last past weekend in Southern California. “We took a similar path two years ago,� Barnea said. “We were second at the Cal Cup, second at the Club
Championships and first at Junior Olympics.� Barnea isn’t making any predictions at this time, but his 18U squad is perhaps headed in that direction and certainly has the talent to make 2008 happen all over again. In fact, he still has a solid core of players from that JO championship squad. That group includes goalie Ben Dearborn, Connor Still, Colin
Mulcahy, Thomas Agramonte, Alex Bailey, Philip Bamberg, David Culpan, Robert Dunlevie, Mark Garner, John Holland-McCowan and Peter Simon. There are only four new players to the team -- Christian Broom, Brian Morton, Peter Olson and Jed Springer. The Stanford 18U squad reaffirmed its status as being one of the best teams in the nation with its
second-place finish on Sunday following an 8-4 loss to Rose Bowl at Norco High. “We know we can play with any team in the country,� said Barnea, who coached Stanford to a 4-1-1 record during the four-day event. “It was a long weekend. (But) The guys played extremely hard.� (continued on page 35)
LITTLE LEAGUE
BABE BUTH
Palo Alto 10-11s open Section 3 on Saturday
Palo Alto makes pitch for title at NorCal tourney
by Colin Becht
by Keith Peters
he next step has arrived for the Palo Alto National 10-11 all-stars, who will take a 14-1 postseason record into the Section 3 Little League tournament this weekend in Union City. After playing in the 14-team District 52 Tournament the past two weeks, the four-team, doubleelimination section event should be a welcomed sight for Palo Alto manager Ted Tracy. Palo Alto, after all, played nine games in the district tourney and ended up winning seven straight to claim the title with a 10-4 victory over Belmont/Redwood Shores in the challenge championship game. The most Palo Alto will play in Union City is six games, but Tracy is hoping that won’t be the case. Should that happen, it would mean
alo Alto manager Bob Budelli hasn’t really seen all the pitchers on his Babe Ruth 15year-old all-star team, due in part to the fact it took only two games to wrap up the District 6 Tournament title last week. Budelli can only hope that remains true once again heading into Saturday’s opening game of the NorCal State Tournament in Vallejo. Palo Alto opens at Wilson Field at 4 p.m. If Palo Alto is as successful as it was in the district event, Budelli won’t have to rely on his entire staff. Should his team lose early in the double-elimination event, well, Budelli likely will get to see his entire staff. Fortunately, Palo Alto has enough pitching. Moreover, Budelli’s team
T
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P
Keith Peters
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Elizabeth Dunlevie
Sports Shorts
Nick Wells of the Palo Alto Babe Ruth 15-year-old all-stars will play a key role in the NorCal State Tournament this weekend.
(continued on page 34)
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