JV Girls Soccer

Co-operative downs Christian Learning, 4-1
From coaches' reports

The Co-operative girls junior varsity soccer team ultimately constructed a workmanlike 4-1 victory over Christian Learning Monday on their home field that reinforced their first place position -- but not before the Eagles and their fans got a taste of being on top.
The Eagles opened the scoring for the afternoon when fleet-footed Abigail Phillips outraced the Jaguar goalie to the ball and unleashed a slow, rolling kick. All eyes focused on the bouncing ball as it proceeded inevitably into the goal, at which point the Eagle players and fans, who were present in large numbers, burst into cheers.

The Jaguars scored twice in the remainder of the half to make the score a still competitive 2-1 at halftime, then added two more scores in the second half to put the game out of reach. Eighth grader Sofia Sotelo and sixth grader Giovanna Varalta each scored two goals for the Jaguars. Varalta's performance won her a promotion to the varsity, for whom she played later in the afternoon. Sotelo now has eight goals for the season, more than any other player regardless of gender or age.
PHOTO: Eagle Ae Lin Lim and Jaguar Sofia Sotelo duel for ball.
Giannina Gutierrez, Co-operative School

Varsity Boys Volleyball

Eagles and Jaguars shake hands before their hard-fought match

Giannina Gutierrez, Co-operative School

Co-operative 2, Eagles 0
Jaguars win, jumbling league race
From coaches' reports
The Co-operative boys varsity volleyball team won a convincing, straight sets victory over Christian Learning Monday that moved the Jaguars into first place -- for at least a day.
However, the race for the league lead could get very complicated. If International defeats Cambridge tomorrow, as would seem likely based on the teams' records, then International and Co-operative would have identical 4-2 won-lost records. Moreover, if Christian Learning beats Cambridge when those teams play their make-up game next week, then the Eagles would also be 4-2, and there would be a three-way tie.
The tie would be broken according to who has won the most sets. That means that International and Christian Learning will be striving not to simply beat the Knights, but to beat them in straight sets.
Monday's game between the Eagles and Jaguars started out to be a close and hard-fought as had been expected. But after the two teams had tied at 13-all, the Eagles seemed to develop a case of the "yips," making uncharacteristic errors both at the service line and at at the net. The Jaguars surged ahead, winning the first set 25-15.
The second set was closer, but again Christian Learning couldn't seem to develop any momentum, while the Jaguars seemed to be having a charmed day. Co-operative finally won the second set 25-22.
After the game Eagle coach Bob Friesen wondered whether his team had gotten rusty because of the two-week lay-off caused by the postponement of the Cambridge game.
He acknowledged that another factor was that the Jaguars played extremely well, moving the ball around, and communicating well with each other as they kept the pressure on the Eagles.
Among the Jaguars senior Cristobal Roda and 9th grader Juan Alfredo Abuawad seemed to have particularly sharp days. Wilson Salvatierra did some strong serving, notably at the end of the second set.

PHOTO: Jaguar senior Cristobal Roda measures a set-up.

Giannina Gutierrez, Co-operative School

JV Boys Volleyball

Eagles beat Jaguars in straight sets
From coaches reports
The Christian Learning junior varsity boys volleyball team came from behind to take the first set againstCo-operative Monday in the Jaguars gym, then took the second set with relative ease.
In the first game the Eagles spotted the Jaguars a three-point lead early in the game, resulting from missed serves and other Eagle errors, and the Jaguars held onto that margin for most of the game, and widned it to five points at 22-17. But at that point the Eagles rallied, finally winning the game 26-24.
In the second set it was Christian Learning that got out to the small early lead, and the Eagles widened it in the climactic part of the game, winning 25-16.
Pablo Oh was distinguished by his consistent play and communicative style on a day when both teams were playing inconsistently and forgetting to talk to each other. Nicolas Smith played a key role for the Eagles in setting up his teammates.

Final Week Preview

Three varsity races still undecided
By David Boldt
SCISL Weblog
Entering the final weekof the regular season the races for the top spots in boys varsity soccer, boys varsity volleyball, and girls varsity soccer are still wide open.
The final determination of who gets the first and second places may have to wait for the completion of the games between Christian Learning and Cambridge that were postponed twice last week, first because of a power failure at Christian Learning, and then because of schedule conflicts involving Cambridge. The games have been tentatively set for Tuesday, Oct. 16.
Besides the honor of finishing first, the teams that finish first and second get home field advantage in the semi-finals of the championship playoffs, as well as an easier first-round match-up. (The team that finishes first plays the team that finishes fourth: the second-place team faces the third-place team.)
Historically, no team has ever won a playoff championship that did not finish first or second during the regular season.
Here is the rundown on this week's crucial contests:
Varsity Girls Soccer -- Co-operative is leading the league, but could be toppled by Christian Learning, if the Lady Eagles defeat Co-operative Tuesday at the Jaguar field, and defeat Cambridge in the make-up game.
Varsity Boys Volleyball -- Christian Learning, International, and Co-operative are all basically tied. The winner of Monday's crucial clash between the Eagles and Jaguars at Co-operative would remain tied with International, if International beats winless Cambridge Tuesday, and the order of finish would be determined by a tie-brwaking formula involving points scored. (Are you following this, readers?)
If Christian Learning ends up tied for one of the top two places this week, then its make-up game with Cambridge becomes very important. Cambridge, for its part, has a great opportunity to play the role of spoiler to both International and Christian Learning.
Varsity Boys Soccer -- This is the race where all season long anything could happen and often did. Nathing has changed for the final week. Barring a tie, the winner of the Christian Learning-Co-operative game Thursday should come out on top. The losing team would presumably end up tied for second place with the winner of the game between Cambridge and International at International, who also play Thursday, at International.
If the Eagles and Jaguars should tie they would remain at the top of the standings, with the order to be decided by number of goals scored. If they were still tied, the tie-breaker would be the number of goals scored against each team. The same tie-breaking formula would be used to determine second place.
Varsity Girls Volleyball -- International has already locked up first-place, but the Lady Griffens will be going for an additional distinction -- an undefeated season -- when they play Cambridge Thursday at the International gym. Cambridge is the only team that has taken a set from them this year, and has been playing well recently.
In short, the final week shapes up as all action, all the time. Don't miss it! And note that the girls soccer and boys volleyball games between Christian Learning and Co-operative will be played Monday instead of Tuesday, as would normally be the case. The results will be posted here Monday night.

Varsity Boys Soccer

Griffin goalie Mauricio Nostas lunges backward to stop Jaguar shot
Jonatan Muñoz, International School

Jaguars pin down Griffins, win 4-3
By Andre Candia
International School

The Co-operative boys varsity soccer team stunned International with a penalty kick goal in the opening minute, and ultimately maintained that margin to win a great match by the tight score of 4-3.The penalty kick was made by Jaguar captain Pablo Taborga. The rest of Co-operative's scoring was accounted for by freshman flash Jose Manuel Vasquez' hat trick. The three goals moved the Jaguar ninth grader to a tie for the top spot among goal scorers.
The Griffins scoring was accomplished by senior Eduardo Bedoya, together with 11th graders Daniel Baldivieso, and Juan Javier Estenssoro. The outcome put Co-operative in a tie for first place with Christian Learning, and put International in a tie for third place with Cambridge, basically one game behind the leaders.
Those two ties should be broken next week, barring ties, when Co-operative faces Christian Learning at Co-operative, and International hosts Cambridge.A league leader should emerge after those games, but second place could easily end in a tie that, under league rules, would be decided, first, by comparing the goals scored by the teams. If that didn’t break the tie, then the deciding factor would be which team allowed the fewest goals to be scored against it. Taborga's penalty kick made the Griffins wake up and their mind in the game, but they would be in the position of fightback for much of the afternoon
The Griffins pulled even at 1-1 when Baldivieso cashed in on a defensive error by the Jaguars and scored. But the Jaguars were soon back ahead when Vasquez headed the ball into the goal on a corner kick.
Griffin Bedoya retaliated, and pulled his team back even at 2-2, with his own great leaping header on an International corner kick. However, the Jaguars then extended their lead to two goals as Vasquez scored twice to complete his hat trick.

International played with tremendous intensity during the final quarter of the game, and Estenssoro's goal brought the margin back to a single goal, but Co-operative went into an all defensive mode to prevent a tie score and penalty shoot-out. The game ended with Co-operative on top 4-3.

After last week's game between International and Christian Learning that had featured 6 yellow cards and two red, this contest seemed placid. Only a few yellow cards were shown. (Corrected Oct. 8. Original story misattributed one of the International goals.

Knights sting Eagles, win 1-0
From coaches' reports
A second-half goal by 10th grader Junior Sanchez accounted for all of the scoring as last-place Cambridge defeated first-place Christian Learning 1-0 Thursday on the Christian Learning field.
The win, proving yet again that anything can happen in boys varsity soccer this year, moved Cambridge into a tie for third place with International School. Both schools have 2-3 records, though International has an advantage in goals scored, a statistic used to break ties. Christian Learning is now in a first-place tie with Co-operative
Those two ties are likely to be broken next week. Co-operative will play Christian Learning on its home field, while International hosts Cambridge.
Christian Learning was playing Thursday without two of its key players, Alex Apodaca and Danny Canaviri, who were sidelined because they received red cards last week. Cambridge, for its part, fielded a team that for the first time in a couple of weeks consisted entirely of players on its varsity roster, with no junior varsity boys filling in.
It would be hard to predict from the game how the two teams would fare if both were at full strength, which could occur in the playoffs. Cambridge seemed to have an edge on Christian Learning all afternoon Thursday, even when they were playing against a strong wind in the first half. (The wind died down in the second half.) And Cambridge was on the attack in the Eagles' end of the field for virtually the entire last quarter of the game.
Still, the Eagles had chances to at least score an equalizer. Even toward the end of the game, when Cambridge was dominant, an Eagle attacker got a chance to knot the score when he out-hustled the Knight goalie to the ball on the end line, and hooked a shot that arced back over his head and landed on top of the goal, barely missing a score.
But most of the action was at the Eagles' end. The Knights showed good team speed and a well organized attack as they came down the field time after time. Wingers Nicholas Gamboa and Zhau Fua Zhou Zeng dazzled the large crowd with their dribbling and passing skill.
However, Cambridge did not seem to have an effective scoring combination.
As in their game last week against Co-operative, onlookers were often left scratching their heads as to why the ball had not gone into the goal after being batted back and forth deep in the Eagles´end.
Sanchez' goal was an exception. He took the ball in front of the goal going to his right, and then neatly kicked the ball back across the goal mouth and into the left-hand corner, well out of the goalie's reach.
However, the Eagle goalie only made one or two truly spectacular saves. While Cambridge shots were frequent, they tended to either go wide or required no more than a normally strenuous effort on the part of the defense to thwart.
Penalties were not a major factor in the game.

Varsity Girls Volleyball

Cambridge prevail 2-1
Knights beat Eagles in mercurial match
From coaches' reports
The tide of battle made two dramatic changes during an epic struggle between Cambridge and Christian Learning, which the Knights eventually won two sets to one.
The first set was slam-bang, even-steven volleyball from start to finish, with the lead flipping back and forth between the two teams, and each point being decided only after long rallies.
The two teams tied at 24-24, and the Eagles prematurely celebrated victory when they took the next point, apparently forgetting they had to win by a margin of two. The teams then slugged it out for several more minutes, until Cambridge emerged on top, 28-26.
It was the closest game played in the league this year.
Then things started to go the Eagles' way, as they took the second set 25-20. And the game was not as close as the score might indicate. Christian Learning had Cambridge on the ropes at 24-15, at which point the Knights staged a five-point comeback before the Eagles got the final point.
But the momentum from that comeback seemed to carry over into the deciding rubber set. After a preliminary exchange of points that brought the score to 2-2, Cambridge ripped through to win 15-2. Most of the points were won on the distinctive toss-spin-WHAP! service of 9th grader Ana Saavedra.
As the Cambridge streak extended point-by-point,the Eagles became rattled and mistake-prone, while Cambridge played almost errorlessly, consistently setting up Nancy Jordan for artful returns that tended to find the open spot on the court. Andrea Saba, Vania Rueda, Helen Yong, and Mariana Escaño simply would not let the ball hit the floor on their side.
For the first time this year the Lady Knights played like the defending champions they are.
The Eagles were without the services of Sabrina Hallock, often their best spiker, who was out with the ankle injury that has been troubling her for much of the season. Cambridge was also missing a starting player.

Grtiffin Fabiana Murillo smacks back a return against Jaguars

Griffins cruise against visiting Jaguars
From coaches' reports
The undefeated International varsity girls volleyball team clinched first place with a convincing straight set victory over Co-operative in their home gym Thursday.
The only remaining hurdle in the Griffins pursuit of an unblemished regular season record is the game with Cambridge next week. Cambridge, the defending champions, have played inconsistently this season, and lost to International in their previous meeting, but the Lady Knights are the only team who have taken a set against the Griffin girls.
The Jaguar girls put up a decent fight against the Griffins in the first set, which International won 25-20. In the second set the Griffins gave no quarter and took no prisoners, rolling to victory 25-10.

JV Boys Soccer

Jaguar goalie Camilo Avila (1) snatches one out of a crowd.
Jonatan Muñoz, International School

Co-operative beats International, clinches first place
The Co-operative boys junior varsity soccer team assured itself of first place honors for the regular season by defeating home team International 2-0 Thursday in a tough game pitting the two teams that had been picked to win the league.
They will meet yet again in the junior varsity playoff Oct 19. By winning both regular season games, Co-operative won the privilege of hosting the playoff. International has lost only the two games with Co-operative, and both were close. It is assured of second place.
The Jaguar goals were scored by Santiago Paz and Esteban Sauto.
Both teams had apparently been instructed to play “SOLID DEFENSE,” and neither team had any good chances to score in the early going. International may have come closest when just before the end of the half Harold Garay got off a shot that went just wide of the post.
The second half continued with the same defensive intensity. The first goal of the match was scored by Sauto, and that gave the Jaguars great confidence. A few minutes later Paz fought his way through the Griffin defense to score Co-operative’s second goal.
The match had only one penalty card, a yellow issued to Jaguar Nicolas Handal.
-- Andre Candio, International School

Christian Learning defeats Cambridge at home, 3-0
By Trevor Reed
Christian Learning Center
Motivation and good hustling finally paid off for the Christian Learning junior varsity boys soccer team as they won their first game of the season against Cambridge Thursday on their field, 3-0, avenging a previous defeat by the Knights.
Early in the game Andres Larsen kicked a long, curving shot that went into the goal, giving him his first goal of the season. Larsen had not played since the early games of the season, when he was positioned at goalie.
Soon after, Trevor Reed came close to a goal but a Cambridge defender kicked it out for a corner.
Cambridge made a few attempts, but could not penetrate the Learning Center defense, and the half ended with the score 1-0.
After the half, Learning Center carried the ball up and Reed passed to Larsen on the right side, who then walked through the Cambridge defense and put the ball between the Cambridge goalie and the post for his second score.
The Eagles defense continued to hold firm, and Ricardo Enns made it 3-0 with an amazing free kick that went just over the goalie's fingertips and under the crossbar.
This win moved the Learning Center into a tie for third place with Cambridge.

JV Girls Volleyball

Griffin Flavia Nostas (6) bumps the ball up during rally
Jonatan Muñoz, International School

International beats Co-operative, assuring first place
By Claudia Pantoja
International School
The International junior varsity girls volleyball team, playing in their home gym, defeated Co-operative in straight sets Thursday.
International won the first set 25-16, and the second 25-22. In the first set the girls from Co-operative were struggling to find their rhythm, but in the second game they did better, taking the lead in the early part of the game. Compared to the last game played between the two teams, it could be seen that the Jaguars had improved.
The win assured the undefeated Griffins of sole possession of first place and home gym advantage in the playoff game.

Christian Learning wins handily against Cambridge
From coaches' reports
The Christian Learning junior varsity girls volleyball team made short work of its match against Cambridge Thursday, winning both sets by the identical score of 25-17. The game was playerd in the Eagles gym.
Next week's game between Christian Learning and Co-operative will determine the opponent for International in the one-game junior varsity volleyball playoff. If Co-operative wins, theywill have undisputed possession of second place. If Christian Learning wins, the teams will be tied, and the winner will be determined by point scoring over the season. The game willbe played at International.

Schedule Change

Postponed games slated for Friday
The girls soccer and boys volleyball games between Cambridge and Christian Learning that were postponed Tuesday because of a power outage at Christian Learning will be played Friday at Christian Learning. The junior varsity games will start at 3:30, with the varsity contests following immediately afterward.

Varsity Girls Soccer

Landivar v. Landivar -- Griffin goalie Regina Landivar (on ground) blocks shot by Tania Landivar (11), but another Jaguar is ready to pounce
Jonatan Muñoz, International School

Jaguars suppress uppity Griffins, 4-2
From coaches' reports
Beneath a smoky October sky the Jaguar varsity girls soccer team forged a 3-0 lead on Internationals field Tuesday, then saw the Griffins melt the advantage down to 3-2 before a final goal gave Co-operative a 4-2 victory.
Jaguar eighth-grader Hailey White netted the first goal for the Jaguars when she picked up a rebound that occurred after Jaguar seventh grader Tania Landivar had launched a kick that Griffin goalkeeper Regina Landivar repulsed with a diving lunge, but couldn't capture.
White then chipped the rebound toward the other side of the net. A Griffin defender raced to get in front of it, and deflected the shot slightly with her shoulder, but not enough to prevent the ball from going into the goal.
Later in the half Jaguar Tania Landivar knocked in another goal in a sequence that had begun with a free kick. Senior Darinka Matkovic extended the lead to 3-0 by taking a ball that had pinballed through several players, and deftly knocking it into the net.
But then things got interesting. The tide seemed to turn in the second half, with International keeping the ball in the Jaguars end for much of the time. Griffin 11th grader Melissa Roca made a one-on-one penalty shot after she had been taken down by the Jaguar goalie inside the penalty box, to make the score 3-1.
Then a goal by senior Laura Chavez brought International within one goal, 3-2.
Co-operative rallied at this point and brought the game back to an even keel. Jaguar eighth grader Fernanda Vaca Diez added the fourth goal, which nailed down the victory, a few minutes before the end.
The start of the game was delayed while the teams waited for the arrival of the officials, who never, in fact, showed up. By mutual agreement, Cooperative athletic director Nicolaas Mostert refereed the game, which was played without incident.

Varsity Boys Volleyball

Jaguars roar back, upset Griffins 2-1
The boys varsity volleyball race suddenly got a lot more interesting when the Jaguars came back from a decisive loss in the first set to win the match Tuesday in International's gym, two sets to one.
The outcome brought Co-operative into a tie for second-place, and gave the league lead to Christian Learning, whose game against Cambridge was postponed. (See related story below.) International had been at the top of the standings since the first week of the season, and had won the previous encounter between the two teams, though the match was a close one.
In the first set International seemed to be giving Co-operative a clinic in how to play the game, prevailing in the long rallies, and capitalizing on Co-operative's numerous unforced errors. International won by the comfortable margin of 25-11.
However, it almost seemed as if a new Jaguar team took to the court for the second game. Now it was they they seemed to be taking advantage of sloppy play on the part of the suddenly deflated Griffins, and outlasting the Griffins in long rallies. Co-operative got out to an 11 to 4 lead, and although the Griffins were able to get back within two points at 16-14, the Jaguars toughed it out and won the second game 25-20.
The third set was almost an anti-climax, with Co-operative winning 15-8 in remarkably short order.
"We were very disorganized in the first set," Jaguar coach Jesus Flores said after the game. "After that we got organized. We became more assured."
He cited the strong play of seniors Cristobal Roda and Esteban Gomez as keys to the Jaguar victory. Roda played the key role of big man-at-the-net in the Jaguars' resurgence. Gomez showed his versatility in the role of rover, allowed to move to any position on the court.
This story was written from reports by Maria Claudia Bernal of International School and coaches.

PHOTO: Jaguar blocks attempted kill by Griffin Pablo Muñoz (12)

Jonatan Muñoz, International School

JV Boys Volleyball

THERE IT GOES -- Griffins send the ball back during (yet another) long rally
Jonatan Muñoz, International School

Griffins take Jaguars in straight sets
By Maria Claudia Bernal

International School
The Co-operative junior varsity boys volleyball team started out playing really well against International, taking a 6-0 lead, but the Griffins got their strength back and ultimately prevailed.
The Griffins won the first set 25-16. The second set was also a little tough for International, but they lived up to their potential and won 25-20.
International got remarkable performances from Francisco Gonzalez and Juan Sebastian Narvaez, and had a couple of new players in its line-up, Abdan Ahuile and Rodrigo Anglarillo.

Game postponement

Power outage delays Eagles-Knights clashes
A Caterpillar tractor that was grading a construction site near Christian Learning hit a power pole and snapped the electric cable, causing a power outage that resulted in cancelation of classes at the school, and postponement of the girls soccer and boys volleyball games scheduled for Tuesday. The games are expected to be rescheduled, probably for next Friday, October 5.

"Fair Play" Rankings

Rising number of penalties draws concern
By David Boldt
SCISL Weblog
The increased number of yellow and red cards being shown this year to players, most notably varsity boys, is provoking concern.
League rules impose tough punishments for penalties. A red card results in expulsion from the game in which it occurs, and at least a one-game suspension. Two yellow cards issued in the same game, or in successive games, are regarded as the equivalent of a red card. Penalties for infractions such as fighting can result in suspension for the entire season, as has happened in one case this season already.
As an incentive to reduce penalties, the league awards its “Fair Play” trophy to the school with the least number of penalties for all four of its teams – varsity boys, varsity girls, junior varsity boys and junior varsity girls. However, the great majority of the penalties this year, and in past years, ocurred in varsity boys games.
Here is where the “Fair Play” rankings stand as of the end of September. The figures are provided by Alejandra Salto, athletic director of Christian Learning and league statistician.
* Cambridge is currently the least penalized, with a total of 7 yellow cards and 1 red card.
* Co-operative has 15 yellow cards and no red cards.
* Christian Learning has 11 yellow cards and two red cards.
* International has 17 yellow cards and two red cards.