On Feb. 25, Menlo’s four winter sports team competed to advance in CCS. Although girls soccer lost in penalty kicks, both basketball teams and boys soccer advanced in CCS. Photo by Pam McKenney.
By Eric Chang and Jake Shiff
Boys Soccer
Menlo boys soccer defeated Soledad High School in a thrilling 1-0 overtime game. Senior Alistair Shaw scored the winning goal in the second half of overtime. Shaw has scored three of the four goals made in the Knights’ two playoff matches. Menlo was also able to shut out Soledad because of the stellar defense from senior goalie Nolan Peterson.
Menlo’s overall record improves to 15-1-4 with their most recent win. “It was a team effort for the whole game and it paid off late,” junior David Quezada said. The Knight’s victory against Soledad advances them to the semifinals of CCS against El Camino high school. The Knights are currently the two seed and El Camino high school is the three seed.
The semifinal match will take place at 4:30 pm at Sequoia High School. Menlo made it all the way to the semifinals of CCS last year as the 16th seed and hopes to make it to the finals this year.
Girl’s Soccer
On Feb. 25, Menlo varsity girl’s soccer played a heartbreaking game against Ann Sobrato in the CCS Div. II quarterfinals and their season was sadly ended in penalty kicks. After both sides went scoreless during regulation and overtime, Sobrato came out ahead 3-2 in PKs. This was quite game and although it ended in defeat for Menlo, their phenomenal 12-5-3 season should not be forgotten.
This game was full of misfortunes as shot attempts by freshman Cameron Boom and sophomore Alexa Thomases just narrowly missed the net. In addition, freshman Talia Grossman had a lockdown performance as keeper but the game just didn’t go Menlo’s way – especially in penalty kicks. “I think the way we played in the quarterfinals didn’t reflect our talent as a team and wasn’t our best game, and ending the year by losing in penalty kicks is a really heartbreaking way to end an amazing season,” junior Julia Wang said.
Although this game represents a disappointing end to the team’s CCS run, they ended second in the West Bay Athletic League (WBAL) and succeeded in many other aspects during the season.
Boys Basketball
At Hartnell College on Feb. 25, Menlo boys basketball played a successful quarterfinal round to beat Carmel 57-37. Menlo exploded offensively in the first two quarters of the game and with solid defense were able to hold their lead. “We came out strong in the first half and really shut them down on defense,” junior Thomas Brown said. By halftime, Menlo was ahead 39-17 and played with dominance from the beginning.
Some players with standout performances were juniors JH Tevis, Joe Foley, Riley Woodson, and Thomas Brown. Foley was Menlo’s top shooter hitting 9 out of 14 shots with 2 threes scoring 22 points total. He was a key factor to Menlo’s early success and along with Tevis who put up 14, they carried the offense. Defensively, Woodson had two blocks and nine rebounds ultimately preventing Carmel from rallying back. Brown, who had seven rebounds and four steals, helped Menlo secure the win.
Although the third quarter was a bit shaky for the Knights in which they let up 18 while only scoring 5, Menlo bounced back in the final quarter to complete a well executed game. “We kind of had a lapse in the third quarter but we stayed calm and held them to 2 points in the fourth” Brown said. This victory advances the Knights to the CCS Div. IV semifinals, which will be played against Pacific Grove this Tuesday Feb. 28 at Hartnell College.
Menlo won against Pacific Grove 54-23 on Tuesday, Feb. 28. They will play Half Moon Bay in the CCS Championship.
Girl’s Basketball
At Notre Dame-Belmont on Feb. 25, Menlo girls’s basketball played a very solid quarterfinals to defeat Monte Vista Christian (MVCHS) 62-49. Menlo got out to an early lead and were able to suppress MVCHS’s attempts to rally back. This game was special for it not only advances Menlo to the CCS Div. IV semifinals but senior Sam Erisman scored her 1,500th Menlo career point and is now the school’s fifth girl scorer of all-time.
Junior Mohini Gupta, freshman Maeia Makoni, and Erisman all scored double digits carrying Menlo’s offense. Erisman who put up 28 with 2 threes included had a stellar performance and was key to getting Menlo ahead in the early game. The team’s previous game was ten days prior but they had a full week of practice to prepare for this quarterfinal matchup.
With this outstanding performance by numerous players, Menlo will continue to work and get ready for the semifinals against Half Moon Bay at Notre-Dame Belmont on Tuesday Feb. 28.
