West San Jose Resident
Sports
BVAL boys, girls soccer races are both heating up
By Greg Lydon
Local boys soccer action has heated up after the New Year with several Blossom Valley Athletic League teams chasing Overfelt for the Mt. Hamilton division lead. Leigh (8-3-2), Lincoln (6-3-4) and Branham (5-3-4) all are within two games of the first-place Royals.
Branham nearly took down Overfelt this week, tying the league leaders 1-1 in a tight road game for the Bruins. Matt Kastner assisted on the only goal of the match for Branham, setting up senior forward Kevin Faridi.
The tie was a nice rebound performance from Branham after a 4-0 loss against Mt. Pleasant.
Leland tied Leigh 1-1, earning a upset tie on the road. The Chargers are 0-4-3 in league action, but coming off a strong showing in the annual alumni game and a tough 1-0 defeat against Lincoln. The young Leland bunch could play spoiler down the stretch in league play.
In West Valley Division play, some teams are playing well, but the Westmont Warriors are playing great.
Westmont is 6-1 in league and currently riding a seven-game winning streak, outscoring their opponents 17-9 this season.
In other West Valley action, Del Mar shut out Santa Teresa 1-0 behind the game-winning strike from Boubacar Diallo on an assist from Jesus Munoz.
The Dons are 3-2-1 in league play and will get an up-close and personal look at Westmont on Jan. 25.
Prospect ran into a buzz saw, allowing five goals in a 5-2 defeat against Independence.
Things didn't get any easier for the Panthers two days prior when they ran into a sizzling Westmont team in a 3-1 Westmont win at Prospect High School.
Paul Silva scored two goals and assisted on the other, while Zanin Mahic chipped in the other score in the 3-1 victory.
Westmont looks to continue its run this week with a road match-up against Gunderson and a home game against San Jose Academy on Jan. 18.
In girls soccer action, after a bumpy start to the season, Branham put together back-to-back strong showings in league play. The Bruins knocked off Del Mar 1-0 to get their first league win of the season and followed up the big shutout victory with a 1-1 tie against Pioneer on the road.
Leigh and Leland lead the way in the Mt. Hamilton Division, with Santa Teresa and Pioneer trailing close behind.
In Santa Teresa Division play, everyone is looking up at Sobrato, 6-1 in league action. Westmont opened 3-1-1 in league play before dropping two straight league matches, including a 2-1 defeat against Sobrato. Freshman Lauren Hughes scored for Westmont in the losing effort.
The Warriors look to get back on track next week against Prospect. After the home game against the Panthers, Westmont hits the road for back-to-back league games against Andrew Hill and Lincoln.
Willow Glen is 4-2 in league play, shaking off an early season 5-1 defeat against Westmont to string together a nice run in early January.
The Rams bucked Prospect 3-2 behind a nice team effort.