Photo Credit: Hannah Eugster
Senior Haniteli Lousi waiting to get into the game.
January 6, 2012
Ricky Lang
The Washington Boys Basketball team opened MVAL league play with an exciting 67-57 victory against American on Wednesday, Jan. 4. The game went into double overtime before a winner could be decided.
The lead changed hands countless times in the first three quarters with both teams playing extremely well. With 2.3 seconds left in the fourth quarter, the Huskies led 50-46 and American had two free-throws. The Eagles made the first free-throw but intentionally missed the second and dished the ball to Connor Tse, who drained a clutch three-pointer to tie the game at 50-50 just as time expired. The American fans erupted and even ran out onto the floor to celebrate the unlikely comeback.
However, Washington did not let this change of momentum psych them out. With time running out in the first overtime period, Washington Senior Pierce Romero stole the ball and attempted to dunk. But, the play was called back because American had intentionally fouled. Senior Matt Songponnopachon then headed to the line and sank two free-throws to tie the game at 54 all and send the game into double overtime. Now it was the Washington crowd’s turn to cheer. The Huskies dominated the second overtime thanks to a technical foul on the hot-headed American head coach, the muscle of Haniteli Lousi, and the scoring machine Matt Songponnopachon, who was a perfect 10-10 from the free-throw line and ended the night with 22 points. The final score was 67-57 in favor of the Huskies.
“It felt great just to get the W. Thanks to everyone who came out to support us tonight,” senior Pierce Romero (18 points on the night) said after the game.
The chaotic overtime win makes Washington 1-0 in MVAL league play and 4-11 on the season. The Huskies have a bye on Friday, Jan. 6 but resume play at home on Wednesday, Jan. 11 against Newark Memorial.
.
March 2, 2010
Bach Phan
After claiming the MVAL league title, the girls’ soccer team lost to California High, 2-0, in their first round of NCS, Feb. 17. The team has been plagued by various injuries during the season, including torn ACLs, knee injuries and various other small injuries. Junior Natalie Sanchez was injured in the first ten minutes of the game. The Cal High team consisted of only ten players, but the girls seemed physically larger than the Huskies. Washington was also at a disadvantage before the game started. They had a two-day break between playoffs and NCS, while Cal High had a four-day break.
“Cal High was good even with only ten players on the team. We just didn’t bring our A game,” senior Megan Leibowitz said.
The first goal scored was a cross and finish by the Grizzlies midfielder Kayla Santacruz, giving Cal High a 1-0 lead. The second goal was a deflection off of the sweeper (the last player on defense). It was scored by Cal Highs’s Rachel Feldman, giving the Grizzlies a 2-0 lead. The Grizzlies easily passed around Washington’s defense, and they found their rhythm after constantly attacking the Huskies goal. Washington played a more defensive game due to the injuries to their offensive players sustained from the week of playoffs. Later in the game, the team played better, but they were unable to dig themselves out of the hole.
“I felt sad that our season was over, but happy that we at least won MVAL [playoffs] and we recovered from numerous injuries,” junior Andrea Bonilla said.
This article originally appeared in print on March 2, 2010. It has been modified to correct style and grammatical errors.
.
November 28, 2009
Kaylee Miu
The warm sun and cool breeze set the stage for perfect running weather in the 2009 Cross Country North Coast Sectional Finals Nov. 21 at Hayward High School. The best 130 varsity boys and 120 varsity girls competed in hopes of hitting top times to secure their ticket to CIF state championships.
After a shaky season, the Washington boys cross country team, defending league champions, finished in third place at the 2009 MVAL’s, behind both Mission San Jose and James Logan. All three schools have become power-houses, fierce in competition. Senior Ben Rich finished the season undefeated but had a shocking loss to American’s David Brody at league. After tough blows at league, the team was fired up and arrived at Hayward High School Saturday morning ready to give it their all with one last chance. The boys finished eighth, tying James Logan at 269 and defeating Mission San Jose’s 277. Top division I school San Ramon Valley dominated with 41. Rich had a solid race, finishing the 3-mile course ninth (15:52), qualifying him for state, and defeating Brody (15:57) by five seconds.
“We did much better at NCS,” senior Anthony Cisneros said. “We made up for our mishap at league finals and reminded everyone we’ve still got a strong program. We’re not the team we used to be, but we definitely showed signs of a promising future.”
Meanwhile the varsity girls team, MVAL league champions, finished seventh in NCS, defeating James Logan, but losing to Mission San Jose. Top runner junior Jessica Gerards placed seventhth(18:40), but was one spot shy of state qualification.
The toughest part of the race was “knowing you had to run the hill twice,” Cisneros said. The ground was moist from the storm the previous day and therefore puddles of mud covered the course. Injuries were minor, however an ambulance and fire truck were called when “one girl collapsed from exhaustion right before the finish line, but managed to get back up under her own power and stumble across the finish line.”
Rich will compete in the CIF Coss Country Championships Nov. 28.
Photo Credit: http://whshatchet.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/football-BLK.jpg
.
November 11, 2009
Yama Hazeer
The varsity football team lost its homecoming game by the final score of 10-28. Not only was it a homecoming loss, but the loss also gave the Pop Gould trophy to the James Logan Colts.
The Pop Gould trophy is a competition founded by J.V. Gould between rival schools James Logan and WHS. Every year the trophy is awarded to the winner of the Washington-Logan football game.
“I think our defense played well all night, but our offense struggled,” senior and captain David Ross said.
The Huskies held the Colts to only a field goal on their first drive, but turned the ball over which resulted in a touchdown for Logan. In the second quarter, WHS forced a fumble and took the ball deep into the field. Senior Josh Wilson kicked a field goal to make the score 10-3 during halftime.
After the half, the Colts scored quickly to make it a 15 point difference. The Huskies scored a touchdown off a two yard run from Ross, to make the score 18-10 in the third quarter.
“I don’t think we played as hard as we can,” senior Khalled Hassan said. “I’ve seen us make amazing plays. What lost us the game was pretty much lack of effort.”
WHS looked like they were ready to make a comeback, but colt receiver, Toni Pole caught a 78 yard touchdown reception to seal the win for Logan.
“I thought we played well with an exception to a few blown coverages and dropped passes,” senior Tanner King said.
Ross insisted that his injured elbow was not the reason for the team’s offensive struggles.
“We could have played a lot better on offense,” Ross said. “My elbow is good enough to play. I am getting surgery after the season.”
This was the first loss for Washington in league play. They are now second place in the Mission Valley Athletic League (MVAL) behind Logan.
“In order to win in the playoffs we need to play a perfect game and everyone needs to execute their responsibilities,” King said.
.
November 10, 2009
Elmer Ceja
The Division I league (DI) is the most prestigious sports league across the United States. In the fall of 2008, Washington High School became a Division I school due to the increase in student population size. The break point is at 2,100 students, which kept Washington down in Division II for a while.
When a school is a Division I high school, it does not affect league play, but it makes post-season competition much more difficult. All schools in the Mission Valley Athletic League (MVAL) are also Division I, except Kennedy High School. Due to the intense competition, many Division II teams are unable to even qualify for post-season play unless they win a championship.
“In order to demonstrate that Washington is a good team and can compete, I schedule the best competition I can get to play us,” Coach Ken Wittmer said.
Last fall the varsity football team was disappointed by its loss to Cal High, 0-41. This year Coach Wittmer scheduled another game against Cal High, putting their season record at risk. However, this time around, the varsity football team beat the team, 30-28, shocking spectators from around the Bay Area.
“It puts us at risk if we lose, but when we win, it demonstrates the strength of Washington football,” Wittmer said. “It is a combination of the player’s personal performance, team history and reputation and the coaches’ ability to promote the player, that helps get them recognized.”
.
November 10, 2009
Tyler Rowe
The Washington High School girls tennis team ended their season with a victorious 7-0 sweep over Kennedy high school, Oct. 30. The varsity team then proceeded to MVAL finals, Nov. 2.
“I’m definitely looking forward to MVALs because our team has been working really hard this season,” co-captain and junior Lauren Hishinuma said.
The girls went 8-5 this year with a 3-4 loss to James Logan.
“We were competitive in most of the games [singles and doubles], but the doubles really brought us up well this season,” Coach Matthew Brahbam said.
Brahbam plans to train and work with the girls on mechanics during off season to build a more solid team for next fall.
Hishinuma and junior LiAnn Bressler were both recognized at MVAL finals as members of the Second All-League team for singles. Senior Shelmi Liang, junior Tabitha Kirk, senior Kaylee Miu and freshman Alice Pham, were honored with Second All-League for Doubles.
Varsity one singles Lauren Hishinuma advanced to quarter finals after two easy wins against American (6-0, 6-1) and Kennedy (6-0, 6-2) Nov. 2, but lost to Rajeev of Mission San Jose (6-1. 6-1).
Varsity one doubles team Kaylee Miu and Alice Pham, seeded fourth in league, also advanced to quarter finals after defeating Irvington (6-2, 6-0), but lost (6-4, 1-6, 5-7) to Thatch/Bautista of James Logan.
“It felt really bad losing to Logan during finals, especially since we beat them twice in league. We should have beaten them right from the start, but we kept the game too close. Our team was counting on a win from us, but we let them down,” Pham said.
.
October 21, 2009
Yama Hazheer
Coming off a disappointing loss to the Tracy Bulldogs, the Huskies bounced back to defeat the American Eagles 54-3 on Oct. 9.
Due to an injury on the elbow of his throwing arm, senior and captain David Ross was not able to play as quarterback. Junior Deandre Carter stepped up in his place. He threw for 116 yards and two passing touchdowns. Carter also had an impressive interception in which he took back 72 yards for a touchdown.
Wide receiver and senior Nathaniel Solverson thought that Carter did a good job starting in place of Ross.
“I think Deandre did good especially because it was his first time playing QB in a game situation,” Solverson said.
Ross, playing wide receiver, had four receptions for 59 yards. One of the catches was for a touchdown. Senior Rico Jones had a 44-yard touchdown reception and a 22-yard run for a touchdown. Senior Tanner King also had two rushing touchdowns.
“Scoring those two touchdowns felt amazing, but I owe it all to my offensive line for their spectacular blocks,” King said. “We had a great game against American both offensively and defensively.”
Both the offense and defense combined to play phenomenally and it showed in the final score of the game. The Eagles were held scoreless for almost the whole game. A field goal late in the fourth quarter put the Eagles on the board.
“We all just got to take practice day by day, buckle down and get business done,” Solverson said.
Washington is currently tied for first place in the Mission Valley Athletic League (MVAL) with Logan.
“In order to stay at this level for the duration of the season, we need to continue playing as a whole and get amped for every opponent we face,” King said.
.
October 4, 2009
Yama Hazheer
Washington played against the Tracy Bulldogs Sept. 24, but lost due to their poor offensive play in the second half. WHS led the game at halftime, but were held scoreless in the latter part of the game and lost to the Tracy Bulldogs 21-42.
“I felt the game was alright in the first half. We had some mistakes but we were still up,” captain and quarterback David Ross said. “In the second half, we did not play Washington football.”
Fellow captain Cedric Lousi was also disappointed in the effort.
“It’s not about how you start, but how you finish,” Lousi said.
The loss dropped the Huskies to a record of 2-2. Not only did it lower the record, but they are not a top ten Bay Area high school football team.
We’re a good team and are capable of doing great things,” Lousi said. “We just have take advantage of every opportunity we get and just play Husky football.”
Despite the loss, Washington still remains at the top of the MVAL standings.
Photo Credit: Paolo Bonaccorsi
.
September 25, 2009
Kaylee Miu
The girls water polo team played their first seasonal MVAL game against American High School Sept. 24.
“It went swimmingly,” joked senior and co-captain Breana Meagher.
Defeating the Eagles 18-2, the Huskies had a solid performance. Senior Jocelyne Yamaguchi, junior Ally Hokanson and sophomore Megan Ottoboni scored three goals each in the game.
However, with one game down, the girls will be facing tough competition– Newark Memorial High Sept. 29 at home. According to players on the team, this upcoming game will be one of their toughest matches.
.
May 21, 2009
Photo by Joel Capra - Junior Jonathan Eng prepares to serve during warm-ups before the boys tennis team’s match against James Logan on March 12. On April 28-29, Eng and the rest of the team competed in the MVAL playoffs. Eng lost to Mission’s junior Brandon Nguyen on the second day of playoffs en route to his elimination. Senior Sai Devana also lost to Nguyen on the second day to be eliminated
By Yama Hazheer
The boys tennis team ended their season at the Mission Valley Athletic League (MVAL) playoffs. Playoffs were held April 28-30 at Newark Memorial. Only two Washington players made it to the second day of playoffs on April 29.
These two players were senior Sai Devana, who is Washington’s singles number one player, and junior Jonathan Eng. Both players are also co-captains.
Devana and Eng separately faced the same player from Mission during the second day of playoffs, junior Brandon Nguyen. They both lost to Nguyen.
Eng lost 6-0, 6-1 and Devana’s final match score was 7-6, 7-5. In boys’ tennis, matches are best-of-three sets. The first player to win six games within a set wins that set. Whoever is first to win two sets wins the match.
The loss was a disappointment to Devana, especially because he was able to defeat Nguyen earlier this season. Devana had beaten Nguyen 6-0, 6-2 in another tournament. He had high hopes for the MVALs.
“I was disappointed because I was expected to get to the semis, and maybe even the finals; third place at worst,” Devana said.
After high school, Devana intends on playing with the University of California, Los Angeles non-traveling squad next year as a freshman. He hopes to make it one day on their traveling squad. Devana mentioned that he received a Division-III (NCAC) offer from Wittenberg University in Springfield, Ohio and a Division-II offer from University of California, San Diego.
Eng was not as disappointed. He played an opponent from Logan on the first day and then Nguyen on the second day.
“It was fun beating Logan and losing to Mission on the second day,” Eng said. “Losing is a short term thing. Tennis is life-long.”
Eng wants the team to practice more over the summer to have a better season next year. Four varsity players will be graduating, leaving the team with more work to do.
Irvington and Mission represented the district during NCS playoffs. Irvington lost to Alameda in the first round. Mission, seeded at number three, defeated top-seed Monte Vista during the championships to win NCS. The final meet score was 4-3.
Loading ...