By Richard Paolinelli
MaxPreps.com
With the start of the high school softball season still about six weeks away, most coaches are concentrating on where they will position their players in the field and in the line-up.
But the Los Gatos High softball program will have an even bigger obstacle to overcome in the next few weeks after a fire at the school destroyed the team's batting cages and pitching machine. The fire also consumed uniforms, helmets and bats that were being stored within the cages since an October blaze that had destroyed a nearby metal storage building.
A new building was under construction, but not yet complete, by the time of the Jan. 9 blaze. Damages were estimated at over $15,000 in the more recent fire, which is being considered as an arson fire and is the 15th such fire to hit the Los Gatos area.
Several people have been questioned but no arrests have yet been made and local officials have not named anyone as a suspect in either of the school fires.
Soccer
Three Central Coast Section soccer teams remained unbeaten in league play last week, but all three required Houdini-like escapes to wriggle free of the upset bug's sting on section soccer pitches.
Burlingame High's perch atop the Bay Division of the Peninsula Athletic League in boys soccer was looking a little shaky with less than 12 minutes left in their match at Burlingame on Friday against Carlmont. The Scots were clinging to a 1-0 lead with an eye on a second straight upset after defeating Sequoia 3-1 just two days before.
But two late goals by the Panthers (10-2-2, 4-0 PAL Bay), both by Peter Olskiy, denied Carlmont (8-3, 3-2).
The win carried added importance for Burlingame as the Panthers held on to sole possession of first place despite a 4-3 win by second-place Hillsdale.
The Knights (7-1-2, 4-0-1) let a 4-0 lead over Westmoor slip all the way to a much-less comfortable 4-3 advantage before the game finally game to an end.
The action was just as intense on the girls side as Santa Catalina High (Monterey) slipped past Anzar 1-0 last week to remain unbeaten both overall and in Mission Trail Athletic League action.
Sarah Wright led the Cougars (10-0, 9-0) with three first half saves in net before moving out into the field to score the lone goal of the game in the second half. Shelby Carroll added three saves in the second half for Santa Catalina to preserve the win and the unbeaten season.
Boys Basketball
On the hardcourt, Roger Jones just returned from a six-month exchange program in Argentina and his North Monterey County High teammates couldn't be happier as he led his team with 19 points in a 56-49 victory over Watsonville in the Monterey Bay League opener for both teams.
In the West Catholic Athletic League, Serra nearly stumbled coming off a huge upset win over Riordan the previous week before recovering in time to defeat Valley Christian 62-55 in San Mateo on Thursday.
Valley Christian (7-9, 0-4) rallied from 15 points down and trimmed the Padres' lead to just one point with three minutes left in the game.
But Serra (8-6, 2-2) got a critical blocked shot from Stephen Lumpkins and a clutch three-pointer from Bobby McCarthy to turn away Valley Christian's comeback bid.