After winning two of three to open their season, the Dons traveled to Amador Valley for another tournament featuring high-level competition. The Dons fell to a strong Freedom team in the opener, as senior guard Ian Archer led the Dons in scoring with 14. In the second game, the Dons faced De Anza from Richmond. De Anza jumped out to an early 8-2 lead but the Dons battled back to take a 13-12 lead. De Anza went on a run to close out the half,which ended with the Dons trailing by 5, and the run continued into the 3rd quarter, as De Anza extended its lead to 38-27. But the Dons battled back with a run of their own, scoring 9 straight to end the 3rd quarter and close the gap to just 2 points. Sophomore guard Scott Ruegg (pictured) hit a 3 to give the Dons a 39-38 lead early in the 4th quarter. De Anza stormed back with another run and closed out the Dons 61-54. Archer again led the Dons with 25, with Ruegg adding 18.
In the consolation final against El Cerrito, the Dons jumped out to a 7-2 lead were up 17-10 after the first quarter. El Cerrito came back to close the gap and the Dons led 26-25 at intermission. The third quarter was evenly matched, withthe Dons maintaining their narrow lead, up 42-41 heading into the fourth quarter. The Dons then took control behind Ruegg and junior center John Kalil, who scored 9 and 6 points,respectively, in the final stanza, helping the Dons to a 63-57 victory. Ruegg led the Dons with 25 including four 3-pointers, and Archer had 16, junior forward Aidan Bodner 9 and Kalil 8.
The Dons host their first game on Tuesday, December 11, against Santa Rosa with a triple header featuring the freshmen, JV and varsity teams.
Photo: P. Wickline