Did you know that Lacrosse is one of the fastest growing sports on the West Coast? Did you also know that most kids start playing their freshman year in high school? Its not too late to start!
If your son has any interest in playing Lacrosse in the spring, please join us!
Here’s a fun chance to learn about the program, meet a coach or two, and get to know some of the players and parents who are in the program. We will cover pre-season conditioning, clinics, tournaments, and the overall program and costs. Bring your checkbook if you know your son will be playing or attending the clinics. We will make it easy for you to pay and sign up that night! Appetizers will be provided and there will be a full no-host bar.
It’s time to unleash those mad dance skills spectators see at the rallies and stage performances and show the stands we’ve got! AHS Spirit is launching its NEW Winter Dance Song Pom Team starting 2019-20 Winter season!
Register for Tryouts
For Registration and Tryout Packet, go to https://acalanescheer.com/dance-song-pom-1
A Parent/Guardian accompany Dancer at DAY 1 Check-In to review Tryout Waivers & Agreements with Coaching Staff.
What is the Dance Song Pom Team?
Dance Song Pom will be supporting both Girls & Boys basketball teams from the stands and busting out moves during pre-game, timeouts and halftime entertainment. And if the skillz are that killer, a competition squad may be formed!
The primary purpose of the Dance Song Pom Team is to give AHS Students skilled in Dance, the opportunity to support their fellow classmates through Dance Performance. Like Fall Sideline Cheer, the Team will also represent at AHS rallies & events and make community appearances.
The Team’s dance style will focus on hip hop & jazz and include jumps, kicks, aerial tumbling and basic or non-release stunts/lifts as per NFHS rules.
Why the change from Sideline Cheer?
The original Cheer Calendar was extremely long. Previously, Sideline Cheer ran continuously from April Tryouts of the prior school year, through Summer training certifications and team training, continued across the entire winter sports season — nearly a full school year! Yes, that included the 8th graders that made the team.
Then there’s space. Most high school basketball gyms in the Bay Area do not have room for full Sideline Cheer teams. The brief game half-time also prevents timely setup and removal of the safety mats required for stunting.
Now, Sideline Cheer is the Fall Team and Dance Song Pom is the Winter Team. The change in format allows a Cheer Athlete to take a break or even participate in other sports. It also reflects the types of teams at the regional, national, collegiate, professional and international levels.
The juggernaut that is the Frosh Don’s offense was unstoppable once again tallying 51 points versus the Amador Valley Dons. The Moving Company(Murph, Miller, Lex, Nathan and Marcus) was in full effect again, ripping holes in the Amador line resulting in TD runs of 55 and 62 from Toby, 15 by Kaleo Feinberg, and a 2 yd plunge from Ben Foox. Not to be outdone, the air attack of Bielawski to Stoll chimed in with TD passes of 30 and 34 yards, with Theo leaving multiple Amador defenders grabbing at air as he flew by. Was that enough for the Dons? No it wasn’t, as Andrew Habas added another long TD to his resume with a 91-yard kick-off return that put the icing on the cake for another epic Frosh Dons scoring bonanza.
Full Hearts…
Of course, scoring over 50 is great, but that also means a lot of time on the field for the Dons D. Adding to that challenge, Amador featured a jumbo backfield with two varsity-sized RBs lined up in Power I formation, aiming to pound the Dons into submission. The stout Acalanes defenders were up to the challenge with big days from LBs Toby & Andrew, DLs Murph, Tyler W, and Zach, and Safeties Coco and Ethan Torres, ganging up to stack up and shut down Amador’s running attack. At the end of the day, Amador was held to only two scores and one converted two-point conversion, continuing the strong defensive improvement that’s been clearly evident each week.
Can’t Lose…
After starting the season with a lot of learning to do, the Frosh Dons are really coming into their own over the past couple of weeks. Kudos to the coaches, who have been patient and consistent as well as unyielding in their expectations of the team to both improve and absorb the responsibilities needed to run the offense and defense at a high level. With four games left, including the big rivalry game at Campo on October 17 and a Halloween clash at Alhambra, the Frosh Dons are hitting their stride at the perfect time. Next week Jesse Bethel comes into our house, and the Dons will be ready to roll!
Total dominance on both sides of the ball… The JV Don’s defense completely shut down the El Cerrito offense – When the game finally ended, the Gauchos had -27 yards of offense and 0 points… The Don’s defense was led by #4 Evan Malmquist, who recorded 3 sacks and 6 tackles, and by #62 Sam Hafner who recorded a sack and 3 tackles, and was in El Cerritos backfield all night just wreaking havoc! Kyle White and Donovan Aris -Dumas paired up for a safety…. The JV Don’s defense 3rd safety on the season… Ryan Giorgianni has proven to be a force to be reckoned with on defense as well this season, opposing offenses would be wise to keep an eye on him when he is on the field…
On offense the only thing the JV Don’s need to work on is getting things going earlier in the game, it seems like it takes 2 or 3 possessions to get the engine running… but once they do… they score quick, and often! Luke Souza runs the offense like a quarterback should – scanning the field for vulnerabilities and then exploiting them – Luke was 15 for 20 for 301 yards and 3 touchdowns. Jack Wood was the “go to” receiver on Friday night recording his season high 6 catches for 150 yards and two touchdowns. Will Berrien had 2 catches for 79 yards including a 65 yard catch and run for a score – The offensive line, anchored by captain Anthony Ortale at Left Tackle, should be heaped with praise as well – they protected Souza all night, giving him time to find the open receiver, and they also opened up running lanes big enough to drive a truck through! Evan Malmquist lead the running game with 5 carries for 62 yards, including a 40 yard run for a touchdown! Eli Berkowitz was like a snow plow on his three touches…carrying multiple Gauchos on his back for his 11 yards!
Coach Young and his staff are doing a fantastic job preparing the boys each week – and always have so much patience and understanding… even when things like Helmets and Shoulder pads get left behind… 🙂 We are truly lucky to have such amazing coaches at all levels here at Acalanes! For more pictures on this game – check out the album on Google Photo on the following link – https://photos.app.goo.gl/htEqLM34Jchc1xj17
The JV Football Team had another very good outing on Friday Sept 6th – They defeated a strong Vintage JV Team 43 to 12 – Quick Highlights – Acalanes JV had 399 total yards of offense – holding Vintage to just 140 yards – 13 Different players had tackles for the Don’s and 4 different Don’s found the end zone – for a combined 6 Touchdowns!
On Offense – JV Quarterback Luke Souza was 20 for 28 for 281 Yards including 4 Touchdown Passes! – (2) to Miles Bergman and (1) each to Will Berrien and Nick Eppinger. Total Rushing yards for the team was 77 yards from Scrimmage on 13 attempts – Malmquist and Berrien each added touchdowns on the ground.
On Defense – The JV Don’s held Vintage to 140 yards of total offense only allowing 8 first downs… 13 Different players had tackles, 6 of them for loss of yards… Evan Malmquist had a solo sack for -8 yards and Ibis Pond and Kyle White teamed up on a sack for -6 yards – This teams Defense plays with a very high level of intensity with all 11 players swarming to the ball.
The Acalanes JV Football team continues to prove they are a solid team with a 53-0 win over Berkeley High. This team can score quickly, and often, as they showed last Friday by scoring 53 points on 25 offensive plays! The team had 349 total All-Purpose Yards, and held the ball for 24:28 minutes.
JV Quarterback Luke Souza showed off his arm and legs with 2 touchdown passes and a 20 yard touchdown run – Acalanes JV back up quarterback Conner McFail played the entire second half, and had a touchdown pass of his own to Jon Clark – Other offensive highlights – Evan Malmquist had 3 rushes for 38 yards with a touchdown and a 2 point conversion. Rhett Skvarna got in on the rushing game with 1 rush for a pounding 43 yard touchdown run. Jack Wood led the receivers with 2 catches for 24 yards and a Touchdown, while Dante Montgomery also got in on the touchdown receptions, finishing the game 2 catches for 13 yards and a score.
The JV Defense was solid on Friday, holding Berkeley to 8 total yards of offense! If it was not for a last second 40 yard completion, as time expired… the Defense would have held then to negative yards for the game! Solid Effort of Defense! Kyle White and Sam Hafner each had 1.5 sacks and 9 different players had tackles. Ryan Giorgiani had another great outing disrupting plays on both special teams and defense. Will Berrien continues to be the “go to” ball handler for the JV Don’s with Multiple catches, Kickoff and Punt Returns – with almost a hundred yards of offense under his belt..
JV Team travels to El Cerrito next week – If you plan to travel to watch the varsity game it is worth coming early to check out this exciting football team as well!
The Lady Dons returned to winning action on Wednesday at home to Monte Vista and welcomed back to the team senior Jewel Roemer and junior Claire Rowell as well as a first appearance for senior Mala Neumann. After a slow start with the Lady Dons missing a few chances the goals finally started to come with two for Alana McCartney, the second courtesy of a great assist from Roemer. Further goals from Mary Beth Heffelfinger, Rowell and Roemer made it 5-0 at the end of the first quarter. The second quarter saw more of the same with further goals from McCartney (2), Caroline Schirmer, Rowell and Heidi Heffelfinger making it 10-0 at the half. In the second half the Dons took the opportunity to rotate time in the water and give the whole squad playing time. Further goals followed for Roemer (2), McCartney and Heidi Heffelfinger leaving the final score at 14-1. The victory was a bit bittersweet, as the Dons learned this week that Senior Zoe Benisek is out for the season with a severe knee injury. This weekend they head to the two-day Amanda McDonald Tournament in Menlo Park where they are defending champions.
The JV team continues dominate its opponents, beating Monte Vista’s JV team 19-4. With 17 Freshmen on the team (out of 23 players) Acalanes looks to be well positioned in the future, and they made another strong impression in this game. Freshman Sara Archer lead all scorers with 5 goals, and her classmates Daylor Williams (4) and Alexa Carter (3) were right behind. With Audrey Cox in the goal the Lady Dons are certainly a formidable opponent.
Dons Acalanes Frosh Sprint to First Win versus Archbishop Riordan 32-22
After sitting out much of the Summer and Fall due to a shoulder injury, the first time Tobias Schwing touched the ball was electric. Picking up a hard-bouncing kick at the 20, Schwing took a couple of moments to secure the ball before veering to the left sideline behind a blue wall of Dons and sprinting 80 yards untouched for an Acalanes TD! The two-point conversion was unsuccessful, making the score Dons 6, Crusaders 0.
The difference in this game, the Don Freshman’s first win, was the overall solid defensive play that the team had been working on all week. On Riordan’s first possession following the Schwing return, the Don’s D held the Crusaders to one first down, and then gave the ball back to the offense when Tyler Murphy sacked the Riordan QB on 4th down.
After reaching deep into Riordan territory, featuring a 9 yard end around by Theo Stoll and a 20 yard bootleg by QB Kyle Bielawski, the drive stalled and the Crusaders took over. Once again, the Don’s D proved staunch with key tackles by Miller Smith, Tyler Murphy and a big stick on a QB scramble by safety Coco Gannon on 4th down. The result gave the Acalanes offense a short field to work with, which was easy pickings for Bielawski, who found Stoll running a short out to the left cone for a 5 yard TD. The two-point conversion again was unsuccessful, making it Dons 12, Crusaders 0.
After the initial Don’s domination, a long kick-off return to the Acalanes 30 yard line gave Riordan back some momentum. Utilizing their bigger running backs, the Crusader’s turned to the power run game and were able to get on the board with a TD and 2-point conversion, making the score Dons 12, Crusaders 8.
The dynamic Don’s offense was not going to let Riordan back in the game that easily, however. On the ensuing possession, Kyle hit wide out Jake Takeuchi down the middle for a 20-yard gain to the Riordan 43-yard line. On the very next play, Bielawski lofted a perfect arching throw hitting Stoll in stride down the left sideline for a 43-yard TD! A quick two-point conversion pass to Takeuchi landed short of the goal line to make it Dons 18, Crusaders 8.
The ensuing kick-off featured much improved coverage and the Crusaders took over at their own 35 yd line. Two consecutive sacks by OLB Miller Smith drove Riordan back to their own 20 and forced a punt deep in their own territory. On the attempted punt, DT Tyler Murphy stormed through the middle and smothered the kick, giving the Don’s a short field once again. The short field was not a challenge for the powerful Don’s offense as Bielawski found WR Andrew Habas on a quick slant for an easy 8-yard Acalanes touchdown! Once again, the two-point conversion fell short, which made the score 24 – 8 Dons, at halftime.
The start of the second half featured more stout defense as Tyler Murphy stripped the Riordan ball carrier and recovered the fumble to give the ball back to the Don’s offense. After a holding penalty moved the Don’s back to the Riordan 45, Bielawski hit Habas on a short curl, that he turned into a ankle breaking, spinning, weaving 55-yard TD, aided by a big downfield block by Theo Stoll. After struggling with two-point conversions earlier on, the Dons turned to the power run game. RT Marcus Julian and RG Nathan Kim, cleared out the right side, and LG Miller Smith pulled and kicked out the OLB, enabling RB Ben Foox to power into the end zone for the successful two point conversion. That was the final score of the third quarter with the Don’s leading 32-8.
The start of the 4th quarter necessitated a QB change b/c of a left shoulder issue with Bielawski. Luckily, WR Andrew Habas was able to step in as an emergency replacement. After a couple of strong runs, a fumble gave the ball back to the Crusaders on the 22-yard line. One play later, Riordan again used their power run game to score and complete the two-point conversion. Don’s 32, Crusaders 16. On the Don’s next possession, they continued their strong running game to drive the ball into Crusader territory. Unfortunately, another fumble gave the ball back to Riordan again at their own 40. Once again Riordan’s power running game resulted in a couple big runs and a long 48-yard TD run. This time though, the defense buckled down and held on the two-point conversion, keeping the Riordan deficit to two scores, Don’s 32, Crusaders 22.With less than two minutes on the clock, the Dons went to the victory formation and ran out the clock, securing their first win of the season! Final score, Dons 32, Crusaders 22.
The Dons were on the road again Friday night, traveling to
Napa for a rematch of last year’s road victory over the Vintage High Crushers. This
year the home team fought off a late Acalanes charge and won 28-20, but the outcome
was in doubt until the game’s final play.
Vintage relies almost exclusively on the run, with the Crushers
attempting only four passes (with one intercepted by Jack Miles) and
finishing with only one completion for nine yards through the air. On play after play, the Crushers ran the ball
against the Acalanes front seven.
The game featured three big yardage scoring plays. Unfortunately for the Dons, two of these – a 73-yard
rushing TD and a 99-yard kickoff return – were by the Crushers.
The Dons’ big scoring play came with 4:44 left in the game with
Acalanes down 28-13. Huchingson
completed a short pass to Lucas Eppinger, who alertly kept the play
alive after attempted tackles by Vintage and ran 50 yards for a Dons touchdown.
Lucas Eppinger Scores a 50-yd TD in the 4th quarter
The Dons got the ball back with less than a minute to go,
and converted passes to Ryan Reilly, Jack Muren and Eppinger to give
quarterback Brady Huchingson the opportunity to throw a 34-yard pass
into the end zone as time expired.
Huchingson’s pass just missed a trio of Dons receivers, and the game
ended 28-20.
Offensive standouts were Lucas Eppinger with 9 receptions for
151 yards and running back Jake Delaney who ran for 81 yards with one
touchdown.
Sixteen different Dons had tackles. The Dons run defense was led by Tommy Thrasher,
Joey Carillo, and Carson Gragg, while Carson Burrill tallied
a sack.
The Dons celebrated their 23-3 season on Sunday at the team banquet
Congratulations to the entire Varsity baseball team and staff on an outstanding season. The Dons’ season: 23-3 overall, undefeated League champions, quarter-finalists in NCS Division 1 playoffs, final MaxPreps ranking of #21 team in California.
All-League and Team awards were announced at Sunday’s team dinner:
Diablo All-League Awards:
League Overall MVP: Nick Kresnak (RHP/3B)
First Team All-League: Logan Hurd (LHP)
First Team All-League: Davis Diaz (SS)
First Team All-League: Nick Bamont (CF)
Second Team All-League: Tommy Thrasher (1B)
Second Team All-League: Brady Huchingson (DH/IF)
Honorable Mention All-League: Eddie Burns (RHP)
Gold Glove Award: Thatcher Hurd (C)
Acalanes Baseball Team Awards:
Team MVP: Nick Kresnak
Defensive Players of the Year: Davis Diaz & Thatcher Hurd
Offensive Player of the Year: Nick Kresnak
Most Improved Players of the Year: Scott Brydon & Nick Bamont
Pitcher of the Year: Entire Varsity Baseball Staff with its combined 1.12 Season ERA (Nick Kresnak, Logan Hurd, Eddie Burns, Michael Castelli, Andrew Peterson)
“Definition of a Don” Award: Tommy Thrasher (team leader in home runs)
“Heart of a Don” Award: Cole Murgia (.368 BA, led the League in stolen bases; inexplicably, missed out on All-League honors)
Congratulations & best wishes to all the seniors: Peter Meade, Will Burleigh, Zack Nelson, Andrew Peterson, Scott Brydon, team manager Ali Ibrahim, and Eddie Burns–who will continue his baseball career at the D1 level as a pitcher at University of San Francisco! Go get ’em, Eddie!
Many thanks to Head Coach Clint Hoover, Asst. Coaches Joe Bettencourt and Connor Hornsby, and Pitching Coach Rob Ellis for their hard work, dedication and the great direction they’ve taken the program in this first season at the helm. Great season!
