Many teams making deep postseason runs
The fall playoffs are in full swing and a number of Marin teams are still alive in their respective brackets — including a pair of volleyball teams that have advanced all the way to NorCal finals.
Two Marin girls water polo teams picked up section titles over the weekend and are ready to start their own runs through NorCals. The Tam girls tennis team also picked up a section title with a pair of wins on Saturday.
In addition, Marin Catholic’s running back tied a school record for rushing touchdowns as the Wildcats were the lone Marin football team that played last week to advance.
Two other runners made headlines by winning races at the MCAL cross country championships on Wednesday.
Matteo Perez,
Marin Catholic football
The Wildcats were the only one of five Marin teams to win their first section playoff game last week and they did so on the strength of an historic outing by Perez. The junior running back tied a school record by running for five touchdowns in the game and added another score on a reception. Perez had 11 carries for 121 yards and caught two passes for another 39 yards. MC defeated Kennedy (Fremont) 52- 0 and hosts Acalanes in the North Coast Section Division IV semifinals this Saturday.
Maja Layden and Samantha Sternfels, Tam water polo
The Red-tailed Hawks stormed back from a fivegoal deficit to pull out a 1716 overtime win in the NCS D-II title game on Saturday. Layden led the way with six goals and Sternfels was close behind with five of her own. The game was tied 16-16 at the end of regulation before Sternfels provided the winner. Tam hosts Presentation in the NorCal D-III playoffs at 5 p.m. on Tuesday.
Sasha Frey, Drake water polo
Frey scored a hat trick in an NCS D-I title game in which offense was at a premium. Drake pulled out a 6-4 win against James Logan with Frey accounting for half of her team’s scoring. Drake hits the road to face Clovis on Tuesday in the NorCal D-II playoffs.
Kari Geissberger, Marin Catholic volleyball
The Wildcats advanced to their second NorCal Open Division championship game in three years with a three- set win against Archbishop Mitty on Saturday. All three sets ended the same way — with the Wildcats celebrating following a Geissberger kill. The 6-foot, 6-inch senior outside hitter had 14 kills on the night and a pair of emphatic blocks in the third set to end any threat of a Mitty comeback. MC hosts Bishop O’Dowd with a state- title berth on the line at 6 p.m. on Tuesday night.
Caitlin Smith and Kayli Morris, Tam volleyball
Smith and Morris, among others, helped the Redtailed Hawks pick up their first three NorCal wins in program history within the span of five days. Tam hosts the NorCal D-IV final against Aptos at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, getting a near triple double from Morris (15 assists, 11 digs, seven kills) in Saturday’s semifinal against top-seeded Alameda.
Morris also provided 19 assists and eight kills in a win against Pierce. Smith provided strong defense (18 digs), serve receive and serving (three clutch aces down the stretch) against Pierce then tallied 27 digs against Alameda. Smith’s twin sister, Olivia, also averaged over 18 kills per match for the week.
Genevieve Durham, Tam tennis
Durham picked up a pair of crucial victories at No. 3 singles on Saturday, guiding Tam to wins over Amador Valley and Miramonte in the NCS D- I playoffs. Durham’s win against Miramonte was part of a huge rally that saw the Red-tailed Hawks rally for a 4- 3 victory after losing the first three matches.
Hudson Grace, Redwood cross country
Grace won the boys race at the MCAL championships on Wednesday, finishing the course at Indian Valley College in 15 minutes, 24 seconds — 11 seconds ahead of second-place finisher Lyle Rumon of MC.
Gigi Clifford, Marin Catholic cross country
Clifford finished 20 seconds clear of the field to win the girls race at the MCAL championships. Clifford finished in 18:14, comfortably ahead of Redwood’s Helena Janku, who placed second in 18:34.