AW, Redwood boys teams in pole position - Marin Independent Journal

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AW, Redwood boys teams in pole position

Archie Williams’ Sean Chamberlin (27), left, and Terra Linda’s Johan Cifuentes (51) converge on the ball during their game in San Anselmo in January of 2024. ALAN DEP — MARIN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL

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By Ian Ross

iross@marinij.com

With just one week to go in the regular season, the Archie Williams High boys soccer team and the Redwood boys basketball team are sitting pretty in first place in their respective standings. Redwood is still pacing both sports on the girls side.

Elsewhere, the Marin Academy girls soccer team wrapped up the BCL West title following a thrilling 4-3 victory against University on Saturday. The Archie Williams girls soccer team benefitted from a four-goal performance from its top player to clinch an MCAL playoff spot.

The Terra Linda boys basketball team also had reason to celebrate after ensuing it would return to the league playoffs for the first time in more than a decade.

The wrestling action was highlighted as undefeated San Marin pulled out a close dual meet against TL.

Sean Chamberlin, Archie Williams boys soccer >> Chamberlin registered a hat trick in a 5-0 win against Novato on Monday that, combined with a 6-0 win against San Rafael on Wednesday, kept the Peregrine Falcons in first place and brought their scoring tally to 19 goals in their past four MCAL games. Archie Williams needs to secure two points from games this week against Tam and Redwood to wrap up the regular-season title.

Semetri Carr, Redwood boys basketball >> Carr dropped 34 points on San Marin to start the week and help the Giants enter their final game of the regular season alone in first place with a 6-1 record. The Giants face Archie Williams with an opportunity to wrap up the league title on Thursday.

Sarah Farese, Redwood girls soccer >> The league’s leading scorer came through when it mattered most, scoring twice in about a 90-second span as Redwood rallied late for a 2-1 victory at Tam on Thursday. The win kept Redwood in first place and guaranteed the Giants at least a second-place finish and the first-round bye that comes with it. Farese also tied a single-round MCAL record with her 10th goal through seven games. Farese can break that record outright when Redwood closes out the regular season against Archie Williams on Thursday.

Maya Saibel, Redwood girls basketball >> Saibel led the Giants in scoring all three games as Redwood clinched the MCAL regular-season title by winning its first seven league games. Saibel tied for team-high honors with Drew Schultz on 16 points apiece in the most crucial victory of the three — a 54-42 win against third-place San Marin on Tuesday. Saibel scored 17 more points in a victory against Tam then poured in 21 points in a non-league win against Branson on Saturday.

Raya Leikin and Blythe DeGooyer, Marin Academy girls soccer >> Leikin had another strong week with three goals and two assists across two games and DeGooyer scored a late winner as the Wildcats vanquished archrival University in the 79th minute for a 4-3 victory. Leikin scored twice and had an assist to Sadie Goodenough in MA’s 4-0 win against San Domenico to begin the week then scored once and assisted another goal against University. MA secured the BCL West regular-season title when DeGooyer scored the winner against University to keep the Wildcats perfect in league through eight games.

Mari Rode, Archie Williams girls soccer >> Rode put four goals past Novato on Tuesday then added a critical goal in a 2-1 victory against San Rafael on Wednesday as the Peregrine Falcons won both goals to wrap up an MCAL playoff berth. Rode’s big scoring week brought her tally to six goals in six MCAL games, good for second in the league entering the final week.

Nora Snearly, Marin Catholic girls soccer >> Snearly had a goal and an assist as MC scored three second-half goals to rally past Branson 3-1 on Tuesday. The victory kept the Wildcats in the mix for a top-two finish as they close the season with games against Novato and Tam. Snearly also scored twice in a 3-0 win against Pinole Valley on Saturday.

Ben DePalma, Novato boys soccer >> DePalma scored the lone goal of the game in a 1-0 victory against Branson on Wednesday as the Hornets won their first game of the season and kept their MCAL playoff hopes alive. Novato sits three points out of playoff position but closes the season against one of the teams tied for fifth place in MC then a game against San Marin.

David Coronado, San Marin wrestling >> Coronado picked up a crucial victory in the heavyweight match against Terra Linda to secure the dual-meet win for the Mustangs on Wednesday. San Marin led 38-35 entering the final match and Coronado pulled out the win in 90 seconds to keep San Marin undefeated in MCAL duals at 4-0 while TL slipped to 3-1. San Marin, Novato, and Tam face off in a tri-meet at Novato on Wednesday to close the season.

Jake Heravi and Alex Berkowitz, Redwood wrestling >> Heravi and Berkowitz earned tournament wins at 150 at 157 pounds, respectively, to lead Redwood to a 10th-place finish at the Redwood Empire Classic in Ukiah on Saturday. Heravi picked up a 11-10 decision to capture first place while Berkowitz won all three of his matches via pinfall.

Evan Brewster and Bennett Kayser, Terra Linda boys basketball >> Brewster and Kayser both dominated the boards as the Trojans secured a 51-44 victory against San Marin on Friday to clinch an MCAL playoff spot for the first time since the 2011 season. Kayser scored a game-high 18 points and pulled down 12 rebounds. Kayser came up with offensive rebounds and putbacks on three consecutive possessions as part of a personal 8-0 run that pushed TL’s lead to 12 midway through the third quarter. Brewster did a bit of everything — 14 points, 15 rebounds, five block, three assists — and hit two clutch free throws in the final minute after San Marin had pulled to within three points.

Chase Robertson, Branson boys basketball >> Robertson scored 18 points, including a pair of dunks, as The Branson School defeated Marin Catholic 58-48 last Tuesday. Robertson also had six rebounds, two assists, two steals, and two blocks for the Bulls, who sit second in the league standings entering the final week. Branson faces Terra Linda in a critical game for both teams on Tuesday.

Anthony Tajbakhsh, San Rafael boys basketball >> The Bulldogs trailed by two points in the final seconds against Tam on Tuesday then Tajbakhsh hit a 3-pointer from the left wing to lift San Rafael to a 59-58 victory. The win keeps San Rafael alive for the MCAL playoffs as the Bulldogs enter the final week in a sixth-place tie with San Marin. The Bulldogs host the Mustangs at 8:15 p.m. Tuesday at Dominican University in what basically amounts to a playoff game.

Reese Patton, Archie Williams girls basketball >> Patton led the Peregrine Falcons three times last week as they won all four games put themselves in great shape to make the MCAL postseason. Patton scored 17 points in the key game against Novato which helped the Peregrine Falcons move up into fourth place in league. Patton also scored 14 and 13 points, respectively, in non-league wins against Sonoma Academy and Vallejo.