Last Friday, St. Joseph Notre Dame High School alumni and NBA standout, Jason Kidd, earned one of Cal’s high honors. The Golden Bears inducted Kidd into their Hall of Dame. His jersey, No. 5, has also been retired at UC Berkeley.
While Cal likes to present his time there as the beginning of his career, Alamedans know Kidd started leaving the competition way behind while playing for St. Joe’s Pilots here in town. With coach Frank LaPorte and his fellow Pilots, Kidd took two consecutive state championships in his high school career.
The St. Joseph Notre Dame (SJND) men’s basketball team capped off its 2015-2016 season with a 55-50 victory over St. Bernard of Playa del Rey in the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Div. V. title game.
The Pilots won the back-and-forth tilt with a total team effort, including crucial made free throws from an unlikely source. SJND came out the gates firing from downtown. The Pilots scored 12 of its 14 first-quarter points off of four 3-pointers. The team would go on to make six 3-pointers. The Pilots held a slim 14-13 lead after the first quarter.
St. Joseph Notre Dame High School’s Pilots have done it again. For the fifth time in the school’s history, the men’s basketball team has been named state champions. Above, Temidayo Yussuf and Lamont Banks congratulate each other while other team members do the same.
Encinal High School (EHS) senior Marion “Kobe” Allen will compete in the state long-jump competition after a qualifying performance at the North Coast Section (NCS) Track-and-Field Meet of Champions Saturday, May 18.
Allen traveled 23’.75” to earn second place in the long jump competition. His distance was a personal record. Twenty-five athletes participated in the competition.
“We are excited for Kobe (Marion),” EHS Athletic Director Kevin Gorham said. “This track team has really excelled this year, and we couldn’t be more proud than to see Kobe qualify.”
The St. Joseph Notre Dame (SJND) Pilots men’s and women’s basketball teams had their seasons end last week in the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) NorCal playoffs.
Women’s Team
The women’s team lost to Salesian College Preparatory (SCP) of Richmond, 55-47, in the opening round of the CIF NorCal Open Division tournament on Feb. 27. The Pilots entered the six-team tournament as the fifth seed. SCP was the four seed.
The Alameda High men’s basketball team won its first NorCal regional title after a thrilling 76-66 overtime victory over St. Mary’s of Stockton at home last Saturday, March 17.
The St. Joseph Notre Dame (SJND) women’s basketball team defeated Arcata High, 90-47, to win the Div. IV North Coast Section (NCS) title Saturday, March 3, at Albany High.
SJND sophomore Malia Mastora scored a game-high 28 points to lead the Pilots over the Tigers. Mastora shot 12-for-17 from the field including 2-for-5 from the 3-point line. SJND also got strong efforts from sophomore Sophie Nilsson who scored 16 points, and junior Zhane Duckett who put up 11 points.
The high school basketball season on the Island came to an end last Saturday, March 18, when the St. Joseph Notre Dame (SJND) women’s basketball team suffered a season-ending 70-30 loss to West Campus of Sacramento. The Pilots advanced all the way to the NorCal Div. IV championship game, but SJND could not keep up with the Warriors in the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) regional title game.
All four basketball teams from Alameda and Encinal high schools were eliminated from the postseason last week.
Alameda
The Alameda men’s basketball team had its season come to a close after a 71-60 loss to Tamalpais High in the North Coast Section Div. II first round on Feb. 21. The Hornets’ season ended after amassing a 19-8 overall record including a 7-3 record in the West Alameda County Conference (WACC) Shoreline League. They finished second in the league.
Part One
The year is winding to a close so it is a good time to review the major feats acheived by Alameda student athletes in their respective sports over the first half of the year.
Basketball
As is often the case the St. Joseph Notre Dame (SJND) men’s basketball team was the premiere basketball team on the Island. The SJND Pilots once again were crowned state champions after they defeated St. Bernard of Playa del Rey 55-50 on March 24, in the California Interscholastic Federation Div. V title game.
