8th Grade Highlanders Defeat Orinda in 3

The Highlanders fought hard to win it in 3 games over Orinda: 13-26, 25-23 and 15-11.

Ready to receive

Serving it up!

Strategy session

8th Grade Scots Volleyball Defeats Tough Willard in 3

The PMS 8th grade Scots won their last game of the season against Willard. The won the first game by a close score of 25-23. Willard then came on strong and Piedmont llost 10-25 in the 2nd game. The Scots then regrouped and won 15-13 to take the match. Great job!

Upcoming PMS Volleyball

Come out and see some of Piedmont Middle School's volleyball teams play at home this week.

Wednesday

8th Grade Volleyball - Scots vs. Doris Eaton	Wed, 24 Sep, 2014 4:00 PM	Morrison Gym
7th Grade Volleyball - Scots vs. Doris Eaton	Wed, 24 Sep, 2014 4:00 PM	Morrison Gym
7th Grade Volleyball- Highlanders vs. Doris Eaton	Wed, 24 Sep, 2014 4:00 PM	Morrison Gym

Thursday

7th Grade Volleyball- Highlanders vs. Orinda	Thu, 25 Sep, 2014 4:00 PM	Morrison Gym
8th Grade Volleyball - Scots vs. Orinda	Thu, 25 Sep, 2014 4:00 PM	Morrison Gym

8th grade Highlanders first loss vs Moraga

Joaquin Moraga Intermediate handed the Highlanders their first loss in a home match last Monday. JM jumped out quickly with a strong 15-25 win. In the second game PMS fought hard but was unable to stop JM from winning a thriller 26-28.

Next up is a home match vs Orinda middle school at Morrison on Thursday, September 25th. Come out and root the girls on!

Highlanders 8th Grade over Stanley in 3, King in 2

The 8th grade Highlanders continued on their strong play with two more wins this week.

On Tuesday the Highlanders traveled to Lafayette to take on a strong Stanley Middle School team. After dropping game one 12-25, the Highlanders rallied to defeat Stanley 25-19, 16-14 in the final two to take the set.

The girls had another win vs King middle school on Thursday at Morrison gym.

The girls won 25-21 in a close first match, then solidly won 25-11 on strong play including great serving and hitting.

Foothill No Match for PMS 7th Grade Volleyball

Piedmont's 7th graders defeated Foothill on Monday night at Morrison Gym 25-12 , 25 -18.

The teams then played a "fun" match which Foothill won 15-11. Next up is a Tuesday away game vs Stanley MS in Lafayette.

8th Grade Highlanders Volleyball Wins Home Opener

The Highlanders came out strong vs the Foothill Griffins winning in 2 games, 25-12, 25-17 at Morrisson Gym on Monday night. Piedmont had strong serving, consistent defense, and great teamwork.

Bella R with a strong serve in game 2

Highlander Pride

Next up for the 8th grade Highlanders are Stanley Middle School on Tuesday, 16 Sept in Lafayette, then they return home for a 4pm match vs King Middle School at Morrison Gym. Come out and root the girls on!

Fall 2014 PMS Sports Update!

Piedmont Middle School Fall Sports Schedules

Register online or by phone (510) 420-3070

Cross Country: 6th - 8th Grades 8/25 - 11/6. Mon - Thu, 3:15 - 4:45 pm

Volleyball: 6th Gr. Developmental Volleyball - Sept. 8 - Oct. 23

Monday, Wednesday and Thursday 3:30 - 5:00 pm

7th/8th Gr. Traveling (PMS Students Only) Sept. 8 - Oct. 24

Pre-Season Clinic Aug. 26 and 27 3:15 - 5:30

Monday - Thursday 3:15 - 6:00 pm

Flag Football: 6th Gr. Intramural on Sept. 8 - Oct. 23

Evaluations Sept. 3 and Sept.4 3:30 - 5: 00

Mon - Thu 3:30 - 5:00 pm

7th/8th Gr. Traveling (PMS Students Only) Sept. 3 - Oct. 21

Practice: Monday - Thursday 6:15 - 7:30 am Games 4:00 pm

Basketball: 6th Intramural

6th Gr. - Dec 1. - Feb 7 6:00 - 9:00 pm Sat. TBA

6th Evaluations Nov. 3 6:30 - 8:30

7th /8th Gr. Traveling  (PMS Students Only)

Practice and Games Mon. - Thurs. 3:15 - 6:00 pm

Girls - Oct 27 - Jan. 29      Boys - Dec 1 - Mar. 19

Mandatory Evaluations 6:30 - 8:30 pm

Girls Oct. 22 and Oct. 23   Boys Nov. 12 and Nov. 13

Girls 7th Grade Highlanders Finish Regular Season 11-0

The seventh grade Highlanders finished their regular season undefeated, with a record of 11-0, winning the majority of those games by more than 20 points. The Highlanders played Moraga, Albany, Martinez and Longfellow (Berkeley) Middle Schools twice each, and Orinda, Stanley, and Lincoln (Alameda) once.

Working with coaches Drew Nash and Mo Bowie, the Highlanders showed off their skills and their speed throughout the season. Team members included Gracie Ellis, Ashley Gao, Gabrielle Garcia, Maeve Gilbert, Erin Hong, Julie Huffaker, Frannie Lahey-Teare, Maxine Miller, Erin Sturdivant, Zoe Rickard, Megan Tang, and Emily Yu.

7th Grade Highlanders Take 3rd Place

Playing strong through three games during finals week, the 7th grade Highlanders went 2-1 in the end-of-season tournament, capping their 11-0 regular season with a third-place trophy.

On Tuesday, the Highlanders faced a Benicia team they hadn’t met in regular-season play. Despite a good overall effort, and a particularly strong game from point guard Gracie Ellis, the Highlanders were unable to match Benicia’s strength and came up short, with a score of 37-25. (Benicia went on to win the tournament.)

On Thursday, the Highlanders prevailed against an energetic Orinda team. Guest coach Parker kept the defense moving and the Highlanders won a narrow victory, setting them up for the third-place battle.

Friday’s game for 3rd place against Martinez was by far the Highlanders’ best game of the
week, with impressive defense all around and a balanced offensive effort. In an exciting
game on Martinez’s home court, Gracie Ellis led the scoring with 6 points and Frannie
Lahey-Teare with 4; Guppy Garcia, Maeve Gilbert, Megan Tang, and Julie Huffaker each
contributed a bucket.

On the defensive end, Frannie Lahey-Teare had several steals and blocked shots; Maxine Miller and Zoe Rickard also forced turnovers while Erin Hong used her speed to thwart the Martinez offense. Emily Yu and Ashley Gao were strong on the boards with several rebounds each, as was Maeve Gilbert. Erin Sturdivant and Zoe Rickard sparked the offense and were in the right place at the right time. The Highlanders’ showed real team play and good ball movement throughout, and ended up with a 19-16 win. The referees named Gracie Ellis one of five all-tournament MVPs.

PMS Defense Stifles St. Theresa

February 04, 2014 - 7th Grade Basketball - St. Theresa School at Piedmont Middle School.

St. Theresa had the first possession but Piedmont applied tough defense via a full court press and held St. Theresa scoreless for the first 4 1/2 minutes of the game.  Ethan Croley began to take control in the paint on the offensive and defensive end in addition to early offensive production from Kieran Linnane and Darryl Tjogas.  Isaiah Campbell and Julian Lopez each contributed 3 point baskets as well.  Piedmont lead by 10 at the end of the 1st quarter.      

The 2nd quarter began with a 3 point basket by Dylan Han, while guards Campbell, Owen Levinson and Justin Casey continued to distribute the ball effectively on the offensive end while applying pressure on the defensive end.  Julian Lopez made a back door pass to Casey who converted the basket with the half ending St. Theresa 15 Piedmont 25.

The 3rd quarter was scoreless for the first 3 minutes until Joe Sassi was fouled in the paint but converted the basket.  Levinson then made a back door pass to Casey who converted the play and had a few steals.  Piedmont then applied a stout defense for the remainder of the quarter, with rebounding from Croley, Linnane and Tjogas, holding St. Theresa to only 2 points overall in the 3rd quarter.  No doubt the best defensive quarter of the season for Piedmont.

Piedmont's strong defensive front continued to stymie the St. Theresa offense in the 4th quarter while the Piedmont offense continued to roll.  Campbell driving to the basket and converting, Ian Joseph lay up, Campbell steal for a lay up, Joseph 3 point basket finishing with a Lopez steal and pass to Casey for a lay up. 

Piedmont, now 3-4 on the season, finished the game on the winning side with a final score St.Theresa 21 Piedmont 46.  Piedmont's Ethan Croley led all scorers with 10 points, Isaiah Campbell 7 and Justin Casey 6.

Go Highlanders!

Piedmont loses thriller to Stanley

Stanley 44, Piedmont 41

The first period was a defensive battle, which ended with Stanley ahead 7-6. Ethan Croley and Joe Sassi played strong defense and controlled the boards, while Owen Levinson demonstrated some nifty ballhandling skills.

Piedmont went into the half with an 18-16 lead, with more good defense leading to layups and other easy baskets. Julian Cortez-Lopez scored two baskets, and Ian Joseph and Justin Casey pushed the ball up court after turnovers.

Stanley started hot in the third quarter, hardly missing any shots in amassing a 29-20 lead. But Piedmont stormed back, led by Isaiah Campbell’s ballhandling and penetration, and trailed by just 32-27 at the end of the period.

The fourth quarter seesawed back and forth, with Piedmont pulling as close as 1 point. Campbell continued to drive, with assists to Darryl Tjogas and Dylan Han for key baskets. In the end, Stanley hit a few clutch foul shots to put the game away.

Campbell and Tjogas led the scoring with 8 points apiece; Campbell had 3 assists; and Croley and Sassi each had 6 rebounds.

7th Grade Highlanders Strong Against Head Royce

Piedmont 43, Head Royce 32

Piedmont got back on the winning track with a hard-fought victory over Head Royce. After a close first half, Piedmont broke the game open late in the second half with tenacious defense and timely shooting.

The teams traded baskets in the first half, which ended with Piedmont up 22-20. Isaiah Campbell led the offense with several assists, while Joe Sassi scored 4 points. Ethan Croley anchored the defense, swatting away several shots, while Ian Joseph and Dylan Han played tough on the perimeter. Justin Casey used his blinding speed to penetrate and draw fouls, while Julian Cortez-Lopez launched several long-range jumpers.

Piedmont dominated in the second half, with Casey distributing the ball and Owen Levinson knocking down several jumpers, including two 3-pointers. Levinson, Kieran Linnane, and Darryl Tjogas put on a passing clinic in the half court offense, and left with Piedmont up 28-20 late in the 3^rd quarter. The Highlanders extended the lead over the next few minutes, with Sassi and Croley patrolling the paint and Joseph and Campbell breaking the Head Royce press for several easy layups.

Campbell and Levinson led the scoring with 10 points each. Sassi and Croley each secured 8 rebounds, while Joseph had 5 assists.

7th Grade Basketball - Piedmont Middle School Highlanders at Willard Middle School

The 7th grade Piedmont Highlanders opened their 2014 season against Willard Middle School in Berkeley.

The game began with Piedmont winning the opening jump ball and was a nice defensive battle at the start. Piedmont initiated a full court press during the 1st quarter and the score reflected the tough defense on both ends of the floor with a tied score of 7-7 at the end of the 1st quarter.  

In the 2nd quarter Piedmont executed nice ball rotation and player movement without the ball which created easy scoring opportunities for Piedmont which they capitalized on.  Ethan Croley, Kieran Linnane, Joe Sassi, Darryl Tjogas and Kieran Linnane contributed heavily on the offensive and defensive boards with each scoring as well.  Willard countered with a couple of 3 point baskets and the 1st half came to a close with Piedmont leading 19-16.

The 3rd quarter began with Willard having possession of the ball.  Piedmont's stout defense and continued execution of their offense began to open up the game.  Justin Casey initiated some of the offense and the 3rd quarter ended with a fast break by Ian Joseph who passed to an open Owen Levinson who converted the lay up putting Piedmont ahead 36-22.

The 4th quarter offered more of Piedmont's offensive threat and defensive prowess with 3 point baskets by Ian Joseph and Julian Lopez and a nice back door play from Isaiah Campbell to Dylan Han with a final score of Piedmont 52 Willard 27.   

In all, Piedmont held all of the Willard players who scored to single digits while Piedmont's Isaiah Campbell led all scorers with 10 points, Ian Joseph and Julian Lopez had 7 points a piece. 

Go Highlanders! 

PMS Cross Country Girls Teams Win League Titles

The Piedmont Middle School cross country team was in action this past week competing in season ending league championship meets. For the first time in team history, the team competed in the Southern Alameda County Middle School League championship held at Canyon Middle School in Castro Valley. Schools in this league are located primarily in the San Leandro, Hayward, Union City and Castro Valley areas. 

The 6th grade girls’ team rolled to a decisive win with a perfect score and won the team title in thiscategory. This was the second consecutive year for a PMS 6th grade girls team to win a league title. Piedmont girls took the first six places and had 8 girls in the top 10 finishers, and 12 girls in the top 16. Leading the way for the girls was Josie Gross-Whitaker in a time of 6:39 for the one mile distance while Maggie Black was a close runner-up in 2nd place in 6:40 and in 3rd place was Maria Delrosario-Chan in 6:45. On the 6th grade boys side, by a razor thin margin, the team lost by 1 point, taking second place. The first finisher was Josh Berg in 6th place and a time of 6:36, with Jayden Lee and Max Podell capturing 8th and 9th places respectively. In other races held at this meet, Zoe Torok won the JV girls race, and the Piedmont “B” varsity girls’ team place 3rd and the “B” varsity boys’ team was 5th with many of the team members earning a medal for finishing in the top 10 for their grade level.

In addition, Piedmont entered its “A” 7 & 8th grade varsity boys and girls teams in the East Bay league championship meet held at Kennedy Grove Park in El Sobrante. Piedmont was the host school, putting on the meet for the other schools in the league. The Piedmont girls’ team has won this league title two consecutive years and was looking to “threepeat,” something only one other league school has accomplished. During the regular season, the Piedmont 7 & 8th grade girls had shown both quality and depth in convincing fashion and were the favorites going into the championship meet.

This team was not to be denied and against some of the best school teams in the area, won easily by placing 5 girls in the the top eight finishers, and had 8 girls among the top 15 runners, a truly dominating performance by these ladies. The top runner for Piedmont, as she has been all season, was 7th grader Erin Hong in 3rd place in a time of 8:39 for the 1.25 mile distance. Piedmont runners captured 5th through 8th places in the standings to seal the team title as the first 5 finishers across the line and their place determines the team score, with low point total winning. Margo Donahue, 7th grade, in her first year of cross country came in 5th, followed by Clarissa Lam another 7th grader also in her first year of cross country   in 6th place. Ellie Coleman, 8th grade, who also was a top ten finisher last year, was the seventh place runner and rounding out our scoring was Elie Cole in 8th place and she also is a 7th grader.  For the boys in their championship race, they came close but didn’t quite have enough runners upfront in the pack to win, placing 3rd in a field of 15 teams. Leading the way as he has all season was Lorand Cheng, a 7th grader, who placed 8th in a time of 8:26. Just missing out on a top 10 finish, was 7th grader Aiden Dixon in 11th place and Toby Fischer an 8th grader in 12th place. Rounding out our top five runners was 7th grader Ethan Argue in 18th place and Walter Teitelbaum in 27th place.

7th Grade Highlanders Volleyball Takes Home Trophy

The Highlanders finished their season with a strong performance at the Foothill Invitational Volleyball Tournament. Piedmont started as the "wild card" with a play-in bid against host Foothill last Friday, defeating them in two games. Next, the Highlanders dropped a match to #1 seed Benicia on Monday, but bounced back on Tuesday to defeat Joachin Moraga 25-10, 27-25.


On Wednesday they beat Orinda Intermediate 25-15, 25-17 in the early match, then beat Martinez in three 25-23, 20-25, 15-6 in the late match. That pair of wins gave the Highlanders a spot in the semi-finals on Thursday.

Piedmont faced a strong Stanley team that earlier in the season handed the girls one of only three losses in the regular season, a close match that went to three games. The team didn't let that history affect them, coming out hitting in game one for a dominating 25-5 win. Stanley came back in game two with an excellent serving performance, jumping out to a 21-5 lead. The Highlanders fought back and made it close in a 25-17 loss. For the final game, the lead went back and forth, with Stanley pulling ahead at the end for a 15-9 win.

The Highlanders took home 3rd place, a big trophy, medals, and a bunch of happy smiles.

Megan, Camille, Sadie, Ella, Rachel, Maeve back row, Bella in the front.

Highlanders 8th Grade Takes on Martinez in Tournament

Tuesday the PMS 8th grade girls played a tough Martinez team. Piedmont played well in the first game but came up short 25-12. They lost momentum in the second game, hampered by a lack of subs (only 6 girls for the match), losing 25-7.

The match was highlighted by energetic play by Casey who played her best match of the tournament, and a ball saved off the net by Nicole and Ruby.

Despite the difficult loss, the team was able to shake it off and "hang out" after their last team meeting of the season.

8th grade Highlanders Play Strong, Run out of Steam vs Albany

Piedmont and Albany were evenly matched through 13 points, then Albany pulled away for the win in the first game. Piedmont again started well, but was unable to keep pace in the second game.

Strong serving from Nicole (5 points in a row to start 1st game), Gaby, and Lian.

 

Great play at the net from Ruby, setting by Lian and Nicole, all around play from rest of team.

Highlanders 7th grade Volleyball over Moraga in Tournament Play

The Highlanders continued their strong play in the Foothill 7th grade tournament, defeating Joaquin Moraga in two games, 25-10 and 27-25.

They advance into to the next round vs either Stanley Middle School or Orinda Intermediate.

8th grade Highlanders split a pair of matches in final week

10/28 vs Dorris Eaton

The Highlanders lost in 2 games 25-16 and 25-17. After building a lead in both games, they couldn't hold it against a strong comeback from Dorris Eaton. Despite outcome, the team showed great teamwork. Strong trio of Lian Call digging, Nicole setting and Ruby Perkins hitting.

10/28 at Prospect Sierra

Piedmont won easily in two games.

Nicole serves

Lian, Ruby, and Nicole

Clarke serves

Highlanders defeat host Foothill in Volleyball Tournament

Rivera with another strong serve

Creighton smashes it

In the first game of the Foothill volleyball tournament, Piedmont defeated the "other team in purple", host Foothill 25-18, 25-8. 

Piedmont started out strong and built a nice lead, but Foothill fought back and made game one close.

Camille Creighton, Rachel Elliot, Megan Tang, Bella Rivera,, and Maeve Gilbert all had nice serve runs.

In game two the Highlanders didn't allow Foothill an opening. In addition to strong serving from the entire team, there was excellent defensive back-row play from Sadie Olcott, Ella Lee, and Megan Tang. Gilbert, Elliot, and

Creighton also were hitting well in game two for the win.

The Highlanders take on Benicia Middle School at 4pm on Monday at Foothill in the next round of the tournament.

.

XC Finishes Season vs Head Royce, 9 also run at MLK

This past week there was another first for the team as on Tuesday we ran in a meet at Joaquin Miller Park. The meet was hosted by Head Royce and Piedmont by far had the largest number of runners of any team. The race took place in Woodminster Bowl, which has been the site of cross country races in the East Bay for many decades. It is a venue used by many school for their cross country races. This meet was different than previous ones in that all the girls ran together in one race and then all the boys, regardless of grade. In addition, the race distance was a bit longer that what we usually compete at, 1.5 miles. The course is very viewer friendly and a picturesque setting for a cross country race. Official results from this meet are not yet available but will be posted to our website when they are:

http://www.pmscc.com/meet-results

The first race was the girls and Piedmont runners led from the beginning. Both Erin Hong and Clarissa Lam, both 7^thgraders, quickly separated themselves from the field and pushed the pace the entire way. This was Erin’s 3^rdcross country race in recent days, as on Friday she ran Mt. Sac in Southern California (2 miles and finished 11^th in the sweepstakes race for middle school girls) and on Sunday did a 3K race at Woodminster where she finished in 2^nd place. As both girls went through the meadow their final time, Erin had a very slim lead over Clarissa. Both girls were working hard, and in the final sprint to the tape Erin edged out Clarissa by the narrowest of margins. Both girls broke the course record for this meet, with Erin being the record holder due to her win. In 3^rdplace, and surprising the field, was 6^th grader Maggie Black who ran a very strong race and has continued to improve as the season has progressed. Other 6^th grade girls in our top five team finishers were Josie Gross-Whitaker in 4^thplace overall, Fiona Hunter in 5^th place, Maria Del Rosario-Chan in 8^th place, and Sophia Zalewski in 19^th place. Space does not allow me to list all the 6^thgrade girls but they showed a lot of “grit” and heart running with the older girls and a distance that for them is a bit longer than their other races. It should be noted that Piedmont girls took places 1 through 14, an impressive showing of our team talent across the board.

On the boys side, Piedmont runners also did very well and and garnered five places in the top 10 finishers. In 2^nd place was Lorand Cheng and he was closely followed by Sam Reynolds and Ethan Argue in 3^rd and 4^th  place respectively. Our other top ten finishers were Toby Fischer in 6^th place and Andrew Stoddard in 9^th. Just finishing out of a top 10 spot was Dylan Thayer in 11th.  In addition, several 6th grade boys finished in the top half of the race. Our top five finishers were Josh Berg in 27th place overall, Colby Bookfield in 29^thplace, Max Podell in 32^nd place, and Timothy Taylor in 34^thplace. 

To view more pictures from this race see:

https://picasaweb.google.com/leonardmgoldman/20131024#

On October 24, nine PMS runners ran in the meet at MLK in Berkeley. In the 6^th grade boys race, Timothy Taylor ran strong the entire way and finished in 5^th place a time of 6:27 for one mile. In addition, both Cameron Davis and Daniel Kretzer ran a solid races, hung with the other runners the entire way and finished in 34^th and 41^st places respectively and their times were 7:14 and 7:30. On the 6^th grade girl’s side, Ella Phillips was our sole entry and she ran well finishing in 50^th place and a time of 9:00, and I think she had a smile on her face the entire time.

Our lone entrant in the 7 & 8thgrade race was 7th grader Julia Huffaker who finished a very respectable 28th place in a time of 8:42. In the 7&8th grade boys race the runners were Ethan Argue (23rd) in 7:24, Sam Reynolds (44th) in 7:53, Darryl Tjogas (45th) in 7:54, and Zack Pine (71st) in 8:41. This was our last regular season meet and we limited participants on purpose to those who needed this meet for three regular season meets.

XC Strong at Bancroft in San Leandro

On Wednesday, for the first time since our program began, PMS in a regular season meet hosted by a school in the Southern Alameda Country League, Bancroft Middle in San Leandro. This is part of a trial effort this year to compete with schools in different leagues to allow our runners a variety of opportunities at different venues. Our runners did extremely well in the meet and enjoyed running on a flat surface and fast course with the only obstacle a hay bale to jump over.

In the 6th grade girls race, a very talented group of runners from Canyon Middle took the top places but we did place two runners in the top 10, Maria Delrosario-Chan in 6th place with a time of 6:51 and Marta Symkowick in 7th place and a time of 6:52. Also, running a good race was Sophia Zalewiski in 13th place, 7:07, and right behind her in 15th place was Zazie Huml in 7:11, and Kaia Kim in 16th place and a time of 7:12. We had one other runner finish in the top 20, Samantha Castro was 19th in a time of 7:22. A total of 12 - 6th grade Piedmont girls competed in the meet. Again, I apologize for not being able to specifically name every Piedmont runner who took part in the meet. Full results are available on our website: http://www.pmscc.com/meet-results

For the boys, Piedmont 6th grade boys also had two runners in the top 10, Colby Brookfield in 8th place and a time of 6:36 and Kihiro Lambert in the same time (a photo finish) with a 9th place overall. They were closely followed by Bruno Bridger in 13th place and a time of 6:44. Our 4th team finisher was Ben Nicolas in 28th place and a time of 7:19 and 5th team finisher was Matthew Sprague in 31st place and his time was 7:27. There were also 12 - 6th grade boys in the race and it was a beautiful Fall day to be doing a cross country race. Note, since this was a new course, our first place team finishers, are automatically the PMS school course record-holders for this venue.

In the 7^thgrade girls’ race, Piedmont placed 5 runners in the top 10 with Margo Donahue leading the way in first place and a time of 5:59 for one mile. She was one of the few girls in the short history of this meet to break 6:00 minutes for this distance and led the race from the beginning. In 5^th place was Elie Cole, who has been a consistent top 10 finisher in a time of 6:27, and right behind her in 6^th place was Frannie Lahey-Teare in 6:39. Running in her first race of the season and coming back strong was Naomi Hollinger in 8^thplace and a time of 6:46. Our fifth team finisher was Veda Skatter in 10^th place and a very fine time of 6:54. 

In the 7^thgrade boys’ race, and running in his first race of the season, Ethan Argue demonstrated his potential as a runner, by surprising the field and winning the race in a time of 5:45. In fact, he was just 7 seconds off the course record of 5:36 and led almost the entire race. Piedmont had seven runners in the top 13. Finishing in 4^th place was Aiden Dixon in 6:08, Andrew Stoddard in 6^thplace in 6:10, Dylan Thayer in 7^th place in 6:13, Ryan Fitzgerald in 8^th place and 6:16, Max Rivera in 10^th place with a time of 6:28, and Luke Anderson in 13^th place and a time of 6:41. 

The next to last race was 8^th grade girls and again Piedmont fielded a very strong group of runners with Ellie Coleman pulling away and opening a gap at the end, with a winning time of 5:54. She was the only 8^th grade girl to break 6 minutes in this race and again joined a very elite group of girls to run under 6 minutes. Piedmont runners also took places 6 through 10, with Georgie Please in 6:24, Sofia Barker in 6:26, Eva Hunter in 6:27, and Minnie Cooper in 6:47 respectively. In addition, Rose Eisenbach had a top 20 placing in 15^th with a time of 6:56.

The final race of the day was 8^th grade boys, and we had three boys finish in the top 13. In 8^th place and continuing his season long strong performance was Toby Fischer in 8^thplace and a time of 6:12. Also, running well and showing good team work were Walter Teitelbaum and Reece Proctor in 12th and 13th place respectively in the same time of 6:17. 

Thanks to Roberto Castro, pictures from the meet can be found at this link, 6^th grade races are at the beginning of the album: https://picasaweb.google.com/104706450003770247974/Bancroft101613?authkey=Gv1sRgCPPNtNq7vtXJigE&feat=email#

7th grade Scots football defeats Helms

A huge and very athletic Helms Middle School flag football team from San Pablo showed up to Coaches Field Thursday looking very much capable of, and intent on, handing the Highlanders their 4th consecutive loss. The boys from PMS, however, had other ideas.  In spite of going against a line that ranged from 200 to 240 lbs, and against a very fast and accurate quarterback who stood at least 6', and weighed 190 from Helms, PMS simply played big and won going away.  

A combination of short yardage runs, intermediate passes, and one bomb to (#3) from (QB), kept Helms playing catch up all day.  Runs like the one seen here by (#24) were the meat and potatoes of the PMS offense scheme.  

On defense, physics were defied as a clearly outclassed and hugely outweighed PMS line outwitted the bigger, stronger and frankly more ferocious Helms' rushing attack. Sacks were few and, given plenty of time to run its offense, the Highlanders landed their first victory 24 -12.

(front) Patrick Conn, Connor Gillikin, Darryl Tjogas, Ethan DiRienzo, Ren Whitney

(back) Henry Cooper, Coach Flores, Carvel Tefft, Zachary Pine, Rex Peters, Ben Williamson

8th Grade Scots Volleyball Beats Orinda and Willard

9/30 vs Orinda

Scots win in two straight games: 25-22 and 26-24.

The Scots are a steadily improving team who had almost all their players (8 of 9) for the first time in several weeks. They showed toughness as they held off Orinda in two close games. Consistent play and contributions from the whole team were the order of the day, with clutch serves from Gabby Brown and Lian Call  completing the win.


10/3 vs Willard

The Scots won 25-19 and 25-13. Strong play from Brina Bodnar, Casey Kama and Ruby Perkins led the Scots team effort to a convincing match win over Willard.

Piedmont XC Strong in Orinda on New Course

The course at Orinda was significantly different from previous years, with the kids running on the hillside. 

 

On the 7 & 8^th grade side, it was another impressive showing for the girls team across the board as Piedmont placed 6 girls in the top 10, and had a total of 20 girls in the race. Finishing in 2^nd place and giving the winner a very close race was Erin Hong in a new 7^thgrade girls record for the Orinda location is a time of 7:57. In 3^rdplace was 7^th grader Margo Donahue in a time of 8:12 and she was closely followed by Ellie Coleman, 8^th grader, in 5^thplace and a time of 8:23. Rounding out top ten finishers for Piedmont were Clarissa Lam for 6^th place and a time of 8:28, Elie Cole in 7^th place and a time of 8:32, and then Eva Hunter in 10^th place and a time of 8:44. I would also like to mention Lily Kevilled who finished in 15^th place and a time of 9:04 and Cece Garofoli in 19^th place and a time of 9:11.

On the 7 & 8^th grade boys side, our first finisher in the combined standings was 8^th grader Toby Fischer in 11^th place and a time of 8:02. Our other top five finishers were all 7^th graders with Ryan Fitzgerald coming in 15th place in a time of 8:08, also credited with the same time in 16^th place was Aiden Dixon. Rounding out the Piedmont top five runners was Mitch Curtis in 24^th place, 8:23 and Dylan Thayer in an identical time and 25^th place. A total of 13 - 7& 8^th grade boys ran in the meet.

The placings for the 6th graders who took part are below with the finish in parenthesis:

6th grade Boys

Josh Berg (5)

Jayden Lee (8)

Kihiro Lambert (18)

Benji Kostroun (30)

Bruno Bridger (31)

Cutter Mitchell (39)

Alan Rossi (74)

Tamir Menahemy (87)

Burke St Claire (89)

6th grade Girls

Maggie Black (4)

Sophia Zalewski (9)

Kaia Kim ( 17)

Samantha Castro (19)

Emma Paterson ( 37)

Willow Faust (38)

Adrienne Chan (42)

A few pictures from the meet can be found at this link:

https://picasaweb.google.com/leonardmgoldman/OrindaMeetOnOctober72013#

Complete results: http://www.pmscc.com/meet-results