St Joseph Notre Dame High School - Reflections Yearbook (Alameda, CA)

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Ae. ae I IPAM on . = i . Pilots Calvin Byrd, Sophomore, and Rico Lyles, Senior, watch as other teammates fight for the ball. Coach Frank LaPorte anticipates his upcoming battle in ESAL play. Varsity Basketball AG Sports

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New outlook Motivates team This year’s soccer team was different for many reasons. For the first time in SJND history, women and men were com- bined on one team. Also, more students than ever signed up, in fact, more sign-ups than there were uniforms! And this season’s team also had a new philosophy, a new outlook and new talent. “We had a 3-point goal: discipline, unity and toughness,” explained Coach Leon Aksionczyk. “If we had discipline, mental- ly and physically, then we had unity. With unity we had toughness and durability.” The team’s strongest point, according to Junior John Dames, was their spirit. “Most of the time we didn’t mind a loss since we were there mostly to have fun!” Another strength was their defense. Senior Leland McNeely said, “We had a combination of strong fullbacks and a tal- ented line of halfbacks.” And the addition of women added a new dimension and a new strength to the team. “I think having us on the team add- ed a new excitement, even though on the playing field we were all equal,” said Soph Monique Bissonnette. Alex Yann passes the ball to a teammate as the oppo- sition approaches. Ruben Briones heads the ball as the referee watches carefully. Soccer AS, Sports

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— A super team: ys f Mucho Pilots! “Two, two, we want two!” and that’s exactly what the men’s varsity basket- ball team gave the fans everytime they cheered. Once again the Pilots did their school proud. This year’s team started off with a bang by beating the Pilots’ arch-enemy O’Dowd. Guard Jay Williams shot for a basket just before the clock ran out to give the Pilots the one-point win. “'l felt good, not because | made the point but because we beat O’Dowd!” The Pilots were now ready to surge into the remainder of the season with few problems. In fact the team ranked first in the East Bay and held first place in the league. The Pilots were led by Soph Calvin Byrd, but he was far from the only star. Other standouts were the guard tan- dem of Seniors Jay Williams and Ted Langowski, and the solid frontline play of Junior Damion McMiller and Senior Rico Lyles. The team also had a deep bench this year. The talents of Juniors Larry Smith, Ricky Sanchez, La Coby Phillips and Phil Moodie combined with the skills of Seniors Eric Dean, Ken Caughell, Erik Stone and Dante Thornton to lead to Pilot success. The team always had the winning spirit, and this year they added team effort. As Manager Dave Appezzato, Senior, said, “This is the best TEAM we've had since I’ve been here.” Junior Larry Smith looks for another Pilot as they get “What happened to the ball?” asks Junior Damion ready to shoot for two. McMiller in an intense game against St. Mary's. Varsity basketball team back row Co-Manager John Campbell, Rico Lyles, Calvin Byrd, Dante Thornton, Jay Williams, Damion McMiller, Ted Langowski, Phil Moodie and Co-Manager David Appezzato; (front row) La Coby Phillips, Erik Stone, Larry Smith, Ken Caughell, Eric Dean and Ricky Sanchez. Varsity Basketball Sports A 7]