Chock-full of Division I prospects, Live Oak and Sobrato are poised for what looks like it will be a season to remember for both programs
MORGAN HILL
Showcase tournaments are where elite club soccer players go to write their future. Letters of Intent are their script.
For one weekend, they put the weight of the world on their shoulders and square off against the best competition from around the country, hoping to catch a college scout’s eye.
Megan Rauschnot, Jennae Cambra and Maggie Cropp competed in one two weeks ago. They joined the rest of their DeAnza Force under-17 team in frigid Raleigh, N.C., for the Elite Clubs National League Final Four Showcase, one of the last tournaments of the club season.
All they could talk about was high school. Despite their allegiances — Rauschnot plays forward for Live Oak High School; Cambra and Cropp are Sobrato’s highly touted forward-goalkeeper tandem — the local stars are good friends who this winter will be part of a flagship season for Morgan Hill girls soccer.
“We were talking about it the whole time,” Rauschnot said. “Who’s going to win league? Who’s team is better? It’s actually pretty funny when we get into it.”
There is reason to believe the two programs have fielded their best crop of players since Sobrato High School opened in 2003.
Backed by veterans who went deep in the Central Coast Section playoffs last year, plus a bumper crop of young talent, the Acorns and Bulldogs are clear-cut favorites to win the Mount Hamilton Division championship. If everything falls into place, they could be getting their ring fingers sized in March.
Dual Central Coast Section titles? Anything seems possible.
“This is easily the best team I’ve had at Sobrato by far,” fourth-year Bulldogs coach Paul Nishimatsu said. “In terms of this year, we’re awesome. But when we lose these seniors, we’re still going to be good.”
Tony Vasquez said his Acorns have the most depth they’ve had since 2003-04, when Live Oak shared the Division III crown.
“I think we have just that much talent,” said Vasquez, now in his 12th season at LOHS. “I think experience is the same. We have girls here who have played for State Cup championships, who have played in regionals and have played in some big games, some big-time college showcases.”
That most of the players on both sides grew up competing with and against each other makes this season all the more special.
While club is the “work” portion of their young careers, prep soccer is for pride. A similar relationship exists between Olympic and professional play.
“High school is a lot more fun. It’s just good competition,” said Cropp, who is coming off an all-league sophomore season. “Like with Sobrato and Live Oak; there’s always going to be a good rivalry between us and Live Oak. We push each other in a good way. We both want to be the best, but we want to see the other girls be successful, too.”
Some argue Morgan Hill’s prep talent is spread too thin with two schools. Not in girls soccer. Combined, the programs dress at least 10 players who will likely compete at the next level in several sports.
Cambra, a lightning-quick senior forward who was the 2009-10 Santa Teresa Division MVP, has signed a full-ride scholarship with New Mexico State. Live Oak junior Tiffany Geer, a powerful midfielder with lethal touch, has committed to San Diego State. Both programs compete in NCAA Division I.
Cropp, who this summer was chosen to the Olympic Development Program’s 1994 regional team, and Sobrato seniors Janelle Cisneros (midfielder/forward) and Nika Burnett (midfielder) are being courted by several D-I soccer teams. Senior forward Marissa Benjamin hopes to run track in college next year.
Rauschnot, the Acorns’ scoring leader over the past two years, is being hotly pursued for soccer as well, same with teammates Amanda Morgan (sr. forward) and Sam Riolo (jr., defender). Junior defender Kirsten Doting has drawn scouts’ attention in field hockey.
“We’re really excited just because we have such a talented starting 11,” Morgan said. “We’re going to have a lot of chances to put the ball in the back of the net.
“We’re also excited because we get to play Sobrato twice. That’s going to be really fun. I’ve known Jennae all my life; she’s a great player. They also have a good center defender (Taylor Pencer), who’s been my neighbor since I’ve been, like, 2.”
Burnett, a four-year starter for the Bulldogs, plays alongside Live Oak seniors Kayla Cisneroz (defender) and Selena Braun (goalkeeper) for Vasquez’s club team, Orchard Valley Sting.
“I’ve coached a lot of these girls since they were in under-11s,” Vasquez said. “To see them now — man, I’m getting old. These girls have a bright future ahead.”
Much will be at stake when the Morgan Hill teams meet Jan. 13 and Feb. 8: bragging rights and a vital edge in what promises to be a tight Mount Hamilton race. A year ago, Live Oak barely held off Branham, Leland and Leigh for first place.
“Any one of the top four teams could win it,” said Nishimatsu, whose team capped a thrilling division race to win the Santa Teresa championship in 2009-10.
The last time Sobrato and Live Oak played in the same league was in 2007-08 in the Santa Teresa Division, and they nearly shared the top honor. Despite losing the season battle to the Acorns, the Bulldogs edged their rivals for first place and a playoff berth thanks in part to Cambra’s 19 goals.
Sobrato has not beaten Live Oak. They tied last year followed by a 1-0 Acorns win in 2008. Rauschnot provided the difference, beating Cropp in the second half.
“That has to be the only time I’ve scored on Maggie,” said Rauschnot, now a wrecking-ball like junior. “I can’t score on her to save my life, even in (club) practice.”
Beyond the Mount Hamilton Division, both local teams are poised challenge for CCS supremacy.
Last winter, the Acorns went from underdogs to A-league champs, to within a game of playing for the Division III title. They bowed out in the semifinals, losing 1-0 to eventual champion Santa Cruz.
Live Oak (1-0-1) returns 12 varsity players.
“We have the talent,” Morgan said. “The key is going to be chemistry and being in the right position. You don’t even have to ask about our work ethic.”
The Bulldogs earned their first playoff win in 2009-10 and led 2-0 against top-seeded Los Gatos in the Division II quarterfinals before falling 4-2.
Back in the A league, Sobrato (2-0-1) returns 13.
“We’re going to try and improve, so we can beat teams like (Los Gatos) and go as far as we can,” said Burnett, one of few SHS players who were part of the Bulldogs’ one-win finish in 2008-09. “We think about that game all the time.”
Wherever they go after these next few years, the current Live Oak and Sobrato players will remember this season.
“A lot of these girls are going to play at the top level of competition,” Vasquez said. “It just shows that we can produce some talent here.”
