This 2011-2012 school year has seen a few epic athletic contests for Chowchilla Union High School sports teams, like the night before Halloween when our varsity volleyball team defeated Yosemite in five games to take a share of the North Sequoia League title &#x97; or our varsity girls and boys basketball teams swept Washington Union in the Walter Wright Gymnasium for the first time since anyone can remember.</p><p>Last Thursday night inside Henry Massaro Stadium it was our varsity and JV boys soccer teams sweeping Kerman to both win NSL Championships. Congratulations to our JV boys team for a 9-0-1 regular season to win their championship. For the varsity, it was Kerman standing in the way of our first NSL title since 2010 and the team that had given CUHS their only loss of the season. Fortunately for Chowchilla, Kerman had tied Sierra during the previous week which set up a winner-take-all contest on Thursday for the NSL title. As with all their contests, the game was very physical and emotional and the first half ended with a 0-0 tie.</p><p>"We set four defenders back instead of our usual three the whole night," stated head varsity coach Martin Gomez. "I knew that someone on the team would step up with Luis being out &#x85; and they did." Coach Gomez was referring to leading goal scorer Luis Espinoza, whose foot was broken the last time these two teams played in Kerman.</p><p>That someone turned out to be Edgar Rodriquez, who shot a lightning bolt off his right foot around the 20 minute mark of the second half to give CUHS a 1-0 lead. Their stellar defense hung on from there, as CUHS outlasted Kerman for the win. Chowchilla finished with a 9-1 NSL record, besting Kerman (8-1-1) by half a game in the standings.</p><p>Our boys soccer team will enjoy a first-round playoff bye and play the winner of the Shafter vs. Arvin game. Shafter is the No. 7 seed, finishing 11-8-5 overall and second in the South Sequoia League at 7-2-1. Arvin is the No. 10 seed, finishing 8-10-3 overall and third in the South Sequoia League at 5-4-1. Thursday's playoff soccer action begins at 6:00 p.m. in Henry Massaro Stadium, so please come out and support our boys soccer team as they make a title run at a Valley Championship. Ironically, Kerman is the No. 3 seed and if both they and we win on Thursday, we will host them in the semifinal match on Tuesday, Feb. 21.</p><p>Athletic Foundation News and Notes: A reminder that the Chowchilla Athletic Foundation Hall of Fame Dinner is Saturday, Feb. 18, at the Portuguese Hall on 3rd Street in Chowchilla. This year's inductees are CAF founder and 10-year president Alex Pittz; recently retired teacher, coach and administrator Mike Little; and community philanthropist Henry Massaro. Tickets are $45 each and available from any high school coach, CAF board member or from me.</p><p>AD Quote of the week: "This means a lot to me, our players and our program. We could not have played better" &#x97; Head varsity soccer coach Martin Gomez regarding their win against Kerman last Thursday.