Berkeley Voice/El Cerrito Journal Around the Horn

O'Dowd, Albany advance to semifinals

The Bishop O'Dowd girls volleyball team swept Analy 25-16, 25-16, 25-17 in a North Coast Section Division III quarterfinal match on Nov. 10 to advance to a semifinal matchup with Albany on Nov. 14. Results of that match were unavailable at press time. Either Bishop O'Dowd or Albany has won four of the past five NCS Division III titles. In the Dragons' quarterfinal win, Kyle Carlson had 21 digs, Brianna Karsseboom slammed 14 kills and Sophia Mar passed for 23 assists.

-- Staff

SJND, Head-Royce reach semifinals

The St. Joseph Notre Dame and Head-Royce girls volleyball teams won two matches apiece last week to move on and face each other in the North Coast Section Division V semifinals on Nov. 14. Results of that match were unavailable at press time. After a three-game sweep of Sonoma Academy on Nov. 7, the Pilots outlasted University 25-14, 20-25, 25-18, 23-25, 15-7 on Nov. 10. Phoebe Grunt produced 19 kills, 12 blocks and 10 digs, and teammate Rebecca Langowski also had 19 kills and 19 digs in the University match. Head-Royce used a pair of sweeps to advance to the semifinals. It first beat San Domenico 25-9, 25-7, 25-15 on Nov. 7, then defeated College Prep 25-20, 25-18, 25-15 on Nov. 10.

-- Staff

On deck

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St. Mary's at Justin-Siena, football, Nov. 16, 7 p.m. -- The No. 9 Panthers are aiming to pull off an upset of No. 1 seed Justin-Siena, which has only lost to a pair of Division III schools this season.

NCS cross country championships, Nov. 17, 8:30 a.m. -- The fastest cross country runners in the section will converge on Hayward High, with state championship spots at stake. The Division V boys race will open the meet at 8:30 a.m., with the final race (Division IV girls) starting at 1:20 p.m.

Bishop O'Dowd vs. El Cerrito at De Anza, football, Nov. 17, 7 p.m. -- The first-round games of No. 9 seed Bishop O'Dowd (7-4) and the No. 1 seed El Cerrito (11-0) couldn't have been more different -- the Dragons won by three points; the Gauchos won by 48.

Stars of the week

Kevin Flemer, St. Mary's football -- Flemer threw for four touchdown passes as the Panthers defeated Middletown 36-23 on Nov. 9. It was St. Mary's first NCS win since 1999, said coach Keith Minor.

Molly Ginsburg, Berkeley girls volleyball -- Ginsburg slammed 16 kills as the Yellowjackets defeated Liberty 25-20, 25-18, 25-23 on Nov. 7 for Berkeley's first NCS volleyball win since 2007.

Austin Harper, El Cerrito football -- Harper gained a game-high 109 yards on just four carries, including touchdown runs of 65, 14 and 25 yards, in the Gauchos' 56-8 victory over Kennedy-Fremont on Nov. 10.

Kyle Carlson, Bishop O'Dowd girls volleyball -- Carlson produced 21 digs and three aces in the Dragons' 25-15, 25-16, 25-17 victory over Analy on Nov. 10.

Claudia Chung, College Prep girls volleyball -- Chung passed for 28 assists and also had six digs and four aces in College Prep's 25-18, 25-19, 25-11 NCS Division V first-round victory over Drew on Nov. 7.

Rebecca Langowski, St. Joseph Notre Dame girls volleyball -- Langowski slammed 19 kills and added 19 digs in the Pilots' 25-14, 20-25, 25-18, 23-25, 15-7 victory over University on Nov. 10. She also nine kills and five digs in St. Joseph Notre Dame's 25-15, 25-4, 25-9 win over Sonoma Academy on Nov. 7.

Austin Ve'e, Encinal football -- Ve'e scored on both a 62-yard fumble return and a 10-yard run as the Jets edged Novato 22-21 in overtime on Nov. 10.