Sunday, August 27, 2017

Zero Week Broadcast of the Ventura County Star's High School Game-of-the-Week


Friday, August 25, 2017:

When I first started writing this blog back in December of 2007, it was primarily to keep my family informed of my doings in Catania, Sicily during my first of what has now become TEN tours of duty in the wonderful world of EuroBall.

Over the years I have discovered that I have two fans of the blog who are bordering on being stalkers but that is ok with me as they are two lifelong friends from our shared University of Washington days.

Paul Sabolic and Mike D'Antuono are their names and we had lunch together today at the BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse in Burbank.

As always, it was great to catch up with these two reprobates on all things family, American football in general and UW Husky football in particular.

As usual, when caught up in non-stop, good conversation, I forgot to have our waitress Claudia take a photo of us.

Two good men.

In the evening, I joined play-by-play broadcaster Danny Page and our ever insightful sideline reporter Will Cowen, also the Ventura College Athletic Director, to do the Zero Week broadcast of the Ventura County Star's Game-of-the-Week.

The matchup tonight was also the 43rd renewal of the crosstown rivalry between the Camarillo HS Scorpions (0-0, 2-8 in 2016) and Rio Mesa HS Spartans (0-0, 6-6 in 2016).

The Scorpions lead in the series
25-17 -0

Camarillo had also won the last six consecutive games in this Ventura County Classic.

Despite this historical edge to the Scorpions, the Spartans, ranked #1 in the C.I.F. Division VIII pre-season poll, were the favorites tonight.

It was a BEAUTIFUL night for
American football!

Rio Mesa WR Jaedon Rogers
breaking away from
Scorpion Grady Liddell

 It was a great game as both teams
battled from start to finish

The Spartans lived up to their ranking and pulled away to a 35-20 victory to open the 2017 campaign.

Up next for the 1-0 Rio Mesa Spartans is another home game, this time against the 0-1 Simi Valley Pioneers who dropped their opener 7-55 to the West Ranch Wildcats.

The 0-1 Camarillo Scorpions now have their first home game of the season hosting the 1-0 Saugus Centurions who beat the Santa Barbara Dons Friday night on the road by a final score of 25-21.

As for our broadcast team, our Game-of-the-Week next Friday is another early season derby non-league game as the 1-0 Westlake Warriors travel to crosstown to play the 0-1 Thousand Oaks Lancers.

Westlake is coming off of a huge 25-7 win over the defending California State 2-A Champion Sierra Canyon Trailblazers.

Thousand Oaks was defeated 14-42 in their opener by the Ventura Cougars.

After the game, I was joined by Joe Mollica, Koreen FitzGerald and Brian FitzGerald at Cronies to debrief.

I was missing the Europe Warriors
as soon as I saw this coaster

 Even more when I flipped it over

Friday was a good day all the way around!

Reading Is FUNdamental

Another solid effort
by Donna Leon

All of her mystery books featuring fictional Venetian Commissario Guido Brunetti on the trail of more criminals are worth the read.

I have only read seven of her 26 Brunetti novels so far.

I have work to do.

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