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Welcome to the Playbook!
It is time for another week of the 2025-26 prep sports year. The Playbook takes you inside the East Bay Athletic League, writing about outlooks, updates and insights into all the sports, along with profiles of athletes, and opinions regarding controversial issues in high school sport!
The Big Picture looks at the disaster that has become transfers in high school athletics. Transfers are destroying high school sports from the inside but is there anything that can be done, or are we doomed to live in the wild west?
EBAL Power Rankings make their first complete winter appearance as our first soccer rankings of the season join the basketball rankings that debuted last week.
What to Watch has a load of non-league games from our teams in basketball and soccer. The Fast Five has headed for the Christmas break but will be back in the first week of January as we begin our parade of winter athletes!
If you know of a great story or have any questions, please reach out either by email at acesgolf@aol.com or by phone at 925-200-0719.
From the sidelines,
Dennis Miller, Playbook Editor
Ignoring transfer rules has forever changed high school athletics – and at what cost?
“It’s caused a crisis of consciousness for me many times. But instead of giving up, I look for the good stories on homegrown athletes and hope that a miracle can happen to restore character to high school athletes. I can hope, but most of the time I feel like I’m fighting windmills alongside Don Quixote.”
Power Rankings as of Dec. 14.
EBAL BOYS’ BASKETBALL
1. De La Salle (6-1): The Spartans crush Benicia and Head Royce to stay on top of the rankings.
2. Dougherty Valley (7-2): The Wildcats beat Palma 70-63 to take the title of the Scattini tournament.
3. Dublin (5-2): Last week I was told the Gaels may be down – then they go out and play well in the always loaded Gridley tournament, beating Folsom 68-58 in their last game.
4. Granada (7-2): The Matadors beat Campolindo, Woodcreek and Acalanes to win the Chris Huber Classic at Acalanes. It was a huge win against Campolindo.
5. California (5-2): The Grizzlies win three straight and take the title of the Los Gatos Shootout for the second straight season, this time beating Los Gatos 57-49 in the finals.
Others: Monte Vista (5-2), Foothill (4-0), Amador Valley (3-4), Livermore (5-1), San Ramon Valley (3-4).
EBAL GIRLS’ BASKETBALL
1. San Ramon Valley (7-1, 1-0): The Wolves take back the No. 1 spot they have held the last couple of years with a 76-29 win over Dublin and a 78-50 win over a good Bishop O’Dowd team.
2. Carondelet (10-2, 2-0): The Cougars travel across the Pacific Ocean to play St. Mary’s-Stockton in the finals in the Nike Tournament in Hawaii and fall 67-57, dropping to second in the process.
3. California (6-3): The Grizzlies beat Kimball (56-5) and Ranco Cotate (71-29) to stay a solid third. Played St. Mary’s as well as the top two teams.
4. Dublin (3-2, 0-2): The Gaels fall to San Ramon Valley – no shame there – then return to beat Castro Valley 60-8.
5. Dougherty Valley (4-1, 0-1): The Wildcats scored an impressive 52-26 win over Campolindo in the last week.
Others: Monte Vista (5-2), Granada (3-3), Amador Valley (4-4), Foothill (3-3), Livermore (2-3).
EBAL GIRLS’ SOCCER
1. Carondelet (1-0): The Cougars have only played one game – a 5-0 win over College Park – but count on them being in contention at the end of the year.
2. California (3-0): The Grizzlies are perfect through their first three games, including a 2-0 win over Mitty in their most recent game.
3. Granada (3-0-1): The Mats open with a 2-2 tie with Piedmont, then run off three wins in a row, scoring 22 goals in the three games.
4. San Ramon Valley (2-0): The Wolves open the season with wins over American and James Logan.
5. Amador Valley (0-0): I have to think the Dons are a top five team, but they play almost no non-league games so it’s impossible to get a read.
Others: Monte Vista (2-0-2), Dublin (2-0), Livermore (2-1-1), Foothill (1-0-1), Dougherty Valley (0-4).
EBAL BOYS’ SOCCER
1. De La Salle (1-0): The Spartans will always be in a battle for the top spot, and this year should be no exception. Lone game is a 2-0 win over Concord.
2. Amador Valley (4-1): I am hearing a lot of good things about the Dons this year. Lone loss is a 3-2 final to a tough Fremont team.
3. Dublin (4-1-1): The Gaels’ only loss was to St. Mary’s of Stockton, and they have a 0-0 tie with Tennyson to open the season. The rest have been wins.
4. San Ramon Valley (4-1-1): The Wolves tied Napa on Saturday 1-1 and had a 2-1 loss to Rocklin. You know SRV is always going to play a team tough.
5. Monte Vista (3-1): The Mustangs won their first three games, then dropped a 3-1 final to Clayton Valley.
Others: Granada (2-0-1), Foothill (2-0-1), Livermore (2-1), Dougherty Valley (1-4), California (0-4-1).
Today (Dec. 16)
Boys’ soccer: Napa at Dougherty Valley 4 p.m.; Livermore vs. Granada, San Ramon Valley at Fremont, 6 p.m.; Antioch at California 6:30 p.m. Boys’ basketball: San Ramon Valley at Redwood, Amador Valley at Benicia, 7 p.m.; Hayward at Dublin, 7:30 p.m. Girls’ soccer: Granada at Livermore, 6:30 p.m.
Tomorrow (Dec. 17)
Boys’ basketball: Livermore at Mission San Jose, 7 p.m.
Thursday (Dec. 18)
Boys’ basketball: Dublin vs. Rancho San Juan, Don Nelson Classic, 6:30 p.m.; Pittsburg at De La Salle, San Ramon Valley, 7 p.m. Girls’ basketball: Irvington at Foothill, 7 p.m.; California at Campolindo, Rodriguez at Granada, 7:30 p.m.
Boys’ soccer: Amador at Liberty, San Ramon Valley at Castro Valley, 6 p.m.; Freedom at California, 6:30 p.m.; Dublin at Las Lomas, 7 p.m. Girls’ soccer: Liberty at Carondelet, Castro Valley at San Ramon Valley, 6:30 p.m.
Friday (Dec. 19)
Girls’ basketball: St. Patrick/St. Vincent at Monte Vista, 5 p.m.; Livermore at Skyline 6 p.m. Boys’ soccer: Dougherty Valley at Oakland Tech, 7 p.m. Boys’ basketball: California at Tarkanian Classic, Las Vegas; Dublin at Don Nelson Classic; Washington at Livermore, 7 p.m.
Saturday (Dec. 20)
Boys’ basketball: Fremont at Granada, 3:30 p.m.; Monte Vista at St Mary’s. 4 p.m.; Valley Christian-San Jose at Dougherty Valley, 5 p.m.; Dublin at Tarkanian Classic, Las Vegas; Dublin at Don Nelson Classic. Girls’ basketball: Foothill at Tracy, 1:30 p.m.; Liberty at Granada, 2 p.m.; Acalanes at California, 7 p.m.
Girls’ soccer: Monte Vista at Vacaville, 12 p.m.; Archie Williams at Granada, 1 p.m.; Dublin at Clayton Valley, 2 p.m.; Carondelet at Berkeley, 3:30 p.m. Boys’ soccer: Foothill at Antioch, Monte Vista at Cathedral, 1 p.m.; Amador at Freedom, 2 p.m.; Dublin at Pittsburg, 4 p.m.; Bishop O’Dowd at California, 4:30 p.m.
Reflections after Foothill’s Mijatovic wows at U.S. Open Swimming Championships
“I’m pretty happy with the meet. I know it’s only December and I have a lot more to prove. I’m continuing building more, training and working harder so I can get progressively better as I race,” Mijatovic says.
Dennis Miller is a veteran sports writer and editor, covering sports in the Tri-Valley for over 35 years. In addition to being the editor of Tri-Valley Preps Playbook, he has written a weekly column for Pleasanton Weekly and PleasantonWeekly.com, “Pleasanton Preps,” since 2011. Email him at sports@pleasantonweekly.com.
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