Today’s edition is sponsored by The Rose Hotel.
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Welcome to the Playbook!
Each week the Playbook will bring you a story about something related to the current sports taking place locally. With 40-plus years of covering the East Bay Athletic League, the Playbook knows the landscape of local sports and will bring you the ins and outs, as well as the good (and the bad) of prep sports!
The Playbook is delivered each Tuesday into your inbox! It’s free — you just register to get it. Be sure to share with the players and parents of your team so they can get the Playbook each week too! They can do it at danvillesanramon.com.
The Big Picture jumps into the EBAL boys’ volleyball world as they have gone through the first couple of weeks of the season! Who looks good? Who might be down a bit this year? Get my thoughts on the early breakdown. Also, read about who ran well from EBAL schools in the Dublin Distance Festival last weekend.
EBAL Power Rankings sees the EBAL baseball and softball rankings back for the second week, with the EBAL volleyball rankings making its debut. How does it all shake out this week?
What to Watch picks out a few key games this week in baseball, softball, and volleyball. See where and when are some of the big games this week.
Got a great story idea for something coming up in the winter? Let me know at
acesmag@aol.com!
From the sidelines,
Dennis Miller, Playbook Editor
Three matches to watch on EBAL boys’ volleyball calendar this week
In recent years you could take Foothill, Amador Valley and De La Salle, mix them up and realistically had a chance to pick the East Bay Athletic League winner. San Ramon Valley and Granada could upset the applecart as well, but as far as teams chasing the boys’ volleyball title, that was it.
Power Rankings as of March 24.
EBAL boys’ volleyball
1. De La Salle (11-1, 5-0): The Spartans have been big all year, losing only to a very strong Sanger team from the Central Valley. Heads to Hawaii for a tournament next week but first has a monster game with Dublin this week.
2. Dublin (14-1, 4-0): The Gaels lost only to unbeaten Harbor of Santa Cruz 2-1 in an early tournament play. Clashes with De La Salle this week!
3. San Ramon Valley (11-4, 3-1): The Wolves only loss in EBAL play was 3-1 to De La Salle. They struggled early but until the loss to De La Salle last week, the Wolves had run off eight consecutive wins.
4. Amador Valley (7-4, 2-2): The Dons won twice last week to break a streak of three losses, two of which were De La Salle and Dublin. Gets their shot at Dublin this week and will catch the Gaels – a team they lost 3-2 against – coming off the DLS game.
5. Foothill (9-6, 3-2): The Falcons have lost in EBAL play to San Ramon Valley and Dublin. They have a big showdown Tuesday night with Amador Valley. Has a win over Granada.
The rest: Granada (13-5, 3-3), Livermore (11-8, 2-2), Dougherty Valley (4-6, 0-3), California (0-6, 0-4), Monte Vista (0-6, 0-4).
EBAL softball
1. Amador Valley (4-2, 1-0): The Dons stay on top after playing only one game last week, beating Dublin 14-4. Big week ahead playing Livermore and Granada.
2. Carondelet (4-4, 3-0): Takes out Dougherty Valley 7-5 to stay unbeaten in EBAL play. The Cougars always play a tough non-league schedule.
3. San Ramon Valley (6-1-1, 2-1): A 3-0 loss to Carondelet is the lone blemish on the Wolves record. They have wins over Dougherty Valley and California.
4. Livermore (5-2, 1-0): The Cowboys have put together a nice three-game win streak and knock off Foothill to open league.
5. Foothill (5-3-1, 1-1): The Falcons beat Granada in a tight one, then fall to Livermore 5-3.
In the hunt: Dougherty Valley (4-3, 0-2), California (3-2, 1-1), Monte Vista (4-3, 0-2), Granada (3-3, 1-1), Dublin (1-5, 0-2).
EBAL baseball
1. Granada (5-2, 2-0): Mats suffered their first loss in some time, falling 1-0 to Alameda in a non-league game. Beat Dougherty Valley 8-2 earlier in the week.
2. De La Salle (3-2, 0-1): The Spartans travel to Washington and win three games against teams from the state to move to a winning record this year. Big game with Dublin this week.
3. Dublin (10-1, 2-1): The Gaels’ eight-game winning streak came to an end with a 5-2, nine-inning loss to California. Came back with a 4-2 win over San Ramon Valley.
4. Amador Valley (5-2, 1-1): Not a great week for the Dons as they go 1-2 and drop a spot in the rankings. Dropped a 3-2 game to Monte Vista and a 4-3 game on the weekend to Campolindo.
5. Foothill (8-2, 1-1): After taking a step back falling to San Ramon Valley, the Falcons rallied with an 11-1 win over Monte Vista and 16-2 over Bear Creek.
In the hunt: California (4-1, 1-1), Livermore (7-4, 1-1), San Ramon Valley (4-5, 1-1), Monte Vista (3-7, 1-1), Dougherty Valley (1-7, 0-2).
Today (March 25)
EBAL softball: San Ramon Valley at Granada, Amador Valley at Livermore, both 4 p.m.
EBAL volleyball: Amador Valley at Foothill, Dublin at De La Salle, 6:30 p.m.
Tomorrow (March 26)
EBAL baseball: De La Salle at Dublin, 4 p.m.
Thursday, March 27
EBAL volleyball: Amador Valley at Dublin, 4:30 p.m.
EBAL softball: Granada at Amador Valley, 4:30 p.m.
Pleasanton Preps: Spring sports season now in full swing
See early-season EBAL highlights for softball, volleyball, swimming, badminton and baseball in last week’s Pleasanton Preps.
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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