The race for the 2006 Sonoma County League varsity football
crown could come down to the final week of the season, if early
projections hold up. The defending champions Greyhounds should be
in the middle of a seven-team, SCL dog fight that may be one of the
most balanced leagues in years.
The Hounds are coming off of a phenomenal 2005 campaign that
included a 10-2 overall record and a co-championship with Casa
Grande. The Hounds posted an NCS playoff win over Terra Linda
before falling in a 28-21 heartbreaker to eventual NCS champ Novato
in the semi-finals.
Although Healdsburg graduated several players that rank among
the school¹s all-time best in quarterback Mitch Sindle, running
back Chad Matteri, receiver/DB Andrew Rogers and Justin Arowcavage
and RB/DB Nolan Rege, they should have plenty of talent coming
back.
³We¹re a little down in numbers this year with a total of 28
kids, but we¹ve got some pretty good athletes on this team,² said
head coach Gale Bach, who returns for his fourth year at the helm.
³The SCL looks very tough and our goal is to stay healthy, survive
league and get into the 2A playoffs.²
Bach will be surrounded with a great group of long-time
assistant coaches including: Offensive Coordinator and former head
coach Tom Kirkpatrick, Mike Ruiz (receivers), Tyler Dugan (running
backs), Pat McDowell (OL/DL) and Bob Besancon (DBs). Bach will take
responsibility for the linebackers and overall defense. Todd Beth
takes over as the head JV coach, assisted by Felix Hernandez
(DC/LB), Jim Collins (OC/QBs) and Dan Tynan (RB/DB).
Junior Corey Harms steps up to take over starting quarterback
spot, where his strong arm and great athleticism should bode well
for an offense that likes to stretch the field. Senior Connor
Collins, who started three games and did an outstanding job last
season, will be the backup. They¹ll be joined in the offensive
backfield by senior running back Mitch Arreguin, junior Jon
Cattalini, sophomore David Baelestreri, junior fullback Andrew
Baroni and sophomore fullback Andrew Phillips.
The receiving corps will feature big-play ability in seniors
Ronnie Arowcavage, Justin Brandt, Chris Salter and junior Jared
Garcia.
The unquestioned strength of the team this season is the
offensive line, which returns for its third year at the varsity
level. The line will be anchored by seniors: center Christopher
Bach, tackles Tobin Cameron and Cody Manning, and guards Daniel
Erdman and Noah Van der Zee. Backups include senior tackles Tim
Weidemier and Curtis Allegra. Most of these guys took their lumps
as sophomores, but as juniors helped Matteri gain more than 1,300
yards on the ground last year. After another year of weight
training and home cooking, look for this group to dominate.
³The offensive line will definitely be the strength of the
offense,² noted Bach. ³These guys have paid their dues and have
gotten better every year. They won¹t see anything this year that
they haven¹t seen in the past.²
The Hounds will feature a standard 4-3 defensive alignment,
which includes most of the offensive line, along with seniors Nick
Fore and Valentin Hernandez. Erdman and Van der Zee will utilize
their speed and strength at the defensive end position. Arreguin,
who recorded a team-leading 178 tackles as a junior, returns to the
middle linebacker spot. Phillips and Baroni will handle the outside
linebacking chores, while other backers in the mix include
Cattalini and senior AJ Quiroga.
The defensive backfield will feature Arowcavage, last year¹s
interception leader, senior transfer Colton Cramer, senior Thomas
Cochran, Collins and Garcia.
The Hounds will kick off the action this Saturday with a
scrimmage at Maria Carrillo at 11 a.m. Healdsburg kicks off the
preseason against visiting Kelseyville on Friday, Sept. 8 at
Recreation Park. Kickoff times for the JV and varsity are 5 and
7:30 p.m.
2006 varsity football schedule
Sept.8 ‹ Kelseyville @ Hbg, 5/7:30 p.m.
Sept. 15 ‹ Hbg @ St. Patrick/St. Vincent (Vallejo) 5/7:30
p.m.
Sept. 22 ‹ Hbg @ Oakland, 5/7:30 p.m.
Sept. 29 ‹ Sonoma @ Hbg, 5/7:30 p.m.
Oct. 6 ‹ Hbg @ Windsor 5/7:30 p.m.
Oct. 13 ‹ Fortuna @ Hbg, 5/7:30 p.m.
Oct. 20 ‹ El Molino @ Hbg, 5/7:30 p.m.
Oct. 27 ‹ Hbg @ Casa Grande, 5/7:30 p.m.
Nov. 3 ‹ Petaluma @ Hbg, 5/7:30 p.m.
Nov. 9 ‹ Hbg @ Analy, 5/7:30 p.m.
