Sonoma Academy are 16-0-0 and still first in NCS boys Division 2 after a 4-3 win over Calistoga, Cristo Rey De La Salle move up to third, and Mendocino climb two places into the top five.
Some games settle an argument. Tuesday's started one. Sonoma Academy and Calistoga, the top two in the North Central League II, met at Sonoma Academy on October 13, and seven goals later only one separated them. Sonoma Academy came out on the right side of it, 4-3, to stay perfect at 16-0-0 and beat Calistoga for the second time this fall, after a 2-1 win at Calistoga in September that was just as tight. Not everyone sees it the same way: one Calistoga player said they felt robbed after the loss. The scoreline goes to Sonoma Academy, and the debate goes on. With Calistoga still a clear second in our table, both sides have reason to want another meeting.
1. Sonoma Academy
Sonoma Academy stay top of the NCS boys Division 2 rankings, and they are still perfect. Since our last Division 2 table on October 1, they have won five more: 4-0 at Technology, 1-0 at home to Geyserville New Tech Academy, 1-0 at Point Arena, 3-1 at Division 1 side Credo on October 12, and 4-3 at home to Calistoga the next day. That takes them from 11-0-0 to 16-0-0, the only unbeaten record in the division, and 14-0-0 in the North Central League II. They have now beaten Calistoga twice, both times by a single goal, and the three goals Calistoga scored on Tuesday are the most anyone has put past them this fall. They have scored 97 and conceded 11, with nine clean sheets. In the games with recorded stats, junior Marcel Nsizoa Ndi has 28 goals and 12 assists, after 12 goals last season, and he scored twice at Credo. Sophomore Ben McCauley has 11 goals and 10 assists, and senior Teo Foehl has 10 goals and nine assists. Their lead over second is 4.2 rating points, the same as two weeks ago.
2. Calistoga
Calistoga hold second. They beat Technology 8-2 at home on October 7 and won 9-0 at Geyserville New Tech Academy two days later, then lost 4-3 at Sonoma Academy on October 13. They are 12-2-2, and both defeats have come against the leaders, by one goal each. Their place is safe for now: they are 1.6 points clear of third, and neither of their next two games could drop them on its own. Senior Leo Ramos scored five goals and set up two more against Technology. In the games with recorded stats, he has 27 goals and 10 assists, after 21 goals in 11 games last fall. Freshman Alex Sarabio has 11 goals, sophomore Ulises Navarette has eight, and senior Mateo Medina has 10 assists.
3. Cristo Rey De La Salle
Cristo Rey De La Salle move up one place to third. Their only game since our last table was a 3-1 home win over Summit Tamalpais on October 7, with goals from sophomore Enrique Dimas, freshman Jeshua Mendoza and senior Nathan Montes. That takes them from 6-1-0 to 7-1-0. The climb came from results elsewhere, as Jewish Community took one point from their last two league games. Cristo Rey De La Salle have scored 54 goals in eight games, and their only defeat is still the home loss to Saint Maximilian Catholic School, second in our Division 3 table. In the games with recorded stats, freshman David Duenas has 12 goals in six games and senior Omar Alvarez has nine. Their schedule has been one of the lightest in the division, so the next two games matter: any result short of a win in either would drop them back to fourth.
4. Jewish Community
Jewish Community slip one place to fourth. They beat San Francisco Waldorf 1-0 at home on October 1, drew 1-1 at Drew School on October 6, then lost 4-1 at Division 1 side Gateway on October 8. That takes them from 8-2-0 to 9-3-1. Taken together, the draw and the defeat cost them third. Either one on its own would not have. They still hold two of the best wins by any Division 2 side this fall: 3-2 over The International School of San Francisco, and 1-0 over Gateway in September, the same side that beat them last week. Senior Sinai Bierman scored the winner against San Francisco Waldorf, and he has 13 goals this season after four in six games last fall. Senior Hoshaya Cohen scored at Drew School and has six goals and seven assists. Senior goalkeeper Ahron Schweig has played all 13 games and kept five clean sheets.
5. Mendocino
Mendocino climb two places to fifth. On October 7 they beat Credo 2-1 at home, a Division 1 side that had beaten them 9-0 in September. On October 13 they beat Anderson Valley 4-1 at home. That takes them from 7-6-0 to 9-6-0. Both wins were needed. Without either one, Quarry Lane would still be fifth. The record undersells them: four of their six defeats came against Sonoma Academy and Calistoga, the top two in this table, and the other two were against Division 1 sides Credo and Fort Bragg. Only five Division 2 teams have played a harder schedule. Junior Auden Eldridge and senior Gavin Evans scored against Credo, and senior Leo Donley scored twice against Anderson Valley. Evans has 10 goals and six assists, after 20 goals last fall, and Donley has nine.
6. Quarry Lane
Quarry Lane slip one place to sixth. They lost 4-0 at home to Redwood Christian on October 1, then won 4-0 at Fremont Christian on October 9 and 6-0 at home to California Crosspoint on October 13. That takes them from 5-1-0 to 7-2-0, and they are 6-0-0 in the Bay Counties League. Without the defeat to Redwood Christian, they would still be fifth. Junior Kaiyi Yang scored all four goals at Fremont Christian, and he has 18 goals in seven games with recorded stats, after 14 in 13 last fall. Junior Jesse Wu has set up 11.
7. Clear Lake
Clear Lake slip one place to seventh. They lost 3-1 at Division 1 side Fort Bragg on October 1, beat Kelseyville 2-0 at home and won 3-0 at Upper Lake, then drew 1-1 at home with Willits on October 13. They are 10-4-4 from 18 games, more than anyone else in the top ten has played. The win over Kelseyville mattered most: without it, they would be ninth. Senior Levi Ewing scored in each of the first three games, and he has 22 goals in the games with recorded stats. Senior Bairo Carmona has 13 assists.
8. Bentley Upper School
Bentley Upper School move up one place to eighth after an unbeaten stretch at home. They beat Saint Joseph Notre Dame 8-0 on October 1 and Oakland Military Institute 5-1 on October 7, then drew 1-1 with Division 1 side Athenian on October 9. That takes them from 2-4-2 to 4-4-3. The win over Oakland Military Institute decided the swap. Without it, Oakland Military Institute would be eighth and Bentley Upper School 10th. Junior Koji Green scored a hat trick against Saint Joseph Notre Dame, and senior Chase Rose scored twice in both wins. Green has 10 goals in the games with recorded stats. Only two Division 2 sides have played a harder schedule.
9. Redwood Christian
Redwood Christian move up one place to ninth. They won 4-0 at Quarry Lane on October 1, then beat Brave Christian twice, 6-1 away and 6-1 at home, and won 3-0 at Contra Costa Christian. The one defeat was 2-0 at Division 1 side College Preparatory School on October 7. That takes them from 4-6-0 to 8-7-0, with seven wins in their last eight games. The defeat at College Preparatory School is what kept them from climbing higher. Without it, they would be seventh. They are still the only Division 2 side to beat Jewish Community this fall, 3-2 away in August.
10. Oakland Military Institute
Oakland Military Institute drop two places to 10th. Their only game since our last table was the 5-1 defeat at Bentley Upper School on October 7, which takes them from 2-3-2 to 2-4-2. Without it, they would be eighth. Only Drew School have played a harder schedule in Division 2, and Oakland Military Institute still hold a 2-2 draw at Calistoga from August.
The shape of the table has barely changed at the top. Sonoma Academy are 4.2 points clear. Calistoga are 1.6 points ahead of Cristo Rey De La Salle, who are 0.8 ahead of Jewish Community. Below them, fifth through ninth are separated by 1.3 points, so one result can move a team as many as three places.
What is next, and what it could mean
Each projection below is one result on its own, with everything else left as it is.
The game to circle is Friday, October 23, when Quarry Lane visit Redwood Christian, who beat them 4-0 on October 1. A Redwood Christian win would lift them three places to sixth and drop Quarry Lane to ninth. A Quarry Lane win would take them back to fifth.
Third place is on a knife edge. Cristo Rey De La Salle would drop behind Jewish Community with anything less than a win against Saint Joseph Notre Dame on Thursday, October 15, or at Averroes Institute on October 21. Jewish Community can also take third back themselves by beating Bay School of San Francisco on October 20 or The International School of San Francisco on October 22.
Bentley Upper School has the most to gain. A win by two goals or more at home to College Preparatory School on October 15, or any win at Athenian on October 20, would lift them from eighth to fifth. A defeat in either game would drop them to ninth.
At the top, no single result on the schedule can move Sonoma Academy or Calistoga.
About the ratings
The rating points in this story come from our own rankings model, not from NCS. Every team is rated on the same scale, across all four divisions, and 75 marks an average team. A result moves a rating more or less depending on who it came against: beating a strong side earns more than beating a weak one, and losing to a weak side costs more than losing to a strong one. The winning margin counts, but only up to five goals, so a 10-0 win is worth no more than a 5-0 win. Home teams get a small allowance, so an away win is worth slightly more than the same win at home. Early in the season, every rating is also pulled toward the average until a team has played enough games to show where it really stands.