Tue04212015

News

Car breaks through glass door, closes Trader Joe’s for the day

Car breaks through glass door, closes Trader Joe’s for the day

Alicia Castro/Town Crier
Trader Joe's employees survey the damage after a car smashed through the glass doorway earlier today.

Trader Joe’s on Homestead Road is closed for the remainder of the day (April 17) after a car barreled through the glas...

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Schools

Pinewood student writes book about living with autism

Pinewood student writes book about living with autism


Traci Newell/Town Crier
Pinewood School senior Georgia Lyon wrote and illustrated “How to Be Human: Diary of an Autistic Girl” in 2013.

Although first published under a pseudonym, Pinewood School student Georgia Lyon is stepping out to ...

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Community

How to pass a business gene across generations: Entrepreneur Kurtzig, 10, follows in grandmother's high-tech footsteps

How to pass a business gene across generations: Entrepreneur Kurtzig, 10, follows in grandmother's high-tech footsteps


Courtesy of Los ALtos History Museum
Like grandmother, like granddaughter: Sandra, left, and Jamie Kurtzig participate in the Los Altos History Museum’s Family Day event last month.

Silicon Valley’s love affair with high-tech innovation starts ...

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Comment

Editorial: Let's assume not to presume

Two recent downtown Los Altos stories offer lessons in the drawbacks of jumping to conclusions.

A few months back, the Town Crier published an article on Ladera Autoworks on First Street closing its doors. That part was true, but the reason was not....

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Special Sections

Fitness focus: No holds barred for Los Altos sisters

Fitness focus: No holds barred for Los Altos sisters


Photos Courtesy of Barre 3
Gillian Brotherson, kneeling at left, guides studio instructors through a workout at barre3 Los Altos.

Health is all about balance. That’s what two Los Altos natives learned as they navigated work, motherhood and welln...

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Business

Steinway gallery brings pianos, musicians to downtown Los Altos

Steinway gallery brings pianos, musicians to downtown Los Altos


Alicia Castro/Town Crier
Chrissy Huang, manager of Steinway Piano Gallery in Los Altos, showcases Steinway & Sons’ signature instruments. The gallery plans to host concerts with performers tickling the ivories.

A new downtown Los Altos bus...

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Books

'Pope Joan' Book weaves tale around legend of female pontiff

'Pope Joan' Book weaves tale around legend of female pontiff


The idea that there may have a female pope at one time in history has generated much speculation throughout the centuries. “Pope Joan” (Crown, 1996) by Donna Woolfolk Cross, does not answer the question; rather, the author has created a detai...

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People

GREG STAHLER

GREG STAHLER

Greg Stahler died unexpecdly in his home in Belmont on March 26, 2015. (He was born in Mountain View on June 23, 1972). He will really be missed by three beautiful young children, Haley 7, Hannah 5, and Tyler 3, and his wife Kathryn. He will also b...

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Travel

Cuba libre: Local residents join mad rush of travelers

Cuba libre: Local residents join mad rush of travelers


Natalie Elefant/Special to the Town Crier
Los Altos resident Natalie Elefant noted the vibrant street performances as a traveler in Cuba.

The U.S. restored diplomatic relations with Cuba late last year, enabling Americans to import $100 worth of cig...

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Stepping Out

'Those Darn Squirrels' invading Mountain View

'Those Darn Squirrels' invading Mountain View


Courtesy of Lyn Flaim Healy/ Spotlight Moments Photography
Noelle Merino stars in Peninsula Youth Theatre’s “Those Darn Squirrels.”

The Peninsula Youth Theatre’s world premiere adaptation of “Those Darn Squirrels” is scheduled Friday and Saturda...

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Spiritual Life

Magazine

Food for thought: Hidden Villa programs offer teens training in sustainability on the farm

Food for thought: Hidden Villa programs offer teens training in sustainability on the farm


/Town Crier It’s not all cute and cuddly for teens participating in the eight-week Animal Husbandry Apprenticeship program at Hidden Villa in Los Altos Hills. Mia Mosing of Palo Alto, left, and Sophia Jackson of Los Altos clean the pigpens – one of...

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Inside Mountain View

Home for disabled youth yields greener pastures

Home for disabled youth yields greener pastures


Alicia Castro/Town Crier
Green Pastures staff member JP Mercada, below right, helps Tommy, who lives at the group home, sort through papers and organize his room.

Tucked in the corner of a quiet residential cul-de-sac in Mountain View, Green Pastur...

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St. Francis celebrates first CCS baseball title since 2001


Photo By: Town Crier file photo
Photo Town Crier File Photo St. Francis High senior Michael Strem contributed on the mound and at the plate during the Central Coast Section playoffs.

The St. Francis High baseball team has a lot to celebrate at today’s season-ending party. More than a week ago, the Lancers won their first Central Coast Section championship in 12 years and the first under head coach Mike Oakland.

“It should be a lot of fun,” said Oakland, who just completed his seventh season at St. Francis.

Michael Strem, whose pitching and hitting played a big part in the Lancers’ postseason success, seemed just as eager to reunite with his teammates to commemorate a year that ended with a 10-0 rout of Serra in the CCS Division I final.

“I’m going to miss all those guys for sure,” said Strem, one of 13 seniors on the squad. “We had such great chemistry, combined with talent, all year long. Even when we were down, we fought back. That was huge.”

The Lancers built such a huge lead against league rival Serra in the May 25 title game that it ended early on the 10-run mercy rule. St. Francis scored twice in the fourth inning, added five runs in the fifth and three in the sixth to finish off the Padres at San Jose’s Municipal Stadium.

Although Strem said he “felt confident” the Lancers (30-4 overall) would hit well in the final, he never imagined the game would be so one-sided. The teams split their two West Catholic Athletic League contests.

“I thought it was going to be a pitchers’ duel,” Strem said. “But we jumped on them early, and John had some of the best stuff I’ve seen him throw.”

That would be starting pitcher John Gavin. The lefthander surrendered just one hit and had a perfect game going until the fifth.

Yet Gavin’s complete-game effort, which included eight strikeouts, was only the second-best performance by a St. Francis pitcher during the playoffs. Strem pitched a perfect game – the first in school history – in the Lancers’ opening-round win over Monta Vista.

Each pitcher won two CCS games, with junior Gavin never allowing a run and Strem surrendering three.

For the season, Gavin notched 90 strikeouts and posted a 1.28 ERA, while Strem fanned 79 batters and had a 1.31 ERA.

“We tried to outdo each other every week,” Strem said. “He’d get a shutout and I’d try to match him, and vice-versa.”

This marked Strem’s first season as a varsity pitcher; he primarily played the infield as a sophomore and junior.

“I knew he could pitch – we just didn’t need him – but I didn’t think he’d be this dominant,” Oakland said. “He was phenomenal in CCS – he was lights out on the mound and did a great job at the plate.”

The Boston College-bound Strem recorded five hits and six RBIs in the postseason. Two of these hits came in the final.

Strem was among three starters who batted above .400 this season (along with Chris Baker and Champi Lucca); five Lancers hit at least .300 (Mark Cardinalli, Tyler Deason, Austin Guibor, Kort Peterson and Hunter Simmons).

While stats are nice, Oakland noted that St. Francis’ intangibles were just as important to the team’s winning ways.

“The chemistry was as good as it’s ever been,” the coach said. “They were the most focused and hardest-working group I’ve had in high school or college.”

Five team members are Los Altos residents: Lucca, Matt Bell, Brent Jarvis, Patrick McMullen and Casey Douglas. All of them played Los Altos-Mountain View PONY Baseball.

– Joe Schram contributed to this report

For more photos of the St. Francis High School baseball team, click here.

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