By Nathan Max
WSL Executive Editor

Another one of St. Ignatius Prep’s legendary winning streaks is over.

Sophomore middie Michael Tagliaferri registered a co-game-high five points on four goals and one assist to lead No. 16 San Ramon Valley to a 10-8 victory over No. 4 St. Ignatius Prep in a California Interscholastic Federation game Wednesday night.

With the victory, San Ramon Valley put an end to the Wildcats’ 48-game winning streak against Northern California competition. It is St. Ignatius Prep’s first loss against a team from the Bay Area since a 12-8 setback to Danville Monte Vista on April 4, 2006.

“That’s obviously a credit to the bar that St. Ignatius has set for everybody to shoot for,” San Ramon Valley head coach Peter Worstell said. “I don’t know of a coach out there who doesn’t aspire to beat the best. And when it finally happens, it’s certainly a fantastic accomplishment.”

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San Ramon Valley also put an end to St. Ignatius Prep’s 17-game overall winning streak. The last time the Wolves beat the Wildcats was on March 30, 2005, a year in which St. Ignatius Prep also lost to Menlo and Robert L. Stevenson.

On Wednesday, Cornell-bound senior middie Ross Rudow finished with five points on two goals and three assists, sophomore attackman Zach Kline scored twice and junior attackman Chase Miller added a goal and an assist for San Ramon Valley (4-0), which extended its season-opening winning streak to four games.

Senior defenseman Ryan Slee had a goal to round out the Wolves’ offense.

Defensively, freshman goalie Cameron Bowlby saved 10 shots, and he stood on his head down the stretch to preserve the lead.

In defeat, sophomore attackman J.W. McGovern scored three goals, Virginia-bound senior middie Rob Emery added a pair and freshman middie Matt Emery and junior attackman Jack Bodine each had a goal and an assist for St. Ignatius Prep (1-1).

San Ramon Valley led 5-2 at the end of the first quarter, 5-4 at halftime and 9-5 at the end of the third quarter.

Tagliaferri’s fourth of the night was the fourth quarter’s opening goal, giving San Ramon Valley its biggest lead, 10-5. But St. Ignatius Prep stormed back, scoring three unanswered goals to close within 10-8. After that, however, the Wildcats couldn’t put another one past Bowlby, who made three saves from point-blank range in the fourth quarter.

“We had all kinds of opportunities, and we just couldn’t put it behind them,” St. Ignatius Prep head coach Chris Packard said. “They frustrated us all night. They were better than we were.”

St. Ignatius Prep had two man-up opportunities in the final minute, but Bowlby and the San Ramon Valley defense held on in the end.

“I give St. Ignatius credit for setting the bar as high as they have,” Worstell said. “At the same time, I’m extremely proud of the fight and the passion that my team played with tonight.”

Nathan Max reported from the WSL news desk in Murrieta, Calif.