Super Saturday is set

The chance of scattered showers won’t dampen the spirits of the soccer programs from Westlake and Thousand Oaks this Saturday, said WHS girls’ coach Frank Marino, as the two rival schools take to Westlake’s recently refurbished fields for six games of high-intensity rivalry soccer.

"Rain or shine, we’re going to be on the field come Saturday," Marino said.

For the first time in its over 10-year history, the annual "Super Saturday" competition will be played on the weather-resistant surface that was installed at Westlake and all of the Conejo Valley School District high schools over the summer. After a successful football season, the new fields were handed over to the soccer teams where they’ve quickly been put to the test by constant rainfall.

Marino and T.O. boys’ coach Mark Tietjen said the fields have been up to the challenge.

"It doesn’t matter what the weather is like, we’re training everyday—whether it be in the rain, after the rain or around the rain," Tietjen said. "I will go out and sit out on my field after it had been raining all night and my shorts won’t even get wet. That’s how fast it drains."

This Saturday’s festivities begin at 10 a.m. with the girls’ frosh-soph game and continue all day until the culminating game at 6 p.m. between the Lancer and Warrior boys’ varsity teams. The girls’ varsity match begins at 4 p.m.