Ultimate team play

Taking the charge is Mount Miguel's Chantel Yell (5). (Photo by Frank Price, youatplay.com) VIEW / PURCHASE ADDITIONAL PHOTOS HERE

The Matadors'Kamree Harrison (2, upper-left), Zaria Branch (23, right), and Deijah Blanks (32, lower-left). (Photos by Frank Price, youatplay.com)

© East County Sports.com
SPRING VALLEY (3-8-12) — For the second game in a row, Mount Miguel High was plagued by turnovers and poor shooting. This time it was final as it came in the opening round of the CIF Division III SoCal Regional playoffs.

“I don't think our kids we're mentally motivated to play that game after the way the last one ended against Mission Bay,” Matadors coach ROBBIE SANDOVAL said after suffering a 59-32 defeat at the hands of West High of Torrance. “Maybe that was partially my fault, who knows.”

After shooting 2-of-12 from the field, the Matadors were on the short end of a 15-6 contest with one period in the books.

The Warriors defense admittedly only had one mindset coming into the game and that was to focus on Mount Miguel's inside presence.

“We wanted to keep the ball out of SHAY YOUNG's hands as much as possible,” head coach Mike Caporaso said of the plan.

“Everyone did a great job of collapsing on her once she got it, but more importantly they all recovered back to their spots when it was kicked back out.”

Young still finished with a double-double of 13 points and 10 boards to close out her career before moving on to play at New Mexico State next year.

“Our goal was to just really mix up size and speed on her to try and wear her down,” said Caporaso.

With an early bucket after halftime, Young had her team only trailing 24-20.

That's when the tide turned.

After committing 30 turnovers the previous game against Mission Bay , the Matadors mishandled the rock 22 more times, and thanks to a 16-2 run, the Warriors lead had suddenly blossomed to a whopping 18 points and they never looked back.

“Once we got up double digits our girls really puts things away with our hi-low game and that is going to be huge for us moving on,” the West Torrance coach added.

“It's definitely tough to end the season that way because I know we could have beat that team,” Sandoval admitted.

Mount Miguel: Shay Young 13 (10 reb, 1 stl), Zaria Branch 8 (7 reb, 2 blk), Dejanay Page 4 (8 reb, 1 stl), Chantel Yell 3 (2 reb, 1 ast), Deijah Blanks 2 (7 reb, 1 blk), Kamree Harrison 2 (2 reb, 1 ast), Breahna Jones (1 stl).

— Andrew Smith

BREA-OLINDA (BREA) 86, GRANITE HILLS 43 – Nary a year goes by without the Ladycats of Brea-Olinda participating in the CIF SoCal Regional lineup. These ‘Cats can purr . . . and claw . . . and scratch. They did all of the above to the visiting Granite Hills Eagles in Wednesday’s (Mar. 7) Division I opener.

The No. 2-seeded Ladycats (25-6) pressed for the full 32 minutes, causing a season high 34 turnovers by Granite Hills (30-6).

“We stayed with them for a little more than half of the 1st quarter and then they went on a run,” Granite Hills coach JERRY PARKER said.

Brea-Olinda led 44-24 at halftime. The game did not become a blowout until the final period when the Ladycats went on a 24-6 scoring binge.

“I thought early on we did a good job of handling their press,” Parker said. “Then we got careless with the ball.

Junior SKYLAR WILLIAMS led the Eagles with 19 points. No other statistics were reported.

“Overall this has been a good year, a memorable year,” Parker said. “Our girls have nothing to be ashamed of.”

The high points of the season for Granite Hills included the first league championship in 21 seasons, a school-record 30 wins and first ever appearances in the SDCIF finals and the regional playoffs.

MARK KEPPEL (ALHAMBRA) 68, WEST HILLS 35 – Wolf Pack coach RYAN KINSER probably did not have sophomore Kyrstin Nakamura on his pregame scouting report of the Mark Keppel Aztecs heading into the SoCal Division II Regional opener in Alhambra .

Nakamura, who spent all of the regular season on the junior varsity and did not join the varsity squad until the playoffs, drained four consecutive 3-pointers to help the No. 3 seeded Aztecs (28-4) breeze past West Hills (24-8).

After missing her first 3-point attempt – Keppel’s 11th straight long distance misfire – she made a 20-footer on her second attempt, propelling the Aztecs to a 25-9 lead with 4:59 left in the first half.

“They were quick, fast, and aggressive and we had no answer,” Kinser said. “This is one of, if not the best team we have faced since I've been coach at West Hills (five years). We tried every defense we had and it didn't work.”

Added Kinser, “We played decent defense the first quarter but had way too many turnovers. We fell apart in the second, didn't get back in transition and they killed us. We gave up way too many offensive rebounds, which is very disappointing since they didn't have much size.”

“We thought we could take advantage of our size but we could never get the post the ball in a good spot, they pressured and trapped everywhere. In order to have a chance tonight we knew we had to take care of the ball, we were unable to do that (25 turnovers.”

Despite losing its final two games, Kinser declared the season a success.

“Our goal was to get to Jenny Craig and we did that. This senior group should be very proud of what they accomplished here (two league titles, two trips to CIF finals).”

West Hills: Emily Cole 10, Taylor Ingraham 9, Jenesis Hayes 8, Jillian Brown 3, Kylie Cristini 2, Bailey Albers, Jessica Scott 1.

CIF SAN DIEGO SECTION CHAMPIONSHIPS

FINALS

Mission Bay limited Mount Miguel to 1-for-20 shooting in the second half, inclding this shot block to halt the Matadors' Dejanay Pope (left). (Photo by Greg Eichelberger) DIVISION 3 FINAL MISSION BAY 64, MOUNT MIGUEL 29 Defensive proud Matadors shown how it's done By Andrew Smith © East County Sports.com ALCALA PARK (3-4-12) — Mount Miguel High head coach ROBBIE SANDOVAL has definitely seen his fair share of basketball. Making his 11th straight appearance in the championship round, he had never seen the likes of what happened to his team in the San Diego CIF Division III final Saturday (Mar. 3) at Jenny Craig Pavilion. Facing off with a lanky No. 1 seeded Mission Bay ballclub that loves to press wasn't easy for the young Mount Miguel backcourt as the Bucs blew the Matadors out of the water with a 64-29 decision. “Our youth and inexperience really showed,” Sandoval said after seeing his team turn the ball over 30 times. “I'm not worried about it. We're young and we'll definitely be back hungrier than ever.” Mount Miguel (25-6) came in averaging 60.3 points per game. The Bucs (also 25-6) apparently weren’t impressed as they limited the Matadors to their lowest offensive output of the season. The press that the Bucs came out playing was no joke. They were quick to the ball and everyone had a large wingspan with the ability to jump out of the gym. “They were just so aggressive if you weren't strong with the ball they were gonna take it from you and there's nothing you can do about it,” Matadors senior CHANTEL YELL described. Yell and her senior captain SHAY YOUNG both scored 8 points and also agreed on the defense they faced. “It's hard to pass against a team with long arms and so much hops,” added Young. The Matadors stayed parallel on the scoreboard with Mission Bay in the first half even though they had 18 turnovers and went through a stretch of 9 possessions with only one shot attempt. The key for the Matadors while the Bucs were turning them over time after time, was Mission Bay was fouling quite a bit. Mount Miguel was into its double bonus with 7:12 left to play in the second quarter. Given the opportunity the Matadors stayed in the game, but only connected on 6-of-16 free throws and shot 30 percent from the field. “We missed way too many free throws and transitions opportunities in the first half,” Sandoval said. With 50 seconds to play in the first half the score was knotted at 24. With three minutes remaining, Sandoval was looking up at a scoreboard that read 56-27 as the Bucs pulled off one of the most improbable runs one could ever witness in a championship round. Bottom line is Mission Bay outscored Mount Miguel 36-5 during the final two quarters. Yell netted the only basket as the Matadors were 1-for-20 from the floor and 3 for 9 from the free throw line. “That second half though was the worst we've ever played,” Sandoval said. “It seemed like we came out of the locker room with our heads down like we had already lost.” Mount Miguel only turned the ball over 12 times in the second half and stayed right with Mission Bay on the boards with a slight 48-45 edge given to the Bucs. But once Young fouled out early in the fourth quarter hopes were dim. “We just didn't come out firm enough in the second half,” Young said. “Once they got on that run we just couldn't come back from it.” DEIJAH BLANKS posted a game-high 18 rebounds and Young added 13 for the Matadors as they now will go on the road for the first round of the Southern California Regional playoffs this Wednesday (Mar. 7). The site and opponent will be determined Sunday (Mar. 4). Mount Miguel: Shay Young 8 (13 reb, 1 stl), Chantel Yell 8 (1 reb, 2 stl), Kamree Harrison 5 (3 reb, 2 ast), Deijah Blanks 4 (18 reb), Zaria Branch 3 (3 reb, 3 ast), Breahna Jones 1 (1 reb, 1 stl), Dejanay Pope (6 reb).

DIVISION 1 FINAL SAN DIEGO HS 64, GRANITE HILLS 44 Cavers' Dixon era ends record Granite Hills run By Andrew Smith © East County Sports.com ALCALA PARK (3-4-12) — The Granite Hills Eagles had a magical season which saw them win their first Grossmont Conference title in 21 years, but the carpet ride the Eagles have been riding on culminated in them making their first San Diego CIF Division I championship game appearance Saturday (Mar. 3) night at Jenny Craig Pavilion. “We knew we would have our hands full against this team,” admitted head coach JERRY PARKER. Facing off against a San Diego team that they had previously lost to by 14 earlier this year, the Eagles knew they would have to be on top of the game to take home the hardware, especially since the Cavers won the first match-up without their standout point guard Tia Dixon, who will play for coach Beth Burns at San Diego State next season. With that being said it was definitely a bad time for their offense to go flat as the Eagles shot their way into an early hole and fell short of claiming their first-ever title, coming up on the short end of a disappointing 64-44 setback. The top-seeded Cavers (27-5) connected on four triples in the first quarter, while Granite Hills (30-5) came out a little overwhelmed by the moment shooting 1-for-14 from the field and trailed 20-7. “San Diego is a veteran ball club that's been here a few times and they weren't nervous at all because they've had this experience before,” Parker explained of the slow start after watching his Eagles end the first half shooting 18 percent. “It's our first taste of this and it's a big (college) gym.” Attempting to keep the Eagles in the game was ANNA VIETTRY's flawless shooting from the charity stripe as she nailed all eight of her shots. KAYLA KEMP and JESSICA HARRIS snagged 11 boards in the first half. “People try to stereotype her (Harris) as just a shooter,” proclaimed Parker after watching the smaller senior grab 14 rebounds. “But she's a tough kid for her size (5-foot-8). She plays great defense, rebounds and does a lot of the little things that help us win.” The biggest problem on defense for Granite Hills was the Cavers’ 6-foot-1 center Amie Callaway as she racked up 23 points to go along with 11 rebounds. “It was really important for us to keep her off the boards tonight because she's just so tenacious going after the basketball,” said Parker. “As a group we should've done a better job wrapping up on defensive possessions.” In the end, San Diego made almost made twice as many field goals as the Eagles while shooting 44 percent (23 for 52). Dixon scored 12 points and junior guard Alexis Harris added 15 while claiming 6 boards and handing out 5 assists. “This only made our girls hungrier in the long run to feel the other side of the celebration. We'll definitely be back next year,” guaranteed Parker. Still, the Eagles are just the third East County team to finish with at least 30 victories in a season, joining Mount Miguel (31, twice). Granite Hills: Jessica Harris 12 (14 reb, 3 ast, 3 stl), Anna Viettry 10 (3 reb, 5 ast, 1 stl), Hailey Garner 9 (6 reb, 1 stl), Skylar Williams 7 (7 reb, 1 ast, 3 stl), Keji Kubari 6 (1 reb, 1 blk), Kayla Kemp (6 reb, 1 stl), Leena Alyashaa (1 reb).

West Hills freshman Bailey Albers (4) used this screen by teammate Jillian Brown to go baseline against the Serra Conquistadors. Albers came off the bench to post a career-high 13 points in the Div. II finale, but the Q's took the title (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

Wolf Pack miss their 'Q'
Fifth-seeded Serra tallies ballgame's
final 9 points to steal SDCIF crown
from West Hills; claim first-ever title

By Andrew Smith
© East County Sports.com
ALCALA PARK (3-3-12) — After a slow start against Serra High in the Division II San Diego CIF championship game, West Hills starting playing the exact game it wanted to play. It was obvious from the start that the Conquistadors had both the height and speed advantage, so it was just a matter of taking care of the ball and making some outside shots if the Wolf Pack was going leave the Jenny Craig Pavilion with a gold ring.

Once they settled into the pace of the game that Serra tried to dictate, it all started to slow down for the Pack, but in a chaotic final 2:40 they were outscored 9-0 and absolutely stunned by a 50-47 defeat.

“I thought we did what we wanted to do for 30 minutes with the way they were playing offense and the way we were playing defense,” said West Hills coach RYAN KINSER.

Realizing the strength of this Serra team was with its size in the paint and its guards' quickness, Kinser put the Pack in a 2-3 zone trying to make the Conquistadors beat them from outside and the plan worked as they shot 3-of-17 from long distance.

After falling behind 11-5 early in the game the momentum seemed to be on West Hills' side even though the Wolf Pack didn't take its first lead until EMILY COLE hit the first of her four treys on the night with 2:05 left before halftime.

KYLIE CRISTINI scored 7 of her 10 points in the first quarter to keep the Pack in it, but the spark their offense so badly needed came off the bench in freshman BAILEY ALBERS.

“We knew this was (Albers’) style of team that we would be facing because they're aggressive,” Kinser said. “She did a great job of attacking the basket all night and did a lot of good things for us.”

Albers registered a rebound and a made field goal in every quarter and wound up with a team-high 13 points.

Leading by two after intermission West Hills pushed its lead to 8 after consecutive 3-balls from Cole late in the 3rd quarter.

The Wolf Pack continued to hold its lead but it was trimmed to 42-39 as Serra raced down the court with a 4-on-1 break. Cristini stood her ground and drew an offensive charge that seemed to shift things back in the Pack's direction.

Cole hit her last trey of the night and Albers added two free throws and with just under three minutes remaining things seemed to be in hand for them to clinch their 3rd title in four years.

That's when the hinges fell off...

A blown layup by the Pack led to an easy basket at the other end.

Then after a perfect defensive sequence the Conquistadors were forced to throw up a late prayer at the end of the shot clock and it was banked home by Tia Griffis with only 60 seconds remaining.

On the ensuing trip up court the ball was thrown right into a slew of Serra defenders and taken in for a Tylinn Carter and a sudden 2-point Serra lead.

After West Hills failed to score the plan with 31.4 seconds remaining was to foul as quick as possible. But the Conquistadors' quickness and speed came into play as they managed to execute a game of keep-away for 25 seconds and milked the clock all the way down to 5.4 seconds, leaving the Pack nothing short of a miracle to pull things out as the title slipped out of their hands in stunning fashion.

West Hills: Bailey Albers 13 (4 reb, 1 stl), Emily Cole 12 (3 reb, 2 ast), Kylie Cristini 10 (3 ast, 2 stl), Jillian Brown 4 (11 reb, 3 ast, 3 blk), Arielle Bowers 3 (1 reb), Jenesis Hayes 2 (3 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl), Jessica Scott 2 (3 reb, 2 ast), Taylor Ingraham 1 (5 reb), Taylor Aguirre (1 reb, 2 ast).

Nothing covert about Eagles' 'ninja' point guard

By Bill Dickens
© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (2-26-12) — Opponents of the Granite Hills Eagles tend to focus on containing JESSICA HARRIS and SKYLAR WILLIAMS. But the Eagles’ secret weapon is their “Ninja passer” ANNA VIETTRY.

“Anna’s the one who makes us go,” said Harris who scored a game-high 24 points Saturday (Feb. 25) as the Eagles eliminated Eastlake 54-38 in the San Diego CIF Division I quarterfinals. “She’s a great passer, excellent for setting up her teammates.”

In the meantime, by winning a school-record 29th game (against 4 losses) the Eagles have earned the right to host Poway in Wednesday’s (Feb. 29) semifinals at 7 p.m.

The Ultimate Warrior

Granite Hills point guard Anna Viettry (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

Viettry, the Granite Hills quarterback, enjoys her role.

“It seems like it took us a long time to get going against Eastlake (26-4), which is one of the fastest teams we’ve played all year,” she said. “But once we put together a good scoring run (26-6 in the middle two quarters for a 34-16 lead), we were playing our game at the pace we wanted to.”

Harris capitalized on some nifty Viettry passes to connect on 11 of 15 shots from the floor. Two of those were 3-pointers.

“Every game we play we want it to be our style,” Harris said. “It was so neat to have a big crowd tonight, knowing that they were there to see the girls play. It was probably the biggest crowd we’ve had and our adrenalin was really pumping.”

Added Viettry, “It’s great to be the No. 2 seed because we get three home games. Last year we opened the playoffs on the road and lost to Poway in the first round. It means a lot to have our fans in the stands.”

Granite Hills' Hailey Garner (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

KEJI KUBARI captured 9 caroms and blocked 2 shots for the Eagles.

“We’re excited about what we have going and we want to keep it going,” said Harris. “Against Eastlake part of our incentive is they’ve been ranked ahead of us all year. They’ve been either 9 or 10 most of the season and we’ve been stuck on the bubble. That’s why a win like this is so satisfying.”

Granite Hills: Jessica Harris 24 (7 reb, 3 ast, 1 stl), Skylar Williams 15 (10 reb, 3 ast, 3 stl), Anna Viettry 7 (6 reb, 4 ast, 1 stl), Keji Kubari 5 (9 reb, 2 ast, 2 blk), Erica Phillips 2, Hailey Garner 1 (6 reb, 3 stl), Kayla Kemp (1 reb, 2 stl), Leena Alyashaa (2 ast), Madison Lumb (5 reb).

MOUNT MIGUEL 51, DEL NORTE 11 – Mount Miguel High senior SHAY YOUNG celebrated her 18th birthday on Friday (Feb. 24) and kept the party going in leading the Matadors past visiting Del Norte in Saturday’s (Feb. 25) San Diego CIF Division III quarterfinals.

Young finished with 19 markers against the Nighthawks (15-14). DEJANAY POPE also matched her season high of 14 rebounds for the Matadors (23-5) who led 28-2 by intermission.

“This was easily one of our best defensive performances of the year,” Mount Miguel coach ROBBIE SANDOVAL said. “We went up 5-0. Then they hit a basket. They didn’t score again until there were four minutes left in the third quarter.

“Our pressure hurt them, caused them to take a lot of bad shots.”

Young has scored 112 points in her last four games.

Mount Miguel hosts Our Lady of Peace in Wednesday’s (Feb. 29) SDCIF Div. III semifinals, with the winner advancing to the finals Saturday (Mar. 3) at USD’s Jenny Craig Pavilion.

Mount Miguel: Shay Young 19 (7 reb, 6 ast, 3 stl), Kamree Harrison 14 (3 reb, 3 ast, 4 stl), Deijah Blanks 6 (4 reb, 2 ast, 3 stl, 3 blk), Dejanay Pope 4 (14 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk), Zaria Branch 4 (4 reb, 2 ast, 3 stl), Breahna Jones 2 (2 reb, 2 stl), Brooklyn Miller 2 (2 reb), Chantel Yell (1 ast, 1 stl).

MT. CARMEL 63, MONTE VISTA 48 – The Monte Vista Monarchs finished a successful season by fouling out of the San Diego CIF Division II quarterfinal playoffs Saturday (Feb. 25) in Rancho Penasquitos.

The Monarchs (23-9) were whistled for 25 fouls, which resulted in 36 free throws for the Sundevils. Mt. Carmel (24-6) converted 24 times from the charity stripe.

Erica Lorenz registered a game-high 28 points to lead Mt. Carmel , which led 26-18 at halftime. The Sundevils outscored the Monarchs in all four quarters despite 20 points by Monte Vista junior FELICIA PORTER.

Monte Vista (23-9) was 15-for-19 from the foul line and JAZMINE BRADLEY nailed a pair of treys on her way to a 13-point finish.

“We pretty poorly early,” said Monte Vista coach MICHAEL SKIBBE. “We closed it to within 3-to-5 points, but we just couldn’t get it done.”

Monte Vista: Felicia Porter 20 (5 reb, 1 blk, 1 stl), Jazmine Bradley 13 (5 reb, 1 sts, 3 ast), Dionna Mercer 7 (5 reb, 4 ast), Heather Bell 3 (1 reb), Abigail Vargas 2 (1 reb, 1 ast), Monique Williams 2, Stefanie Banks 1, Kayla Harrell (2 reb), Monica Williams (1 stl).

No. 1 Torreys are Plum of a ballclub

By Andrew Smith
© East County Sports.com
GOLDEN TRIANGLE (2-25-12) — If there was any squabble or debate about La Jolla Country Day deserving the No.1 national rank MaxPreps had tagged them with, the Torreys put those doubts to rest for at least one more game against Christian in the San Diego CIF Division IV quarterfinals Friday (Feb. 24).

It was clear from the opening tip that the Patriots (11-14) were in way over their heads after a first quarter of just 3 shot attempts, 12 turnovers and the number of times they made it over mid-court could be counted on one hand.

The Torreys (26-1) were relentless right out of the gates, making 10-of-14 first quarter shots, which included 4 triples from Kelsey Plum, and they cruised to a rather impressive 78-17 triumph.

Plum finished the night with 14 of 24 shooting including six 3-balls for 37 total points.

CHAYAN LOWERY led the Patriots with 8 points and 12 rebounds, but wasn't surprised at what had just taken place on the floor.

“We knew they were a great team coming in from playing them last year,” she said. “Through their teamwork you can just see how hard they work together so they deserve all the hoopla anyone throws their way.”

Lowery scored the final point of the first quarter on a free throw, but the problem with that was it was the lone point the Patriots scored in the first half as they trailed 45-1 at halftime.

Christian head coach THOMAS LOWERY had nothing but praise for the Torreys afterward.

“To me they’re a class act and I can see why they are considered to be ranked where they are,” he said. “As a coach they are a fun team to watch.”

Probably the most exciting thing that took place on the floor for the Patriots was with only seconds remaining senior AMELIA JOHNSON, who doubles as a cheerleader during the boys’ games, broke off a round-off back handspring much to the delight of her teammates on the bench.

“I promised them in my last game as a senior I would do one for all of them," Johnson said of her final act.

Christian: Chayan Lowery 8 (12 reb, 1 stl), Lily Rodriguez 4 (2 reb), Alesia Tobiason 2, Haley Cruz (3 reb, 1 ast), Mia Johnson (2 reb), Audrey Taylor (1 ast), Jaqueline Jennings (1 ast).

FIRST ROUND

Deijah Blanks of Mount Miguel gets inside position for this short jump shot. The Matadors opened the CIF Division III playoffs by downing Montgomery, 66-25. (Photo by Frank Price, youatplay.com) VIEW / PURCHASE ADDITIONAL PHOTOS HERE

Kayla Harrell (32) of Monte Vista with the baseline move to drive past the Orange Glen center. (Photo by Frank Pirce, youatplay.com) VIEW/PURCHASE ADDITIONAL PHOTOS

Monarchs out-man, out-muscle Orange Glen By Andrew Smith © East County Sports.com SPRING VALLEY (2-23-12) — If you were playing a pickup game of 5-on-5 with no subs the game would slow down rather early once everyone started to wear down and tire out. The problem when you match up with Monte Vista though is that they play with two squads of five to your one. “I haven't seen like it anything like it all year,” said Orange Glen coach Damian Cephas in astonishment. “It's kind of ridiculous to have that many players that can all contribute like that.” Outsized and outnumbered, the Patriots (12-14) kept their opening round game of the San Diego CIF Division II playoffs close Wednesday (Feb. 22) night as long as they could, but in the end the Monarchs were just too deep for them handle as Monte Vista (23-8) came away with a 64-49 victory. For Monarchs head coach MICHAEL SKIBBE, that was the plan all along. “The strategy doesn't ever really change,” he explained. “Our one-through-five is just as good as anyone else's, but our six-through-ten is better than any other team around.” DIONNA MERCER only had 5 points, but contributed 8 rebounds and had 8 delicious dimes as Monte Vista never trailed and jumped out to a 20-12 lead after one quarter. That lead never got bigger than 10 until the fourth quarter when they eventually put the game away. FELICIA PORTER registered a double-double netting 13 points on 5-of-10 shooting, to go along with a game-high 11 boards. “As a team they were kinda small, but their bigs were my size so it was just a matter of boxing out and who wanted it more,” said Porter. “We seem to only wanna play in spurts and that has to change.” Not only does HEATHER BELL walk around campus sporting a 4.65 GPA, she also goes by the nickname “long-range.” Maybe that should be more along the lines of “Liberty Bell” because she has the freedom to make a shot from anywhere and also has the green light to do so. “She's such a hard worker whether in the classroom or on the court,” Skibbe said of his sophomore. “I tell her to shoot it whenever she wants.” When she gets the ball in her hands the crowd literally yells at her to shoot and she didn't disappoint as she came off the bench to send the crowd into a frenzy, nailing three treys to push the Monarchs’ lead to 20 in the fourth quarter. JAZMINE BRADLEY tied with ABIGAIL VARGAS for a game-high 14 points. She also had 4 rebounds, 3 steals and a pair of assists and blocks as well. Vargas was everywhere when she was on the floor as she snatched 7 boards to go along with 6 assists and 3 steals. She also knew more work is going to be needed if they want to keep their season alive past Saturday’s quarterfinals. “We started off really slow and we also seemed to lose our intensity after a while,” she said. “We definitely need to run the court more and play better help defense if we're gonna move on in the next round.” Monte Vista: Abigail Vargas 14 (7 reb, 6 ast, 3 stl), Jazmine Bradley 14 (4 reb, 2 ast, 3 stl, 2 blk), Felicia Porter 13 (11 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl, 1 blk), Heather Bell 9 (1 reb, 1 stl), Dionna Mercer 5 (8 reb, 8 ast, 1 blk), Stefanie Banks 4 (5 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl), Monica Williams 2 (5 reb), Kayla Harrell 2 (2 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Monique Williams 1 (1 reb, 1 stl, 1 blk), Alexis Whittman (2 reb, 1 blk), Marisa Allan (1 ast).

© East County Sports.com
SPRING VALLEY (2-23-12) — Muscled by high-scoring SHAY YOUNG, the No. 2 seeded Mount Miguel Matadors (22-5) mowed down visiting Montgomery, 66-25, for their 11th consecutive victory and first in Wednesday’s (Feb. 22) San Diego CIF Division III playoffs.

The Matadors, who tamed the Aztecs (10-16) by a 51-22 count in the third game of the regular season, outscored the South Bay bunch 30-7 in the second half to claim another victory.

“We clamped down on defense in the second half,” said Mount Miguel coach ROBBIE SANDOVAL.

Young, who punched in 30 points against the Aztecs, has tallied 96 points in her last three starts. The New Mexico State-bound Young has broken the 30-point barrier eight times this season.

“Shay is giving us what we need,” Sandoval said. “She is leading us to where we want to go.”

Other standouts in Mount Miguel ’s latest conquest included DEIJAH BLANKS, who contributed 8 points and 7 rebounds.

DEJANAY POPE led the Matadors’ board brigade with 10 rebounds.

Not known to be a big scorer, CHANTEL YELL dished 4 assists, made 4 steals and took 3 charges.

Mount Miguel: Shay Young 30 (7 reb, 3 ast, 1 stl), Deijah Blanks 8 (7 reb, 2 ast, 1 blk), Zaria Branch 8 (3 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Kamree Harrison 5 (2 reb, 5 ast, 3 stl), Chantel Yell 5 (4 ast, 4 stl), Dejanay Pope 4 (10 reb, 1 blk), Breahna Jones 4 (2 reb, 1 stl), Brooklyn Miller 2 (1 reb, 1 stl).

Mount Miguel's Zaria Branch nails a trey. (Photo by Frank Pirce, youatplay.com)

GRANITE HILLS 71, CALEXICO 30 – Not surprisingly, 2nd seeded Granite Hills clobbered Calexico in Wednesday’s (Feb. 22) San Diego CIF Division I playoff opener.

JESSICA HARRIS set the pace for the Eagles (28-4) with 27 points, the majority coming on 5 three-pointers. She also had 7 steals, while SKYLAR WILLIAMS tallied 14 points and ANNA VIETTRY chipped in 13 in a game that was never closse.

Granite Hills outscored the visiting Bulldogs 46-15 in the middle two quarters.

“Anna and Jessica did a great job leading us out on the floor,”said Granite Hills coach JERRY PARKER. “They are the ones who got us where we are and they are the ones who are going to take us deeper in the playoffs.

“I thought we gave up too many points,” he added. “It got the job done but we have to be ready to meet the tough teams that we’ll see later.”

Granite Hills: Jessica Harris 27 (4 reb, 3 ast, 7 stl, 1 blk), Skylar Williams 14 (5 reb, 4 ast, 4 stl), Anna Viettry 13 (2 reb, 9 ast, 3 stl), Kayla Kemp 5 (2 reb), Hailey Garner 4 (2 reb, 1 ast, 5 stl, 1 blk), Keji Kubari 3 (8 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl), Leena Alyashaa 2 (2 reb, 1 ast), Erica Phillips 2 (5 reb), Mariah Vanlandingham (7 reb), Madison Lumb (3 reb), Tilea Armstrong (2 reb).

WEST HILLS 61, EL CAJON VALLEY 31 – No. 2 seed West Hills proved that it is ready to make a run for the San Diego CIF Division II title.

The five-time Grossmont League champion Wolf Pack (22-6) breezed to an opening round playoff win over visiting El Cajon Valley (10-15).

West Hills, which lost in the semifinals last year after capturing the SDCIF Division II crown a year earlier, was never in danger of suffering a first round knockout.

“We started off very slow offensively, forced some turnovers with our pressure but couldn’t convert on easy opportunities,” said West Hills coach RYAN KINSER. “ El Cajon did a nice job shutting down our post game.”

Wolf Pack guard EMILY COLE scored 22 points, the majority coming on 5 triples to be the leader of the Pack.

“In the second half we came out with much more intensity, scored 21 in the 3rd quarter and put them away,” Kinser said. “Emily Cole came out hot after the half, made 4 of her 5 threes in the third. We were able to maintain and build on our lead the rest of the way.

“We are very happy with a 1st round win but we need to play much better defense moving forward if we want to advance deep in the playoffs.”

CHELSEA BALL paced El Cajon Valley with 13 points and 20 rebounds.

“When I received the job I told the girls to get ready for change, and that we did,” said Braves coach MARC BOYKINS. “I also set goals and we reached them both: 10 wins and make it to the playoffs. The girls made me look like a good coach. They had it in them all the time – just needed someone to bring it out.”

West Hills: Emily Cole 22, Arielle Bowers 8, Jenesis Hayes 8, Taylor Aguirre 6, Taylor Ingraham 6, Kylie Cristini 5, Bailey Albers 3, Daniana Ghandour 2, Jillian Brown 1.

El Cajon Valley: Chelsea Ball 13 (20 reb, 3 ast), Micia Lopez 9 (3 reb), Natasha Fernandez 7 (4 reb, 2 stl), Joanna Delacruz 2 (2 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Ormoni Norris-Greer (3 reb).

MT. CARMEL 63, STEELE CANYON 43 – A dry spell in the middle two quarters when the host and third-seeded Sundevils reeled off a 35-7 scoring splurge added up to a San Diego CIF Div. II first round defeat for the visiting Steele Canyon Cougars on Wednesday (Feb. 22) in North County.

The Cougars jumped out to an early 11-4 lead with 3 minutes remaining in the 1st quarter. However, Mt. Carmel gained control after ALI MERLINO picked up her 3rd foul of the quarter and had to take a seat until the 2nd quarter.

Coach TIM JOLLET’s Sundevils (24-5) came out strong in the 3rd quarter, taking a 51-22 lead into the final period. Game over.

“They were a well disciplined team,” Steele Canyon coach DALE PARKER said. “They had a nice balance of inside and outside shooting. They executed real well.”

The Cougars put on a small run, with a 21-point 4th quarter, but it was too little too late.

Merlino knocked down 19 points and MONIQUE VAN added 13 points and 7 rebounds for the Cougars, who finished 11-15.

“Monique and Ali both had good games,” Parker said. “We just couldn’t buy a shot from outside.

“We have to rebuild and get ready for next year.”

Steele Canyon: Ali Merlino 19 (3 reb), Monique Van 13 (7 reb, 1 blk, 4 stl, 3 ast), Alexis Ramos 4 (5 reb, 2 blk, 2 ast), Tiana Teo 5 (3 reb, 1 stl), Rachel Beasley 2 (1 reb, 3 stl), Jessica Thompson (2 reb, 1 st, 3 ast), Mercedes Dupre-Rogers (2 reb).

CHRISTIAN 41, CALIPATRIA 31 – CHAYAN LOWERY narrowly missed a triple-double in Wednesday’s (Feb. 22) opening round San Diego CIF Division IV victory over Calipatria (7-13) by Christian (11-13) at the Ryan Athletic Center.

Lowery rang up 20 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and blocked 8 shots for the Patriots, who must now face top-seeded La Jolla Country Day (25-1) as part of a double-header in the beach community. The schools boys teams will vie in the nightcap at 7:30 p.m.

The Hornets claimed a 17-15 halftime advantage before the Patriots used a 13-2 run in the 3rd quarter as the Lowery sisters Chayan and ALESIA combined for 11 points to regain command for keeps.

“We switched to a full-court man-to-man defense in the 3rd quarter and that created some turnovers,” said Christian coach THOMAS LOWERY. “Our starters did a decent job all night.”

Christian: Chayan Lowery 20 (12 reb, 8 blk, 2 ast, 1 stl), Alesia Lowery 8 (5 reb, 4 ast, 3 stl, 1 blk), Jillian Sexton 8 (4 reb, 1 blk), Mia Johnson 5 (4 stl).

DEL NORTE 51, SANTANA 25 – This game was over by halftime as host Del Norte led 34-10 in Wednesday’s (Feb. 22) San Diego CIF Division III playoff opener.

The Sultans shot a paltry 16 percent (9 for 55) from the floor as they finished 12-15 for the season.

Unfortunately for the Santee bunch, nobody had the hot hand although SYDNEY BLACKBURN finished with 11 points, 3 steals and 2 blocks to lead the team.

Santana: Sydney Blackburn 11 (6 reb, 2 ast, 3 stl, 2 blk), Haley Burton 9 (6 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Savanah Fenn 3 (7 reb), Savannah Garcia (2 reb), Veronica Martinez 2, Emily Kloss (6 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk), Kayti Grable (8 reb, 2 stl), Becca Martinez (1 reb, 1 ast), Kylie Brase (2 reb), Taylor Estes (3 reb, 2 stl), Ariel Rassmussen (1 reb).