© East County Sports.com
SPRING VALLEY (2-1-07) — Neither team is in line for a championship. Even the San Diego CIF playoffs are out of reach. But that did not keep victory-starved El Cajon Valley and struggling Monte Vista from conducting an intense battle in Wednesday’s (Jan. 31) Grossmont Crossover contest.

The visiting Braves, who had lost 12 in a row, tasted victory for just the second time in 22 games as they nipped the Monarchs, 38-37.

“I must say the girls were pretty happy about this one,” said El Cajon Valley co-head coach RICK WILKERSON.

The Monarchs led 27-25 after three quarters, but the Braves put together one of their highest scoring quarters of the year, generating 13 points to take the come-from-behind victory.

El Cajon Valley, which had totaled only 48 points in its previous four games combined, opened up a 36-34 lead when ADRIANA USSERY hit an 18-foot jumper with 20 seconds left, giving the Braves a 4-point margin.

Ussery’s shot proved to be the difference as Monte Vista’s VICTORIA RICHMOND hit a long 3-pointer to cut the Braves’ lead to one point.

“At the end we just kept on plugging away,” Wilkerson said.

Ussery led the Braves with 14 points.

Monte Vista (4-20), which was playing without leading scorer RACHEL FINKS (ill with the flu), struggled at the free throw line. The Monarchs made just 6 of 16 charity tosses, which cost them in the end.

Monte Vista’s Richmond hit 3 triples on her way to a game-high 15 points.

JANAY PATTON added 9 points and 10 rebounds for Monte Vista, which also got 13 boards and 7 points from NICOLE ASHBY-JONES.

KIM GALARPE recorded 7 steals and dished 5 assists to go along with 6 points for the Monarchs.

“The teams went back-to-back all night, but we couldn’t hit our free throws the whole game,” lamented Monte Vista coach MICHAEL SKIBBE.

El Cajon Valley scoring: Adriana Ussery 14, Samantha Julien 6, Taniya Patros 6, Stephanie Smith 4, Sheraina Moon 4, Stephanie Jacobs 2, Leena Norwarekar 2.

Monte Vista scoring: Victoria Richmond 15, Janay Patton 9, Nicole Ashby-Jones 7, Kim Galarpe 6.

SANTANA 51, GRANITE HILLS 38 – Although tradition-rich Santana is not attracting much attention in the various polls, it can’t be denied that the Sultans are 21-5.

In a game matching two of Grossmont Conference’s better teams, the Sultans methodically marched to the crossover victory Wednesday (Jan. 31) in Santee.

Santana led by as much as 19 points in the fourth quarter, then breezed to an impressive victory.

“It was a gutty performance for us,” said Santana coach JIM MOTTERSHAW. “I think we wanted it more than they did.”

Senior ASHLEY BAKER turned in one of her best double-doubles with 14 points and 13 rebounds for Santana.

DANIELLE BALOUGH wasn’t too bad either, spinning a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds. Balough also had 5 assists and Baker added a block.

Santana led 25-13 at intermission and 37-20 after three quarters.

Steady SHAE BASS dealt 7 assists, blocked 3 shots, snagged 5 rebounds and scored 5 points for the Sultans.

“Santana did a great job of pounding the ball inside,” said Granite Hills coach JERRY PARKER. “They got us in foul trouble early.”

One factor that worked against Granite Hills was the availability of MOLLY HILLENBRAND. One of the Eagles top rebounders, she played two minutes in the first quarter, then sat out the rest of the half in foul trouble.

MORGAN SABALA scored a game-high 17 points for Granite Hills (16-10). More than half of the points came on 3-point shooting as she sank 3 triples. Sabala also had 4 steals.

LAUREN BENDER pitched in with a team-best 9 rebounds and 7 points. The Eagles’ AMY SYLVESTER also crashed the boards for 7 rebounds, one more than Hillenbrand.

Freshman SABRINA JIMINEZ had 4 assists for the Eagles.

Santana scoring: Ashley Baker 14, Danielle Balough 13, Jamie Elias 6, Nicole Brzeczek 5, Miki Sankary 5, Shae Bass 5, Brianna Padilla 3.

Granite Hills scoring: Morgan Sabala 17, Lauren Bender 7, Molly Hillenbrand 6, Leslie Upton 4, Kylee Wilson 2, Amy Sylvester 2.

MOUNT MIGUEL 57, EL CAPITAN 25 – Keeping his Matadors on top of their game is the greatest challenge that Mount Miguel coach ROBBIE SANDOVAL faces for the remainder of the season.

Clearly the best team in the San Diego CIF and ranked No. 1 accordingly, the Matadors must fight themselves to not overlook any opponent.

Mount Miguel (18-4) stumbled out of the gate in Wednesday’s (Jan. 31) Grossmont Conference crossover contest, finding themselves tied 7-7 with the Vaqueros after the first eight minutes.

The final three quarters were vintage Mount Miguel as the Matadors outscored El Capitan 50-18.

AUTUMN SPIKES and PRECIOUS ROBINSON riddled the Vaqueros in the paint. Spikes produced game highs of 16 points and 11 rebounds, pilfered 3 passes and blocked a shot.

Robinson did most of her damage from the free throw line where she hit 10 of 13 attempts to finish with 14 points. Robinson also blocked 5 shots and grabbed 7 rebounds.

“It was just one of those games. We got off to a real slow start and El Cap was playing real well,” said Mount Miguel coach ROBBIE SANDOVAL. “We kept on playing hard and turned things around. Our defense was effective all night.”

The main cog in Mount Miguel ’s defense – as always – was guard VICTORIA MURPHY, who limited El Capitan shooting star ASHLEY DUFFY to 6 points.

“Murphy was especially strong defensively,” Sandoval. “She’s our defensive stopper.”

Murphy had 6 steals, which matched El Capitan ’s JAMIE FERGUSON for game-high honors.

Bottom line is El Capitan, like most teams, could not deal with Mount Miguel ’s pressure defense. The Vaqueros turned the ball over 36 times.

VALERIE LOGEL topped El Capitan with 10 points and shared team-high rebounding with Duffy at 7 apiece. Duffy also had 5 assists and 3 steals.

El Capitan’s SAM SPRING had 3 blocks.

Mount Miguel scoring: Autumn Spikes 16, Precious Robinson 14, Marnesha Hall 9 (5 stl., 2 blk., 3 ast.), LaShawn Johnson 8 (6 reb., 4 ast.), Danesia Williamson 6 (4 ast.), Victoria Murphy 4.

El Capitan scoring: Valerie Logel 10, Ashley Duffy 6, Jamie Ferguson 4, Sam Spring 3, Taylor Autry 2.

© East County Sports.com
SANTEE (1-30-07) -- In years gone by games such as Monday's (Jan. 29) Grossmont Conference crossover game between perennial powers Santana and Mount Miguel have usually created a photo finish.

This particular match-up is not something that should be archived on DVD. It was over almost before it started, as the San Diego CIF top-ranked Matadors scooted out to a 23-7 first quarter lead and were breezing 40-12 by the break.

"Our goal is not to run up scores on people, but rather to get a full head of steam going into the playoffs," said Mount Miguel coach ROBBIE SANDOVAL.

Mount Miguel (17-4) smothered Santana with its viper-like press in the opening half to gain the lead and momentum it would never give up.

"Our goal was to get them out of their comfort zone, and we were able to do that," Sandoval added. "Our speed and quickness gave them a lot of trouble."

Unlike in past years, these Matadors have balance in almost every area. It starts with balanced scoring, which on this occasion featured PRECIOUS ROBINSON on the forefront with 16 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks.

Fiery guard DANESIA WILLIAMSON landed a trio of triples on her way to a 13-point finish.

AUTUMN SPIKES added 10 points and 8 rebounds, while MARNESHA HALL pitched in 10 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals.

Sandoval pointed praise toward 6-foot-1 junior Spikes, who held Santana's DANIELLE BALOUGH to 4 free throws, which is 17.5 points below her season scoring average.

NICOLE BRZECZEK led Santana (20-5) with 7 points.

SHAE BASS scored just two points but topped the Sultans with 4 steals, 3 assists, blocked a shot and grabbed 3 rebounds.

Mount Miguel scoring: Precious Robinson 16, Danesia Williamson 13 (2 ast., 2 stl.), Autumn Spikes 10, Marnesha Hall 10, LaShawn Johnson 8 (8 ast., 5 stl., 2 reb.), Coco Fountain 7, Victoria Murphy 6 (3 reb., 5 stl.), Cindy Ekweozor 4.

Santana scoring: Nicole Brzeczek 7 (3 reb., 2 ast.), Danielle Balough 4, Jamie Elias 4, Brianna Padilla 4, Kaila Smith 3, Shae Bass 2, Miki Sankary 1, Ashley Baker (4 reb.).

WEST HILLS 52, GRANITE HILLS 44 -- Freshman MARILYN NADERHOFF tallied 18 points and handed out 5 assists Monday night (Jan. 29) to lead West Hills to an impressive victory over visiting Granite Hills in a Grossmont Conference crossover match.

"We started out very slow," said West Hills assistant coach SIG CHABROWSKI. "We shot a lot of free throws early, but we weren't making that many. We put things together in the second quarter. Our defense was outstanding. It enabled us to get our offense going."

The Wolf Pack (15-9) overcame a 14-12 deficit to lead 29-22 at halftime.

MOLLY HILLENBRAND led Granite Hills with a game-high 19 points. She did most of her damage from the free throw line where she netted 9 of 12 chances.

Hillenbrand and teammate AMY SYLVESTER shared game-high rebounding honors with 7 apiece.

"Molly has been stepping up her game lately," said Granite Hills coach JERRY PARKER. "She played well again tonight. (West Hills) really turned things up in the second quarter. We weren't ready for that."

Granite Hills senior MORGAN SABALA, who has been mired in a slump of late, hit her 45th and 46th three-point buckets but could offer little else in the scoring department for the Eagles. She did lead the team with 5 assists and also nabbed 5 rebounds, but that's not her strength and the Eagles suffered for it.

"Morgan had a difficult time tonight," Parker said. "She was strong at penetrating the key and dishing off to open shooters. Her favorite target was LAUREN BENDER."

Bender finished with 8 points and 4 rebounds.

Once again West Hills used an AYSO approach to playing everybody, which limits the opportunity for individual standouts.

MUAAU NADERHOFF scored 9 points, and CORRYN KIVETT grabbed 6 rebounds.

West Hills scoring: Marilyn Naderhoff 18, Muaau Naderhoff 9, Shelby Russo 7, Sherika Miller 7, Mariah Bennett 4, Ashley Alderton 3, Kimberly Clark 2, Corryn Kivett 2.

Granite Hills scoring: Molly Hillenbrand 19, Lauren Bender 8, Morgan Sabala 6, Amy Sylvester 5, Sabrina Jimenez 2, Katrena Gabardi 2, Hubert 2.

CHRISTIAN 46, CLAIREMONT 34 -- Considering the visiting Patriots scored only three points in the first quarter, Christian had to be pleased to leave Clairemont Monday night (Jan. 29) with its third win in five Central League starts.

Steady senior SARAH SEYMOUR was the pillar of the Patriots' victory, scoring a game-high 18 points, knocking down 9 of 18 field goals shots. Seymour also paced the Patriots with 16 rebounds.

"Tonight was a good win for us," said Christian coach CORI ESPELET. "We fought through the trials and came out with a win."

Starting the game with just six active players, the Patriots (10-11, 3-2 CNT) finished with only four on the floor.

"We ended the game with only 4 players, and the less we had the more aggressive we became," Espelet said. "EMILY REED was in early foul trouble, and fouled out quick in the second half; NICHOLE MILLER went down at the end of the game with an injured shoulder and left us without a full squad. It was a great test for us, and I am proud of our team's victory."

All statistics considered, it could be said that Christian was fortunate to escape with a victory.

"We allowed Clairemont 30 offensive boards, and we only grabbed 10," said Espelet. :"This is something we will be working on for our Coronado game coming up on Friday."

Christian scoring: Sarah Seymour 18, Nichole Miller 7, Emily Reed 7, Kristy Gaus 6, Melody Criswell 4, Rachel Criswell 4.

HELIX 73, EL CAPITAN 41 -- The Highlanders have been operating under the radar most of the season. Good enough to raise an eyebrow, but not high enough to gain state or national recognition.

That suits Helix coach TRINA MERIDETH just fine. She is no doubt thinking about gaining a respectable seed in the Division I playoffs, and then ambushing a team with a higher rating but less talent.

On the strength of a 31-9 third quarter scoring outburst the Highlanders (16-6) turned a 6-point halftime lead into a rout.

BRITTANY WILLIAMS scored 12 of her game-high 26 points during the Highlanders third quarter scoring spree. SINOI LEASAU scored 9 of her 12 points during that stretch, while MELE LEASAU pitched in 8 of her 12 points in that period.

It was hardly the great escape but it did lower Merideth's blood pressure a bit.

"Brittany Williams stepped up big in the third quarter and so did Mele Leasau," said Merideth. "Mele sat out the last five minutes of the second quarter with three fouls. I would love to remember what I told the team at halftime because I would bottle it and use it the rest of the season."

Mele Leasau added 10 rebounds and 6 assists to the Helix account, while Williams produced 9 rebounds, 7 assists and 6 steals.

JAZ AFUSIA pitched in 9 points, while JEM AFUSIA collected 7 rebounds, tallied 6 points and handed out 3 scoring passes.

"We got some good contributions from our bench," Meridith said. "I was pleased with the efforts of our bench, especially in the second quarter. "

It was the fourth straight win for Helix (16-6), which has won 6 of 7 and 9 of its last 11.

ASHLEY DUFFY made only 4 of 18 shots from the field, but was the only Vaqueros to reach double figures with 13 points. She also had 4 steals, 3 rebounds and 2 assists.

JAMIE FERGUSON chipped in 8 rebounds and 5 steals for El Capitan (9-11).

Helix scoring: Brittany Williams 26, Mele Leasau 12, Sinoi Leasau 12, Jaz Afusia 9, Jem Afusia 6 (7 reb., 3 ast.), Elizabeth Caldwell 4, Sam Vick 2, Tatiana Jackson 2.

El Capitan scoring: Ashley Duffy 13, Ashley Bunce 5 (5 reb.), Sam Spring 5, Liana Pitman 4, Taylor Autry 3, Abby Carlino 3, Valerie Logel 3 (6 reb.), Jamie Ferguson 2, Brittney Loring 2 (7 reb.), Kara Brown 1.

© East County Sports.com
SAN DIEGO (1-28-07) -- Grossmont High coach TIM JOLLETT believes his Foothillers should be the No. 1 seeded team in the San Diego Section Division II playoffs.

Precious Robinson (23) grabs the rebound from Matadors teammate LaShawn Johnson. (Photo by Chris Edwards)

Grossmont still has Division II games remaining against Ramona, El Capitan, West Hills and El Cajon Valley. The only top-notch Division II team the Foohillers haven't met is Mt. Carmel. No doubt those two teams will cross paths come playoff time.

Against Montgomery (13-8), the Foothillers were at their best, with La'KENYA SIMON-WEST leading the way with 41 points -- 2 below her previous high game. The senior guard hit 13-of-21 shots from the floor, including 5 triples. She now has an East County best 81 treys for the season.

TINA RIOS added 10 points and 3 steals, while THERESE RIEDEL canned 9 points and grabbed 21 rebounds.

MICHELLE GONZALEZ hauled down 6 rebounds, as did Simon-West.

Grossmont led by 10 in the first quarter, but saw that lead dwindle as the game progressed.

"It was toe-to-toe most of the night," Jollett said. "Both teams play a fast-paced, defensive pressure game."

Jollett was pleased by Grossmont's defensive work against Montgomery scoring ace Danisha Corbett, holding her to 12 points. Tina Rios was the focal point of that defensive effort, with help from Simon-West.

"It was another game of great team defense, something that we do very well," Jollett said. "We switch on every screen all over the court."

Grossmont scoring: La'Kenya Simon-West 41, Tina Rios 10, Therese Riedel 9, Marcee Fitzpatrick 3, Michelle Gonzalez 2.

© East County Sports.com
SANTEE (1-27-07) -- It was more a game of survival than anything else when West Hills hosted El Capitan in Friday's (Jan. 26) Grossmont North League encounter.

Using a 36-21 second-half scoring advantage, West Hills kept its faint Grossmont North League title hopes alive by downing the Vaqueros 57-53.

"This was a nail-biter," said KIMBERLY CLARK, a 5-foot-9 Wolf Pack freshman guard who scored a game-high 18 points and garnered 10 rebounds.

Clark canned 5 of 6 shots from the floor, including one trey, and added 7 free throws.

"The game was really intense, it was a struggle the whole game. Both teams played real hard and it was good to get a tough win at home," Clark said.

West Hills (14-9, 2-2 GNL) had to be stunned when the visiting Vaqueros zoomed out to a first quarter lead of 19-11 and was on top 32-21 by halftime.

In the third quarter West Hills, playing a tight zone defense which caused El Capitan to fall apart, gained a 19-6 scoring edge.

Freshman SHERIKA MILLER nailed a pair of triples and finished with 14 points, 6 rebounds and 2 steals for the Wolf Pack.

MARILYN NADERHOFF, yet another freshman, sank 10 points, grabbed 4 rebounds and dished 4 assists for the Pack.

Oh yeah, there's one more freshman, MARIAH BENNETT -- despite not scoring -- led the Pack with 5 assists.

"This was a barn burner," said West Hills assistant coach SIG CHABROWSKI. "Clark and Miller came through in the clutch. We couldn't hit baskets at all in the beginning."

El Capitan was paced by sure-fire sophomore ASHLEY DUFFY who completed a triple-double of 15 points, 14 steals and 12 rebounds. For good measure, Duffy also had 6 assists.

JAMIE FERGUSON led El Capitan with 15 rebounds.

ASHLEY BUNCE contributed 10 points and 5 boards, while SAM SPRING tossed in an additional 10 points for the Vaqueros.

This game was decided at the free throw line, where West Hills converted 26 of 40 chances compared to El Capitan's 16 of 33.

West Hills scoring: Kimberly Clark 18, Sherika Miller 14, Marilyn Naderhoff 10, Muaau Naderhoff 8, Leilani Yawn 3, Shelby Russo 2, Ashley Alderton 2.

El Capitan scoring: Ashley Duffy 15, Sam Spring 10, Ashley Bunce 10, Jamie Ferguson 6, Valerie Logel 4, Brittney Loring 3, Crisela Banks 3, Liana Pitman 2.

MOUNT MIGUEL 81, VALHALLA 20 -- Some might consider Mount Miguel coach ROBBIE SANDOVAL a bully, but the seventh-year head coach of the Matadors has eyes for four things: a Grossmont South League championship, the San Diego CIF Division III title, the Southern California Division III crown, and the Division III state banner.

No. 1 ranked Mount Miguel (16-4, 5-0 GSL), which has won six straight and 11 of its last 12, was led by the 15 points and 6 rebounds of PRECIOUS ROBINSON.

Junior CINDY EKWEOZOR chipped in 12 points, 5 rebounds and 4 blocks for the Matadors, who also received 12 points, 5 assists and 4 steals from guard DANESIA WILLIAMSON.

AUTUMN SPIKES added 10 points, 5 rebounds and 2 blocks for Mount Miguel, which led 53-13 by halftime.

KAYLA HOUSTON led Valhalla (6-12, 1-4 GSL) with 13 points. BREE MARTIN added 8 rebounds.

Mount Miguel scoring: Precious Robinson 15, Danesia Williamson 12, Cindy Ekweozor 12, Autumn Spikes 10, Victoria Murphy 9, Marnesha Hall 9, LaShawn Johnson 7, Coco Fountain 5, Jasmine McLeod 2.

Valhalla scoring: Kayla Houston 13, Kelanie Blackwell 3, Bree Martin 2, Emily Roberts 2.

GRANITE HILLS 53, MONTE VISTA 28 -- MOLLY HILLENBRAND scored six points in both the first and second quarters Friday (Jan. 26), which was enough individually to out-total the visiting Monarchs, 34-8, at the half in the Eagles' homecourt victory.

Hillenbrand finished with 16 points, while MORGAN SABALA, East County's second-leading scorer, collected six points before she and the rest of the starting line-up were pulled early in the romp.

"I was happy with the bench holding their ground," said Granite Hills coach JERRY PARKER. "They were solid and played straight up with Monte Vista's starters. And it was a pretty young line-up with two freshmen, two sophomores and a junior."

Monte Vista's top two scorers were shutout in the first half, but did eventually add to their stat totals, as VICTORIA RICHMOND finished with 11 points and RACHEL FINKS added 9 points. Meanwhile, all 11 Eagles hit the scorebook by scoring.

Granite Hills scoring: Molly Hillenbrand 16, Amy Sylvester 6, Morgan Sabala 6, Hubert 5, Lauren Bender 4, Kylee Wilson 4, Andee Warford 4, Katrena Gabardi 2, Sabrina Jimenez 2, Alyssa Canoff 2, Leslie Upton 2.

Monte Vista scoring: Victoria Richmond 11, Rachel Finks 9, Eboni Bruce 6, Nicole Ashby-Jones 2.

CHRISTIAN 52, MADISON 47 -- The Patriots secured third place in the Central League by virtue of Friday's (Jan. 26) come-from-behind victory over the visiting Warhawks.

Solid senior SARAH SEYMOUR stung Madison for 21 points, 7 rebounds, 4 steals and 2 blocks to pace the Patriots (9-11, 2-2 CNT).

Junior RACHEL CRISWELL led Christian's supporting cast with 13 points and 8 rebounds. Freshman MELODY CRISWELL contributed 6 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals.

The game was tied 25-all at halftime. The Patriots gradually forged ahead in the second half.

" Madison is a quick team and they shot well tonight," observed Christian coach CORI ESPELET. "Our defense was flat and non-aggressive until a hustle play by EMILY REED early in the fourth quarter. Her aggressive defense and heart passed on to the rest of the team, and we started playing harder."

Christian scoring: Sarah Seymour 21, Rachel Criswell 13, Melody Criswell 6, Nichole Miller 6, Allie Scott 4, Kristy Gaus 2.

HELIX 75, STEELE CANYON 43 -- In another lop-sided Grossmont South League encounter Friday night (Jan. 26), junior guard BRITTANY WILLIAMS scored 27 points, dished 7 assists, made 8 steals, grabbed 5 rebounds and blocked a shot to point the Highlanders to the victory circle.

Helix (15-6, 4-1 GSL) started fast, blasting to a 30-8 first quarter lead. The Highlanders continued their momentum into the second period and were totally in control 48-14 by halftime.

Williams hit 13 of 21 shots from the floor, which contributed to the Highlanders' 54 percent team shooting average from the floor.

MELE LEASAU turned in a powerful double-double of 14 points and 15 rebounds while dishing 4 assists, blocking 2 shots and making 2 steals.

Keeping it in the family, SINOI LEASAU chipped in 14 points, 8 steals and 4 assists.

JAZ AFUSIA tallied 9 points while chalking up 4 assists and 4 steals for the Scotties. Her sister JEM AFUSIA matched her 9 points, garnered 3 rebounds and recorded 2 steals.

In spite of the rout, stalwart TINA MERLINO managed 11 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists for Steele Canyon (14-9, 2-3 GSL).

Helix scoring: Brittany Williams 27, Mele Leasau 14, Sinoi Leasau 14, Jem Afusia 9, Jaz Afusia 9, Nadah Royster 2.

Steele Canyon scoring: Tina Merlino 11, Katerina Snew 8 (4 reb.), Xanning Tyler 6 (3 ast.), Jobeth Devera 4, Belinda Pickens 4 (3 reb.), Briana Eiter 3, Jessica Hardy 3, Jackie McGovern 2, Samantha Beasley 2 (3 reb., 2 ast.).

GROSSMONT 60, EL CAJON VALLEY 9 -- It was one of those games where Grossmont coach TIM JOLLETT wasn't sure what to do. His front-running Foothillers (17-5, 4-0 GNL) are looking for Grossmont's first ever league championship in girls basketball.

Knowing that his Hillers were more than superior to the visiting Braves (1-20, 0-4 GNL), Jollett limited his starters playing time in Friday's (Jan. 26) league confrontation.

Give Jollett the AYSO award of the year, as all 10 of his players scored, and nobody reached double figures despite Grossmont's overwhelming victory.

The Foothillers sprinted out to a 23-5 first quarter lead and were breezing 40-5 by halftime.

Operating under a running clock, Grossmont blanked the Braves in the final quarter.

MICHELLE GONZALEZ hit 4 of 5 floor shots on her way to a team-leading 9 points while gathering 9 steals and 6 rebounds as well.

East County scoring leader La'KENYA SIMON-WEST made only a brief appearance, finishing with 7 points and 3 steals for the Foothillers, who cruised to their seventh win in their last eight starts.

THERESE RIEDEL, who also had her playing time curtailed, shared game-high rebounding honors of 10 with TERRA MUSGROVE.

Grossmont scoring: Michelle Gonzalez 9, Therese Riedel 8, Tina Rios 8, Heather Springe 8 (5 reb.), La'Kenya Simon-West 7, Marcee Fitzpatrick 7, Phylicia Schultz 5, Terra Musgrove 3, Shandis Rios 3, Allie Baxter 2.

El Cajon Valley scoring: Adriana Ussery 5, Taniya Patros 2, Sheraina Moon 2.

© East County Sports.com
SANTEE (1-23-07) -- In years gone by the El Capitan--Santana encounters have decided the Grossmont North League championship. That won't happen this year, as neither team figures to deny Grossmont of the league title.

Nevertheless, when these two teams face off, intensity levels run at fever pitch.

Although Santana (20-4, 3-1 GNL) fell behind 13-4 early in the first quarter, the Sultans never lost their poise against the visiting Vaqueros (9-9, 1-2 GNL).

DANIELLE BALOUGH scored 26 points, grabbed 9 rebounds and dealt 5 assists to lead the Sultans to a surprisingly easy 68-48 victory over El Capitan.

"We were sick of losing," said Santana senior SHAE BASS, who noted that the Sultans had beaten the Vaqueros only once in the previous five meetings over the last two years.

Bass, Santana's director of offense, scored only 7 points but handed out 14 scoring passes. She also grabbed 7 rebounds and made 3 steals.

Sophomore JAMIE ELIAS is steadily becoming more of a scoring threat, as she proved with 16 points in the key game against the Vaqueros. Elias knocked down 5 of 10 shots from the floor and made 5 of 5 free throw attempts to go with 3 assists and 3 rebounds.

"Shae is an amazing passer," said Elias. "We always find an open spot and Shae gives us the ball. She always knows who to give the ball."

This game was really no contest, as Santana shot 56 percent from the floor compared with only 29 percent for El Capitan. The Sultans also owned a 39-26 rebounding advantage led by ASHLEY BAKER's 11 caroms.

"Jamie got some points but so did MIKI (SANKARY)," said Santana coach JIM MOTTERSHAW.

Sankary, who did not start, was 3 for 3 from the floor and 2 for 2 from the free throw line for 9 points.

Perhaps more valuable than her offensive output was Sankary's defensive effort against El Capitan scoring leader ASHLEY DUFFY.

Not that Sankary was able to shut out Duffy, who scored a game-high 27 points on 10 of 25 shooting from the floor and hitting 3 of 4 free throws, but the 5-foot-4 Santana junior's effort was probably more than Mottershaw would have expected.

Once again, El Capitan's shooting was sub-par, as the Vaqueros netted only 29 percent of 58 chances. That didn't surprise El Capitan coach JASON CAVAZOS. What did catch the Vaqueros' skipper off guard was the Vaqueros breakdown on defense.

"We haven't given up points like this all year," Cavazos said. "Basically we didn't play defense tonight. It seemed like No. 10 (Balough) probably had about 10 layups in the first half because she beat everyone down the court."

Balough made 10 of 19 shots from the field and 6 of 7 free throws.

"We strive to make them work for shots, and we didn't do that tonight," Cavazos said.

Santana scoring: Danielle Balough 26, Jamie Elias 16, Miki Sankary 9, Ashley Baker 8, Shae Bass 7, Brianna Padilla 2 (3 reb.).

El Capitan scoring: Ashley Duffy 27 (8 reb., 6 stl., 4 ast.), Liana Pitman 7, Jamie Ferguson 4 (8 reb., 4 stl., 2 ast.), Valerie Logel 4 (3 reb., 2 ast.), Taylor Autry 2, Crisela Banks 2, Ashley Bunce 2.

HELIX 59, GRANITE HILLS 50 -- Most prognosticators figured that Helix would be the primary challenger to Mount Miguel for the Grossmont South League title. Few considered Granite Hills even a mild threat.

The Eagles (11-8, 2-2 GSL) proved that they are worthy of the higher echelon in their 6-team league by Tuesday's (Jan. 23) performance against the visiting Highlanders.

Helix (14-6, 3-1 GSL) was cruising in front by 18 points early in the third quarter, but the Eagles refused to fold. In fact, Granite Hills fought back to within 4 points of the Highlanders late in the fourth quarter.

"We let them back into the game too easily," said Helix coach TRINA MERIDETH.

"We made a lot of turnovers and too many missed shots."

BRITTANY WILLIAMS was a main cog in the Helix offense with 19 points, hitting 9 of 15 shots from the field.

JEM AFUSIA chipped in 12 points -- half of them coming on her 2 for 5 shooting from above the arc.

The Highlanders received a surprising scoring boost from SINOI LEASAU, who hit 5 of 7 shots from the field and finished with 11 points.

"Getting our fast break going helped us get some good shots down the stretch," Meridith noted.

Helix shot 42 percent from the field (26 of 62) and recorded 20 assists in the process.

Although MELE LEASAU scored only 7 points, she grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds and blocked 3 shots for the Highlanders.

For Granite Hills, MOLLY HILLENBRAND was the cornerstone with a double-double of 15 points and 11 rebounds. The junior standout also created 6 steals.

"Molly played a great all-around game tonight," said Granite Hills coach JERRY PARKER. "She was all over the floor."

The Helix coaches concurred that Hillenbrand was the burning flame that kept Granite Hills in contention.

Senior point guard KATRENA GABARDI returned to action for Granite Hills for the first time this year, scoring 7 points. She suffered pulled cartilage in her rib cage during travel ball in the summer and has not played since.

"It was good to have her back on the team," said Parker. "She handles the ball real well and runs the offense smoothly. We plan to monitor her minutes and physical conditioning the remainder of the season."

Senior MORGAN SABALA added 12 points for the Eagles, while LAUREN BENDER grabbed 9 rebounds.

AMY SYLVESTER had a nice all-around game for the Eagles of 8 points, 6 rebounds and 4 steals.

Helix scoring: Brittany Williams 19, Jem Afusia 12, Sinoi Leasau 11, Mele Leasau 7, Jaz Afusia 4, Sam Vick 4, Elizabeth Caldwell 2.

Granite Hills scoring: Molly Hillenbrand 15, Morgan Sabala 12, Amy Sylvester 8, Katrena Gabardi 7, Lauren Bender 6, Sabrina Jimenez 2.

MOUNT MIGUEL 96, MONTE VISTA 22 -- It was a game of pluses and minuses for the top-ranked Matadors in Tuesday's (Jan. 23) Grossmont South League game against Spring Valley rival Monte Vista.

Although Matadors coach ROBBIE SANDOVAL was unable to attend the game due to a family emergency, assistant coach GENE FITZGERALD called the shots as Mount Miguel (15-4, 4-0 GSL) won its fifth straight, and ninth in 10 games.

Six-foot-2 junior center CINDY EKWEOZOR scored a career-high 22 points, and senior transfer MARNESHA HALL scored 18 points in her Mount Miguel debut.

"Hall played the whole game, even though she was winded there near the end," said Fitzgerald. "She wanted to come out but we need her to get her stamina up there with the other girls."

Senior PRECIOUS ROBINSON led the Matadors with 26 points, which is one below her season best.

Ekweozor played the majority of the game while accounting for Mount Miguel's only 3-point bucket and swishing all 3 of her free throw attempts.

"She got a lot of minutes and really looked good," Fitzgerald said. "I really like her game."

Ekweozor scored 9 points in the opening quarter and Hall added 6 as Mount Miguel secured a 25-5 lead. Robinson accounted for 19 of Mount Miguel's second quarter points, which pushed the Matadors in front 58-8 at halftime.

Robinson added 8 rebounds and 5 blocks to her totals, while DANESIA WILLIAMSON contributed 18 points, 8 assists and 6 steals in less than normal playing time.

RACHEL FINKS paced Monte Vista (4-16, 0-4 GSL) with 13 points.

Mount Miguel scoring: Precious Robinson 26, Cindy Ekweozor 22, Danesia Williamson 18, Marnesha Hall 18, Autumn Spikes 6, Victoria Murphy 4, LaShawn Johnson 2.

Monte Vista scoring: Rachel Finks 13, Victoria Richmond 8, Eboni Bruce 1.

STEELE CANYON 56, VALHALLA 27 -- Valhalla coach JON OWENS felt like a man wearing handcuffs. His team was attacked by the flu bug long before Steele Canyon showed up to deal the visiting Norsemen a resounding Grossmont South League defeat Tuesday night (Jan. 23).

Reliable TINA MERLINO was at the forefront of the Cougars' (13-9, 2-2 GSL) conquest, with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Nine others contributed to Steele Canyon's latest victory.

"I was quite pleased with our team defense," said Steele Canyon coach FRANK QUINONES. "Every game SAMANTHA BEASLEY plays she does something different. Her assists (6) and steals (8) are picking up."

The Cougars led the Norsemen (6-11, 1-3 GSL) 37-12 by intermission.

Valhalla was not up to its usual performance due to its widespread illness. Senior ace BREE MARTIN finished with 8 points in an abbreviated outing.

"Bree was suffering from the stomach flu and really struggled in the first half," said Owens. "I took her out the second half."

Martin came in averaging 16.6 points per game.

"Merlino got two fouls in the first quarter and I went to my bench with BELINDA PICKENS. She posted Martin up and played solid defense on her," said Quinones.

BRIANA EITER pitched in 8 points for Steele Canyon, most of it coming on her 13 and 14th triples of the season.

Junior KELANIE BLACKWELL tried to pick up the pace for Valhalla, hitting two 3-pointers and finishing with 8 points.

"You've got to give a lot of credit to Frank," said Owens. "He has put together a good program. They are a tough team to play, especially in their own gym."

Steele Canyon scoring: Tina Merlino 16, Briana Eiter 8, Samantha Beasley 7, Xanning Tyler 6, Samantha Silva 5 (5 reb., 3 stl.), Jackie McGovern 4, Belinda Pickens 3 (7 reb.), Jobeth Devera 3, Jessica Hardy 2, Katerina Snew 2 (5 reb., 5 stl.).

Valhalla scoring: Bree Martin 8, Kelanie Blackwell 8, Emily Roberts 5, Laurel Scovie 4, Sara Staninger 2.

WEST HILLS 55, EL CAJON VALLEY 15 -- Tuesday night (Jan. 23) was a homecoming of sorts for West Hills coach CARLOS MOSS. Not only did he graduate from El Cajon Valley awhile back, but he used to play basketball for RANDY ROBINSON, the Braves current girls coach.

So much for the past.

Visiting West Hills blanked the Braves 11-0 in the third quarter to wrap up its first Grossmont North League win in three starts.

MUAAU NADERHOFF was the Wolf Packs leader with 15 points on 7-11 shooting. She also garnered 6 rebounds, as did KIMBERLY CLARK, LEILANI YAWN and MARIAH BENNETT.

West Hills' top rebounder was ASHLEY ALDERTON with 9 along with SHERIKA MILLER, who collected 7 caroms.

West Hills recorded a season-high 27 steals, with sophomore CORRYN KIVETT setting the pace with 7 thefts.

MARILYN NADERHOFF topped the Wolf Pack with 7 assists.

West Hills scoring: Muaau Naderhoff 15, Sherika Miller 6 (3 stl, 2 ast.), Marilyn Naderhoff 6 (3 stl., 2 ast.), Leilani Yawn 6 (2 stl.), Kimberly Clark 5 (4 stl.), Mariah Bennett 5 (5 ast.), Ashley Alderton 5 (4 stl.), Corryn Kivett 4 (5 reb.), Shelby Russo 3.

El Cajon Valley scoring: Adriana Ussery 7, Leena Norewarekar 4, Sheraina Moon 2, Stephanie Smith 2.

CRAWFORD 54, CHRISTIAN 45 -- Central League favorite Crawford all but eliminated host Christian from the circuit race by winning on Tuesday (Jan. 23).

Although Christian was the better team in the second half, gaining a 27-23 scoring edge, the 27 turnovers committed by the Patriots were too much to overcome.

The Colts (12-7, 3-0 CNT) led by 22 points midway through the second quarter.

"If we could have started the game the way we ended it, it could have been a different game for us," said Christian coach CORI ESPELET. "I am proud of the way the girls finished the game. They never gave up and finished the game tough until the end. We showed tremendous character and heart in the end of the game."

But falling behind 20-6 after one quarter and trailing 34-18 at the break was too big a hole for the Patriots to climb out of.

Once again, senior SARAH SEYMOUR was a force for Christian (8-11, 1-2 CNT), scoring 20 points, securing 14 rebounds and blocking 4 shots.

Freshman NICHOLE MILLER added 5 points and 12 rebounds, while MELODY CRISWELL tallied 5 points, bagged 11 boards and blocked 2 shots.

Bottom line for Christian: 41 turnovers -- too much to overcome.

Christian scoring: Sarah Seymour 20, Rachel Criswell 7, Allie Scott 6, Nichole Miller 5, Melody Criswell 5, Kristy Gaus 2.

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (1-21-07) -- On the schedule, it's simply listed as a non-league game. In reality, Grossmont's 62-43 over Westview Saturday night (Jan. 20) will go a long ways in determining seedings for the San Diego CIF Division II playoffs.

"We want one of the top two seeds because that means a home court advantage until the finals," said Grossmont coach TIM JOLLETT. "Winning this game was huge."

In somewhat of a seesaw affair, the Foothillers (16-5) were unable to put away the visiting Wolverines (16-5) until the final quarter. Sparked by the 13 points of La'KENYA SIMON-WEST, Grossmont gained a 21-6 scoring advantage and thus won going away.

Despite going scoreless in the opening quarter, Simon-West finished with 32 points. The senior guard punched in 15 points in the second quarter to help Grossmont gain a 33-23 halftime lead.

After missing her first seven shots in the first quarter, Simon-West connected on 10 of 19 over the last three quarters. She also made 6 of 8 free throws.

"There are so many things that we do with La'Kenya that it makes her hard to guard," said Jollett.

THERESE RIEDEL was strong in the middle for Grossmont, knocking down 14 points, blocking 5 shots and ripping off 15 rebounds.

TINA RIOS and MICHELLE GONZALEZ collected 4 steals apiece to lead Grossmont's notorious bearcat defense.

"We beat three quality teams (Santana, El Capitan and Westview) by an average of 19 points each," said Jollett. "That should go a long way in the playoff seeding process."

Grossmont scoring: La'Kenya Simon-West 32, Therese Riedel 14, Tina Rios 7, Marcee Fitzpatrick 5, Michelle Gonzalez 4.

MOUNT MIGUEL 70, ONTARIO-COLONY 50 -- The Mount Miguel Matadors keep getting better, and they are still a far cry from reaching their potential.

Using a balanced attack, the Matadors (14-4) toppled the Titans of Ontario Colony in a game they controlled from the outset during Saturday's (Jan. 20) Vista Murrieta Classic in Murrieta.

The Matadors, who have won 9 of 10, are ranked No. 12 in the state, No. 8 in Southern California, and are third in the Division III state ratings.

Senior PRECIOUS ROBINSON paced the Matadors with 18 points, 11 rebounds and 3 blocks, while sharp-shooting guard DANESIA WILLIAMSON also added 18 points. Most of Williamson's points came from above the arc as she landed four 3-balls.

Mount Miguel jumped on top of Colony (9-12) in the opening quarter 21-8, as Robinson and LaSHAWN JOHNSON scored 6 points apiece to set the tone.

Although the Matadors maintained the lead, they were unable to chalk up a victory before executing a 22-4 scoring run over a seven minute stretch in the third and fourth quarters.

"LaShawn gave us an early offensive lift," Mount Miguel coach ROBBIE SANDOVAL said, noting the senior guard's 17 points. "She got 2 big 3s for us in that first quarter and made all 4 of her free throws (as Mount Miguel went 10 for 10 as a team)."

CINDY EKWEOZOR turned in a strong game for Mount Miguel with 10 points and 7 rebounds.

"We've had a lot of kids under the weather lately, but our bench has really come on to play well," Sandoval said.

Mount Miguel has scored 60 or more points in half of its games this season. Five times the Matadors have reached the 70-point marker.

"Hey, what can I tell you?" Sandoval said. "We can put the ball in the hole."

Mount Miguel scoring: Precious Robinson 18, Danesia Williamson 18, LaShawn Johnson 17 (5 reb., 4 ast), Cindy Ekweozor 10, Autumn Spikes 5 (6 reb., 2 blk.), Victoria Murphy 2 (4 reb.).

VALHALLA 45, EL CENTRO-CENTRAL 39 -- With the Norsemen hanging onto a 42-39 lead in the final seconds of Saturday's (Jan. 20) final round of the San Diego-Imperial Valley Shootout against visiting Central Union, CHELSIE CARTMILL had a jump shot from the top of the key and sank a 3-pointer to give Valhalla its victory margin.

"Cartmill is our JV surprise," said Valhalla coach JON OWENS.

More than that though, it was Valhalla's sixth win in 16 decisions this season. That, in itself, is sort of a milestone as the Norsemen's victory total exceeds last year's total of five.

"This was one more than we got all of last year," Owens said. "We got into the locker after the game and the girls all cheered, they were so happy."

Steady BREE MARTIN contributed her usual double-double, finishing with 16 points and 18 rebounds for the Norsemen.

KELANIE BLACKWELL pitching in 12 points, 5 rebounds and 4 steals. EMILY ROBERTS scored 10 points, dished 4 assists, made 3 steals and grabbed 6 rebounds.

SARA STANINGER blocked 3 shots and added 9 rebounds, while AMY WOODS collected 8 caroms.

"We bounced back well from last night's game (a lop-sided loss to Helix)," Owens said. "The girls played with a lot of heart and desire. They played a strong game."

Valhalla scoring: Bree Martin 16, Kelanie Blackwell 12, Emily Roberts 10, Chelsie Cartmill 5, Sara Staninger 2.

WEST HILLS 87, JULIAN 17 -- Still smarting from a Grossmont North League loss to crosstown rival Santana a day earlier, West Hills vented its frustrations against visiting Julian in Saturday's (Jan. 20) final round of the San Diego-Imperial Valley Shootout.

Led by the career-high 25 points and 12 rebounds of freshman SHERIKA MILLER, the Wolf Pack (12-9) grounded the Eagles (5-11) in thrashing fashion.

West Hills led 22-2 after one quarter, 42-9 at intermission and 74-13 after three quarters. Despite working under a running clock, the Pack tacked on another 13 points to reach their season high scoring output.

Miller was blazing hot, hitting 11 of 16 shots from the floor -- including a pair of triples. She also had 4 assists, 4 steals and blocked a shot.

SHELBY RUSSO also enjoyed a personal-high of 14 points, including a trio of triples in her totals.

KIMBERLY CLARK, another of the West Hills freshmen, chipped in 13 points -- including 3 triples, 6 rebounds, 5 steals and 4 assists.

Freshman MARIAH BENNETT only missed one of her 6 shots from the floor on her way to a 12-point outing that also featured 6 assists, 4 steals and 5 rebounds.

"Our spirits were lifted up after last night's heartbreaker," said West Hills assistant coach SIG CHABROWSKI. "The girls were really down coming in. It was very important for us to have a game to play right after that one. This game gave us the opportunity to work on a few things and straighten out some things."

Not to be overlooked was the 10 assists of MARILYN NADERHOFF. She's a freshman, too.

As a team, West Hills shot 52 percent (35 of 68) from the floor.

West Hills scoring: Sherika Miller 25, Shelby Russo 14, Kimberly Clark 13, Mariah Bennett 12, Muaau Naderhoff 7, Marilyn Naderhoff 6, Ashley Alderton 6, Leilani Yawn 4.

STEELE CANYON 60, HOLTVILLE 16 -- It was hard to tell whether it was Steele Canyon's offense or sterling effort on defense that gave the Cougars the easy victory over visiting Holtville (0-14) in Saturday's (Jan. 20) final round of the San Diego-Imperial Valley Shootout at Valhalla.

Reliable TINA MERLINO led the way for the Cougars (12-9) with 16 points and 7 rebounds.

Junior guard JESSICA HARDY added a career-high 12 points and 4 steals for Steele Canyon, which had 10 player contribute to the scoring.

The Cougars led 58-14 after three quarters before a running clock took over.

Steele Canyon scoring: Tina Merlino 16, Jessica Hardy 12, Samantha Beasley 6 (4 stl., 2 ast.), Samantha Silva 6, Belinda Pickens 5 (6 reb.), Briana Eiter 4, Jackie McGovern 4 (7 reb.), Jobeth Devera 3, Xanning Tyler 2 (3 ast.), Katerina Snew 2 (5 ast.).

© East County Sports.com
SPRING VALLEY (1-20-07) -- The anticipated void in the middle of Steele Canyon High's starting line-up seems to be getting filled quite nicely by center TINA MERLINO and forward BELINDA PICKENS. The pair dominated the middle for 10 of the Cougars' 16 points in the first period Friday (Jan. 19), racing to a 49-34 decision over host Monte Vista.

Merlino again led Steele Canyon with a double-double. She scored 15 points and hauled in 11 rebounds, while Pickens started fast with two baskets and three boards in the opening minutes, allowed the Cougars to mount a 25-8 halftime lead.

"It hasn't been that much of a problem, as long as we box out and rebound -- the entire team works really hard," noted Merlino. "We only play like we're 6-foot-3."

Merlino acknowledges her exaggeration, but her point is well taken. With the pair playing bigger than their size, the team has regained their advantage inside to make the Cougars more competitive, making the quest for a first-division finish in the Grossmont South League possible.

"We came in with certain expectations," added Pickens. "And if we continue to play good defense and work hard, we can get there. Tonight, when we played hard on defense -- Cougars Defense -- the turnovers started to come."

Steele Canyon (11-9 overall, 1-2 GSL) kept Monte Vista scoring leader RACHEL FINKS off the scoresheet in the first half, although Finks did lead a second-half charge with 13 points.

However, when Merlino opened the fourth period by draining a pair of short-range shots and controlling the boards with Pickens, the Cougars were able to snap a 3-game losing streak. Point guard SAM BEASLEY collected seven points and added seven assists.

For the Monarchs, JANAY PATTON scored 8 points, but Monte Vista (4-16, 0-3) dropped its sixth straight contest.

"We started off pretty well but we played sluggish in the second and third quarters," said Steele Canyon coach FRANK QUINONES. "We came out overconfident, which we shouldn't have. We were playing lazy."

"Belinda Pickens is starting to become a force for us," Quinones added. "Tina Merlino was getting frustrated earlier, but is starting to realize that she can't do it all. She is distributing the ball well now."

Steele Canyon scoring: Tina Merlino 15 (11 reb.), Janvier Barbarin 8, Belinda Pickens 7, Samantha Beasley 7 (6 ast.), Xanning Tyler 6, Katerina Snew 6.

Monte Vista scoring: Rachel Finks 13, Janay Patton 8, Victoria Richmond 5, Nicole Ashby-Jones 4, Kim Galarpe 3, Ashley Weatherford 1.

MOUNT MIGUEL 61, GRANITE HILLS 23 -- Nobody in the San Diego CIF plays more aggravating defense than the Mount Miguel Matadors. Just ask the Granite Hills Eagles, who saw their three game winning streak crushed in Friday's (Jan. 19) Grossmont South League game in Spring Valley.

"Mount Miguel is a really athletic team," said Granite Hills coach JERRY PARKER. "They took us out of what we wanted to do."

The Matadors led 19-6 after one quarter, 36-15 at the break, and 48-17 after three quarters.

Sophomore DANESIA WILLIAMSON scored a career-high 28 points to guide the Matadors to their eighth win in their last nine starts. Williamson has scored 77 points in Mount Miguel 's last three games.

"Danesia's on a good run right now, shooting the ball very well," Matadors coach ROBBIE SANDOVAL said.

While Sandoval was no doubt impressed by Williamson's offensive outburst, he was equally impressed by VICTORIA MURPHY's clamp-down defense on Granite Hills scoring ace MORGAN SABALA.

"I've said it before and I'll say it again, I can put Murphy on anybody and she'll take them out of the game," Sandoval said. "She was in Morgan's face all night, and it really bothered her."

Sabala, senior with a 23.8 scoring average and 39 three-pointers, was limited to a single 2-point basket by Murphy.

LaSHAWN JOHNSON hit 4 triples on her way to a 14-point night that also included 7 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals for the Matadors.

Teammate PRECIOUS ROBINSON produced a quiet double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds while blocking 4 shots.

MOLLY HILLENBRAND led Granite Hills with 9 points, including 5 of 6 free throw shooting.

"Molly played pretty well for us tonight, she was battling inside," Parker said.

Mount Miguel scoring: Danesia Williamson 28 (5 stl., 2 ast.), LaShawn Johnson 14, Precious Robinson 12, Autumn Spikes 3 (7 reb., 4 ast., 3 stl., 2 blk.), Coco Fountain 2 (3 reb., 2 ast.), Victoria Murphy 2 (4 reb., 3 stl., 2 ast.).

Granite Hills scoring: Molly Hillenbrand 9, Sabrina Jimenez 7, Morgan Sabala 2, Amy Sylvester 2, Lauren Koblischke 2, Lauren Bender 1.

GROSSMONT 50, EL CAPITAN 33 -- The visiting Foothillers scored a one-two punch knockout of the Vaqueros in Friday's (Jan. 19) Grossmont North League contest in Lakeside.

Not surprisingly, the Foothillers' senior guard La'KENYA SIMON-WEST cast in 23 points and collected 12 rebounds, while 6-foot-4, Idaho-bound THERESE RIEDEL added 10 points and 20 rebounds, pushing Grossmont's overall mark to 15-5, and GNL record to 3-0.

"This was a more methodical game than we like to play," said Grossmont coach TIM JOLLETT. "But any time you win on the road in league, it's a bonus."

Simon-West hit half of her 18 shots from the field but only made 3 of 8 free throw attempts. She added 2 triples to her East County-leading 3-point totals.

Jollett was pleased by the smooth play of Riedel, who was on the mark for 4 of 7 shots from the floor and 2 of 5 free throws.

"The only thing that tarnished this win was we committed 19 turnovers," Jollett said.

Outscoring El Capitan 28-14 in the final half pushed Grossmont another step closer to its first ever league championship.

ASHLEY DUFFY paced the Vaqueros with 16 points, 6 rebounds and 3 steals.

But the overall picture for the Vaqueros was bleak, to say the least. El Capitan (9-8, 1-1 GNL) shot a paltry 20 percent from the field, including 0-12 from 3-point range.

Grossmont scoring: La'Kenya Simon-West 23, Therese Riedel 10, Tina Rios 7 (4 stl), Michelle Gonzalez 7 (3 stl), Marcee Fitzpatrick 3.

El Capitan scoring: Ashley Duffy 16, Liana Pitman 6, Valerie Logel 3, Sam Spring 2 (5 reb.), Jamie Ferguson 2 (6 reb.), Ashley Banks 2, Brittney Loring 2.

SANTANA 79, WEST HILLS 62 -- DANIELLE BALOUGH, Santana's pint-size pivot, poured in 25 points, grabbed 8 rebounds and dished 7 assists as the Sultans ran by their Grossmont North League rivals Friday night (Jan. 19) in Santee.

A 5-foot-8 senior, Balough, who repeatedly gives away a distinct height advantage to her opponents, connected on 10 of 18 shots from the floor and added 5 free throws to anchor a quintet of five double-digit scorers for Santana (19-4, 2-1 GNL).

The Sultans outscored the visiting Wolf Pack in every quarter.

Senior ASHLEY BAKER knocked down 17 points and secured 10 rebounds for Santana.

SHAE BASS, JAMIE ELIAS and NICOLE BRZECZEK each pitched in 11 points to Santana's victory total. Bass, who made 7 of 10 free throws, topped the team with 8 assists. She also landed 7 rebounds.

MUAAU NADERHOFF led West Hills with 19 points, including 3 of the Wolf Pack's 7 triples.

Freshman MARIAH BENNETT added 14 points, while MARILYN NADERHOFF -- also a freshman -- chipped in 13 points and 8 assists for the Wolf Pack (11-9, 0-2 GNL).

Santana scoring: Danielle Balough 25, Ashley Baker 17, Jamie Elias 11, Shae Bass 11, Nicole Brzeczek 11, Miki Sankary 3, Brianna Padilla 1.

West Hills scoring: Muaau Naderhoff 19, Mariah Bennett 14, Marilyn Naderhoff 13, Ashley Alderton 6, Shelby Russo 4, Kimberly Clark 2, Leilani Yawn 2, Corryn Kivett 2.

HELIX 78, VALHALLA 34 -- BRITTANY WILLIAMS and MELE LEASAU combined for 48 points as the host Helix Highlanders (13-6, 2-1 GSL) vanquished Valhalla in Friday's (Jan. 19) Grossmont South League contest.

Both Williams and Leasau produced double-doubles. Williams, who nailed 12 of 25 shots from the floor, also pilfered 10 Norsemen passes. In addition the Helix junior dished 6 assists and grabbed 5 rebounds.

It was a good shooting night for the 6-foot Leasau, who connected on 9 of 18 shots from the floor and 4 of 6 free throws for 22 points. Leasau also crashed the boards for a game-high 14 rebounds, dished 4 assists, made 2 steals and blocked 2 shots.

Helix led 38-15 by halftime and it only became more lopsided from there.

JEM AFUSIA added 8 points and 7 steals to the Helix account, while her sister JAZ AFUSIA tallied 8 points and handed out 5 assists.

Valhalla had only six girls in uniform against Helix.

"Valhalla has definitely improved, especially No. 50 (BREE MARTIN)," said Helix coach TRINA MERIDETH.

Even in defeat, Martin came up big, generating a double-double of 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Norsemen (5-10, 1-2 GSL).

Junior KELANIE BLACKWELL added 10 points for the Norsemen, who also got 5 rebounds and 2 block from SARA STANINGER.

Helix scoring: Brittany Williams 26, Mele Leasau 22, Jem Afusia 8, Jaz Afusia 8, Tatiana Jackson 5, Sam Vick 4, Nadah Royster 2, Sinoi Leasau 2, Elizabeth Caldwell 1.

Valhalla scoring: Bree Martin 20, Kelanie Blackwell 10, Amy Woods 4.

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (1-19-07) -- Do-it-all senior SARAH SEYMOUR was at the forefront once again Thursday night (Jan. 18), leading host Christian High to a 35-27 Central League over Hoover.

"We started strong, and played a tough first half of defense, but it all fell apart in the fourth quarter when we ran out of gas," said Christian coach CORI ESPELET, whose team was without one of its key players.

"I was happy to see us start playing as a team," Espelet added. "Whoever was on the floor, they pulled together to play tough. I am glad to see that we came prepared tonight, and I hope we can keep this energy up for each game."

Hoover (5-8, 0-2 CNT) never gave up, outscoring the Patriots 16-4 in the final eight minutes.

Christian scoring: Sarah Seymour 18, Melody Criswell 10, Allie Scott 2, Emily Reed 2 (5 reb., 2 stl.), Nichole Miller 2 (5 reb.), Rachel Criswell 1 (5 reb.).

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (1-17-07) -- It's easy to point to the return of LA'KENYA SIMON-WEST from foul trouble as the turning point in Grossmont High's impressive 69-49 whipping of Santana to assume the Grossmont North League lead.

Tina Rios (12) of Grossmont dribbles past Santana guard Miki Sankary. (Photo by Susan Cooper Photography)

A double-double -- 11 points and 18 rebounds -- from Idaho bound center THERESE RIEDEL didn't hurt either.

However, when you ask each of these key players, they both pointed to defensive changes which turned Tuesday's (Jan. 16) nail-biter of a contest in the first half into a second-half blowout.

"The team showed they can play without me," said Simon-West, who scored 12 points in the opening six minutes, only to sit for the final 8:55 of the half after collecting three personal fouls. "But even when I was in the game, we were lazy on defense and Santana got a lot of easy shots."

"We came out like crazy and defended in the second half."

The turnaround was unexpected.

In front by just a bucket, 31-29, at the intermission, the Foothillers dominated the third quarter by a 23-5 margin, eventually pushing the advantage 23 points before the Sultans coaching staff waved the white flag and cleared the bench five minutes away from the school's first-ever two-game losing streak to Grossmont since before any of the current players (and some coaches) were born.

"We didn't change our defense, we just executed it a whole lot better," noted Riedel, who also blocked seven shots. "We finally figured out what they were doing, then we got our guards up on the ball to prevent them from getting into their offense."

Despite a huge size disadvantage inside, Santana converted a series of close-range shots to stay in the contest. Included was 7-for-8 shooting by DANIELLE BALOUGH in the first half.

Many came on passes from SHAE BASS, who didn't start due to impacted wisdom teeth, but was thrown into the mix early when the Sultans turned the ball over on their first three possessions. Bass finished with seven assists, including a pair of length-of-the-court passes to Balough for layins.

However, all those easy chances dried-up in the second half, thanks to the defensive work of MICHELLE GONZALEZ and sisters SHANDIS and TINA RIOS. While the trio forced 11 of Santana's 26 turnovers in the third period, SIMON-WEST returned to ignite the offense, draining three straight 3-balls as part of a 16-point outburst in the quarter to slam the door and mount a 54-34 lead.

"We all went to work because we all want the same thing: a league title," added Simon-West, who has Oregon State, San Diego State and Idaho among schools courting the senior guard.

Gonzalez and Shandis Rios each had two steals, while Tina Rios capped the transition game with three of her seven assists in the one-sided period. Meanwhile, Balough, the Sultans' scoring leader, was shutout in the second half.

Simon-West finished with six treys, giving her an East County leading 68 for the season, surpassing the total compiled by current Hillers assistant coach MEGAN LONG (67) when she played for El Capitan in 2000.

Simon-West is on pace to challenge the school record of 100 set by CHRISTINA ADAMS in 1990, and possibly the East County and CIF-San Diego Section mark of 134 by Santana's KELLY SIMERS in 1996.

Santana scoring: Danielle Balough 17, Miki Sankary 10, Ashley Baker 6, Jamie Elias 5, Nicole Brzeczek 4, Kaila Smith 4, Brianna Padilla 3.

Grossmont scoring: La'Kenya Simon-West 34, Michelle Gonzalez 13, Therese Riedel 11, Tina Rios 9, Phylicia Schultz 2.

MOUNT MIGUEL 76, HELIX 49 -- The Helix Highlanders were proud that last year's win over the Matadors makes them the only team to deal mighty Mount Miguel its only Grossmont South League loss in the last seven seasons.

The Highlanders' 37-34 monumental victory in the waning stages of the 2006 league race did not deny the Matadors a sixth straight championship. What it did do is add fire to Mount Miguel's hankering for revenge.

Still, the Highlanders (12-6, 1-1 GSL) went toe-to-toe with the Matadors for the first five minutes and Helix managed to take a 5-point lead in Tuesday's (Jan. 16) rematch.

Mount Miguel (12-4, 2-0 GSL), however, showed no fear.

The Matadors broke an 18-18 tie on a pair of PRECIOUS ROBINSON free throws in the final seconds of the first quarter, and then sprinted to the lop-sided victory.

Sophomore guard DANESIA WILLIAMSON was Mount Miguel's offensive beacon with 27 points, hitting 10 of 17 shots from the floor (4 of them 3s).

AUTUMN SPIKES added 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Robinson finished with 12 points, 7 rebounds and 5 blocks for the Matadors.

"We don't sit here and think that we're the best team in the county," said Spikes of the Matadors, who are ranked No. 1 in the San Diego Section. "What we do know is every team is out to get us, so we can't have a down night. We have to stay on top of our game."

Spikes, a 6-foot-1 junior forward, moves about the floor in stealth fashion -- now you see her and now you don't. But if a big play is needed, you can be sure that she will be nearby.

Asked whether the Matadors were focused on avenging last year's loss to the Highlanders, Spikes said "We play hard against everybody, no matter who they are. Our press is our best weapon. We get a lot of points in transition off our press."

Williamson accounted for 7 of Mount Miguel's 13 steals against the Highlanders. Four of the speedy guard's thefts led directly to baskets.

"We buckled down and played the kind of defense that I know we can in the second half," said coach ROBBIE SANDOVAL, whose Matadors rationed the Highlanders to eight points in each of the last two quarters. "Yeah, we have more of an offensive presence, but we haven't forgotten how to play defense."

Helix's MELE LEASAU got 21 shots inside the paint, but connected only 4 times. The senior Highlander did nail 10 of 12 free throws for a team-leading 18 points. She also garnered 15 rebounds.

Guard BRITTANY WILLIAMS added 12 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists for Helix, which shot 27 percent from the field (14 of 52) but missed only 3 of 22 free throws.

"Helix is a sound team," Sandoval said. "I've seen all the Division I teams and I think they're good enough to win the whole thing."

Mount Miguel scoring: Danesia Williamson 27, Autumn Spikes 16, Precious Robinson 12, Victoria Murphy 9, LaShawn Johnson 7, Trina Clark 3, Cindy Ekweozor 2.

Helix scoring: Mele Leasau 18, Brittany Williams 12, Jaz Afusia 7, Jem Afusia 6, Elizabeth Caldwell 4, Nydah Royster 2.

VALHALLA 58, MONTE VISTA 44 -- The Valhalla Norsemen snapped a 14-game Grossmont South League losing streak as they came from behind to thwart an upset bid by the visiting Monarchs in Tuesday's (Jan. 16) encounter in El Cajon.

The Norsemen (5-9, 1-1 GSL) used a 21-6 third quarter rush to overcome a 21-18 deficit.

It was Valhalla's first league win since a 37-31 victory over Monte Vista in 2005.

For one of the few times this season, the Norsemen achieved true offensive balance as four players finished in double scoring digits.

Senior BREE MARTIN rolled a double-double of 21 points and 10 rebounds, as did teammate EMILY ROBERTS with 10 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals.

Most amazing of the Valhalla victory charge was the second half effort of Martin. Monte Vista took Martin out of her game in the first half, holding her scoreless.

At the intermission, Valhalla coach JON OWENS counseled Martin to go out and play aggressive in the second half. She obviously answered the call.

"Bree executed better, rebounded better and her shots were better in the second half," Owens said.

KAYLA HOUSTON chimed in with 12 points, half of which came on a pair of triples. She also had 6 rebounds. KELANIE BLACKWELL added 11 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists.

SARA STANINGER maintained her defensive stance with 5 rebounds, 3 blocks and 4 assists.

On the flip side, Monte Vista (4-14, 0-2 GSL) received an impressive performance from VICTORIA RICHMOND, who rang up a season high 23 points. A 5-foot-10 senior, Richmond canned a trio and triples, while RACHEL FINKS pitched in 9 points and KIM GALARPE added 8 points.

Valhalla scoring: Bree Martin 21, Kayla Houston 12, Kelanie Blackwell 11, Emily Roberts 10, Sara Staninger 2, Amy Woods 2.

Monte Vista scoring: Victoria Richmond 23, Rachel Finks 9, Kim Galarpe 8, Janay Patton 2, LiAiesha Brandon 2.

Valerie Logel leads the pack for this breakaway layin for El Capitan. (Photo by Leslie Autry)

EL CAPITAN 60, EL CAJON VALLEY 16 -- VALERIE LOGEL hasn't been ranked among El Capitan's leading game scorers very often. But the 5-foot-9 senior hit 7-of-9 shots from the floor on her way to a 15 point night, as El Capitan steamrollered Grossmont North League rival El Cajon Valley (1-18, 0-2 GNL) on Tuesday (Jan. 16) at Cook Gymnasium.

The Vaqueros (9-7, 1-0 GNL), winners of three of their last four outings, took leads of 20-4 and 43-10. The majority of the second half was played with a running clock.

Nine Vaqueros contributed to El Capitan's scoring, including junior SAM SPRING (9 points), and ASHLEY DUFFY (8 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals).

Sophomore TAYLOR AUTRY chipped in with 6 rebounds and 4 points.

SHERAINA MOON topped El Cajon Valley's scoring with 7 points.

El Capitan scoring: Valerie Logel 15, Sam Spring 9, Ashley Duffy 8, Jamie Ferguson 6, Liana Pitman 5, Ashley Bunce 5, Abby Carlino 4, Kara Brown 4, Taylor Autry 4.

El Cajon Valley scoring: Sheraina Moon 7, Adriana Ussery 4, Taniya Patros 3, Stephanie Smith 2.

GRANITE HILLS 46, STEELE CANYON 26 -- In a Grossmont South League game that appeared to be a toss-up on paper, visiting Granite Hills (11-6, 2-0 GSL) jumped in front 16-4 in the opening eight minutes on Tuesday night (Jan. 18).

The Cougars were clearly focused on trying to stop Eagles senior scoring sensation MORGAN SABALA. Their effort were for naught, as Sabala sank a game-high 22 points, raising her 3-point basket count to 43 with 4 triples.

"We took control from the beginning," said Granite Hills coach JERRY PARKER. "They were concentrating on Sabala. We did a good job of spreading the ball around and on setting screens to give her open shots. We did a good job shutting down their offense."

Sophomore LAUREN BENDER led the Eagles on the boards with 10 rebounds.

SABRINA JIMENEZ blocked 2 shots, while AMY SYLVESTER logged 4 steals, one more than Sabala.

It was a frustrating night for Steele Canyon (10-9, 0-2 GSL), which was led by TINA MERLINO's 12 points.

No other information was reported by Steele Canyon.

Granite Hills scoring: Morgan Sabala 22, Molly Hillenbrand 7, Amy Sylvester 6, Sabrina Jimenez 5, Kylee Wilson 4, Lauren Bender 2.

Steele Canyon scoring: Tina Merlino 12, Samantha Beasley 7, Xanning Tyler 2, Jessica Hardy 2, Belinda Pickens 2, Janvier Barbarin 1.

© East County Sports.com
LA JOLLA (1-14-07) -- Facing one of its biggest challenges of the season, the Mount Miguel Matadors proved that they can run with the best of them in Saturday's (Jan. 13) 80-72 victory over nationally ranked Bishop Gorman of Las Vegas in the Elite Classic at La Jolla Country Day.

Mount Miguel, ranked No. 2 in the San Diego CIF Section, is a sure bet to climb to the top spot after dealing the Gaels from Nevada their first loss in 17 games this season. Bishop Gorman rolled into town ranked No. 16 nationally by USA Today and No. 3 on the West Coast. The Matadors (11-4) are nowhere to be found in those ratings.

That may change.

AUTUMN SPIKES, a 6-foot-1 junior forward, scored a career-high 24 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, while guard DANESIA WILLIAMSON injected 22 points and 10 assists as the Matadors literally ran down Bishop Gorman.

"Once we got the tempo going the way we wanted it, I think we wore them down," said Matadors coach ROBBIE SANDOVAL. "The kids were really pumped up for this game and they played accordingly. This wasn't just a good win for Mount Miguel, it was good for San Diego basketball."

The Matadors led early, 22-19, after a fast-paced first quarter, and 41-32 at intermission. Mount Miguel led by as much as 14 points in the second half, but the Gaels blew back into contention to trail by only 2 by the close of the third quarter.

"We gave up 72 points, so maybe we're more of a scoring team than a defensive team this year," Sandoval suggested. "I don't know. What I do know is we run a lot in practice."

Bishop Gorman's Ashley Gayle, a 6-foot-4, Division I prospect, poured in 34 points.

"She is as good as there is, is going to go to one of the best colleges in the country," Sandoval said. "But I don't think she liked running up and down the floor with our skinny bigs. You could see that she was tired."

Senior PRECIOUS ROBINSON, a 6-foot forward, punched in 19 points, grabbed 12 rebounds, blocked 4 shots and made 5 steals for the Matadors.

LaSHAWN JOHNSON chipped in with 10 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists.

Guard VICTORIA MURPHY, although only 5-foot-5, crashed the boards for 8 rebounds.

"We made the extra pass tonight," said Sandoval, noting that his team had 21 assists. "Danesia set up Autumn at least five times with great passes underneath, and we did a good job on the glass, too."

Sandoval rated Bishop Gorman with California powers Brea Olinda and Sacramento, both teams which previously beat the Matadors.

"If we would have had a full squad like we do now, maybe we would have only one or two losses now, instead of four," Sandoval said.

Mount Miguel jumps back into Grossmont South League play on Tuesday (Jan. 16) when they travel to rival Helix.

"Remember, the last time we played them we lost," Sandoval noted. That victory by the Highlanders is the only league loss in 57 decisions that Mount Miguel has suffered during Sandoval's seven-year tenure as the Matadors coach.

Mount Miguel scoring: Autumn Spikes 24, Danesia Williamson 22, Precious Robinson 19, LaShawn Johnson 10, Victoria Murphy 3, Coco Fountain 2.

CATHEDRAL CATHOLIC 54, GROSSMONT 49 -- In its never-ending quest to play San Diego CIF's best teams, No. 6 ranked Grossmont High took on No. 8 Cathedral Catholic Saturday night (Jan. 13) in Vista.

While their defense was sound and their ball-handling steady (9 turnovers), their shooting was off the mark. Grossmont (13-5) shot only 27 percent (15 of 56) from the field and made just 14 of 26 free throws.

"It doesn't happen to us very often that we shoot poorly like we did tonight," Grossmont coach TIM JOLLETT said. "Because of our defense we can get away with sub-par shooting against a lot of teams, but not against quality teams like Cathedral."

The Foothillers led 23-20 at halftime, but Cathedral's MacKenzie Mathias took over the third quarter with some long-range shooting. Mathias hit 6 three-balls on her way to a game-high 21 points.

The Dons (14-3) led 41-35 after three periods

Grossmont scrambled back to lead by one point with 2 minutes to play, but once again, the offense stalled and Cathedral captured the win.

Senior guard La'KENYA SIMON-WEST, who will take a recruiting trip to Oregon State next week, paced the Foothillers with 18 points, 8 rebounds and 3 steals, but she was smothered all night by Cathedral defenders and did not enjoy her best shooting night.

She did make 6 of 9 free throws, however.

Simon-West nailed a couple of triples to extend her East County-leading 3-ball count to 62.

Idaho-bound THERESE RIEDEL had a double-double of 12 points and 13 rebounds for Grossmont.

TINA RIOS added 10 points, and SHANDIS RIOS hit a pair of triples, while MICHELLE GONZALEZ gobbled up 13 rebounds for the Foothillers.

The Foothillers resume Grossmont North League play on Tuesday (Jan. 16) by hosting Santana in a key GNL encounter.

Grossmont scoring: La'Kenya Simon-West 18, Therese Riedel 12, Tina Rios 10, Shandis Rios 8, Michelle Gonzalez 1.

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (1-13-07) -- There seems to be a new unity on the basketball court for Granite Hills, helping pave the way to a victory in Friday's (Jan. 12) Grossmont South League opener.

West Hills frosh Sherika Miller (4) collides with Grossmont's Michelle Gonzalez (12) in pursuit of a loose ball in the Foothillers' triumph. (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

Taking advantage of their size advantage inside, the Eagles consistently found open players under the basket for an array of short-range shots, pulling away to down host Valhalla, 66-31.

MOLLY HILLENBRAND paced Granite Hills (10-6 overall, 1-0 GSL) with a double-double, recording 18 points and 10 rebounds. The junior center was complimented by forward AMY SYLVESTER, who collected 14 points and nine boards, and guard MORGAN SALABA, who scored 16 points.

"It's much more of a team effort this year,"noted Hillenbrand, who gained 13 of her points in the first half to mount a 33-21 lead."There isn't just one Superman taking all of the shots anymore."

The team unity was most apparent by the team's passing, as five different players registered two or more assists -- excellent numbers even for a college team -- led by six helpers from KYLEE WILSON.

"It was hard at first with a new coach,"Hillenbrand noted of former Patrick Henry coach JERRY PARKER taking over this season."But now we love it."

The fired-up Norsemen grabbed an early 11-8 lead over their Jamacha rivals, but LAUREN BENDER scored on a putback after grabbing an offensive rebound, then made a nice bounce pass to Sylvester which led to a pair of free throws to ignite the Eagles offense on a 22-8 run to push the advantage into double figures.

Granite Hills then shut down Valhalla in the second half, limiting them to totals of 8 and 2 points over the final two quarters, as the Norsemen hindered their efforts by going 0-for-9 at the line after the intermission (4-for-13 for the ballgame).

BREE MARTIN was the leading scorer for Valhalla (4-9, 0-1) with 12 points and 10 rebounds, while EMILY ROBERTS added seven points and three steals.

Granite Hills scoring: Molly Hillenbrand 18, Morgan Sabala 16, Amy Sylvester 14, Sabrina Jimenez 7, Andee Warford 4, Lauren Bender 4, Kylee Wilson 3.

Valhalla scoring: Bree Martin 12, Emily Roberts 7, Kayla Houston 6, Sara Staninger 4, Kelanie Blackwell 2.

West Hills' Mariah Bennett (34) shoots. (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

GROSSMONT 75, WEST HILLS 40 -- Any thoughts West Hills was entertaining as a possible contender in the Grossmont North League were dashed by visiting Grossmont in Friday's (Jan. 12) opener in Santee.

Steady senior La'KENYA SIMON-WEST scored 26 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for the Foothillers (13-4, 1-0 GNL). That was more or less expected.

But the Hillers received a giant bonus from 6-foot-4 senior THERESE RIEDEL. The Idaho-bound Riedel rustled up a career-high 27 rebounds and well as scoring 20 points as Grossmont put the game out of reach by halftime, 39-17.

West Hills (11-8, 0-1 GNL) rallied somewhat in the third quarter for a 17-13 scoring edge, but Grossmont put the game away and then some with a 23-6 finish over the final eight minutes.

PHYLICIA SCHULTZ chipped in 10 points and 5 rebounds and TINA RIOS had 10 and 2 rebounds. MICHELLE GONZALEZ grabbed 6 rebounds.

In spite of Grossmont's offensive fireworks, Foothillers coach TIM JOLLET focused on defense and rebounding.

"Obviously we rebounded well and we played our usual solid defense tonight," said Jollett."That's why we won the game. On the negative side, we had too many turnovers (27) and we did not handle the ball well. We really did not do well in a lot of phases of the game."

But it's hard to complain when you beat a league contender on their own court.

Grossmont scoring: La'Kenya Simon-West 26, Therese Riedel 20, Tina Rios 10, Phylicia Schultz 10, Shandis Rios 4, Michelle Gonzalez 4, Allison Baxter 1.

West Hills scoring: Sherika Miller 12, Marilyn Naderhoff 9, Muaau Naderhoff 4, Leilani Yawn 3, Shelby Russo 3, Ashley Alderton 3, Mariah Bennett 2, Kimberly Clark 2, Corryn Kivett 2.

CORONADO 38, CHRISTIAN 35 -- For some reason unbeknownst to Christian coach CORI ESPELET, her Patriots were lethargic coming out of the gate for Friday's (Jan. 12) opening game of the Central League season.

Playing on the road, the Patriots fell behind 19-11 in the first half. They closed the deficit to a single point after three periods and even held a brief lead in the final quarter.

"We just had no gas from the beginning of the game," said Espelet."Coronado (9-9, 1-0) came ready, played hard, and wanted it more than us tonight. We came flat, tired and lazy. It is tough to lose your first league game, especially to Coronado. They have been Christian's rivals for years."

Senior SARAH SEYMOUR paced the Patriots (7-10, 0-1 CNT) with 14 points, but none of her teammates scored more than six.

Twenty nine turnovers did not help Christian's cause.

"It is hard to play catch-up for a whole game and that is what we did. Unfortunately early in the fourth quarter, when we got the lead back, we were unable to maintain it. We suffered too many turnovers."

Christian scoring: Sarah Seymour 14, Melody Criswell 6, Rachel Criswell 5, Kelsey DePriest 4, Emily Reed 4, Nichole Miller 2.

MOUNT MIGUEL 81, STEELE CANYON 28 -- Although it was opening night in the Grossmont South League, the six-time defending champion Matadors were looking at Friday's (Jan. 12) game at Steele Canyon as a tune-up for Saturday's battle against nationally ranked Bishop Gorman (Nev.).

Utilizing full-court pressure, the Matadors steamed to a 33-5 first quarter lead.

AUTUMN SPIKES scored 10 of her 15 points in the opening period to lead the Matadors' early surge.

"We got a lot of easy baskets off our press," said Mount Miguel coach ROBBIE SANDOVAL, whose Matadors are 56-1 against GSL competition during his seven year tenure.

PRECIOUS ROBINSON was the leader of a balanced attack with 19 points, nearly half of which came on 9 of 10 free throw shooting. The 6-foot senior also captured 7 rebounds and made 3 steals.

Guard VICTORIA MURPHY scored a career-high 16 points to go along with 4 assists and 4 steals. Murphy chipped in 6 points in Mount Miguel's game-breaking opening quarter.

Spikes finished with 15 points, 6 rebounds, 5 steals, 3 assists and one block.

DANESIA WILLIAMSON pitched in 14 points -- which included hitting a pair of 3s -- 5 assists, 3 steals and 3 rebounds.

The bulk of LaSHAWN JOHNSON's 8 points came on a pair of triples as her primary focus seemed to be on passing (8 assists). Johnson also had 5 rebounds, one less than CINDY EKWEOZOR, who also had 2 blocks.

Even though not unexpected, it was a stinging loss for Steele Canyon (10-8, 0-1 GSL).

The Cougars were not without their bright spot, however, as TINA MERLINO tallied 15 points and collected 8 rebounds.

"You know that Merlino is a good player," noted Sandoval of the 6-foot-1 post."She has a good future in this game if she keeps working at it."

Sandoval was also impressed by Steele Canyon's 6-foot freshman JANVIER BARBARIN, who finished with 9 points and 7 rebounds.

Mount Miguel scoring: Precious Robinson 19, Victoria Murphy 16, Autumn Spikes 15, Danesia Williamson 14, LaShawn Johnson 8, Coco Fountain 5, Trina Clark 2, Cindy Ekweozor 2.

Steele Canyon scoring: Tina Merlino 15, Janvier Barbarin 9, Jessica Hardy 2, Samantha Beasley 2.

HELIX 62, MONTE VISTA 18 -- Despite playing more than slightly half the game, junior guard BRITTANY WILLIAMS scored 29 points to guide Helix to an easy Grossmont South League opening win over out-manned Monte Vista Friday night (Jan. 12) in La Mesa.

Williams connected on 14 of 22 shots from the field, made 7 steals, blocked 3 shots, grabbed 6 rebounds and dealt 2 assists in her abbreviated playing time. Thirteen of Williams' shots came in the opening quarter at Helix forged in front 26-4.

Senior MELE LEASAU tallied 8 of her 18 points in that period.

The Highlanders pulled their starters in the second quarter, but still managed a 10-4 scoring edge to lead 36-8 by halftime.

Williams scored 12 points and Mele Leasau added 6 as Helix expanded its advantage to 56-14 by the close of the third quarter. A running clock took over from there.

Mele Leasau topped the Highlanders with 10 rebounds and 8 steals.

JEM AFUSIA's line was all about the number 4, as in point, blocks and steals.

NADAH ROYSTER accounted for Helix's only 3-pointer of the game and finished with 5 points.

It was another long but not unexpected night for the Monarchs (4-13, 0-1 GSL).

JANAY PATTON paced the Monarchs with 4 points, 8 rebounds and 2 blocks.

"I was proud of the fact that we played hard the whole game," said Monte Vista coach MICHAEL SKIBBE."We stayed focused and continued to develop as a team. We are still making some choices which are not in the best interest of the team. But our young folks are really growing up as basketball players."

Helix scoring: Brittany Williams 29, Mele Leasau 18, Nadah Royster 5, Jem Afusia 4, Jaz Afusia 2, Sinoi Leasau 2, Sam Vick 2.

Monte Vista scoring: Janay Patton 4, Kim Galarpe 4, Victoria Richmond 3, Rachel Finks 2, Eboni Bruce 2, Nicole Ashby-Jones 2, Ashley Weatherford 1.

SANTANA 62, EL CAJON VALLEY 8 -- DANIELLE BALOUGH scored 21 points and KAILA SMITH added 16 points, 8 rebounds and 4 steals as Santana routed visiting El Cajon Valley in Friday's (Jan. 12) Grossmont North League opener.

Twelve Sultans scored in the lop-sided contest, which saw Santana take a 23-2 first quarter lead. The Sultans led 38-4 at halftime, even though Santana coach JIM MOTTERSHAW limited the play of his starters.

It was a night of firsts for some of the Sultans such as RACHEL FAILLA, who scored 4 points and LAUREN MUELLER, who got her first basket and made 3 steals. ALI PADBERG contributed 3 assists and 3 steals to the winning effort.

Santana scoring: Danielle Balough 21, Kaila Smith 16, Nicole Brzeczek 5, Rachel Failla 4, Miki Sankary 3, Ashley Baker 3 )11 reb.), Shae Bass 2 (5 ast.), Ali Padberg 2, Brianna Padilla 2, Lauren Miller 2, Jamie Elias 1, Keila Morris 1.

El Cajon Valley scoring: Sheraina Moon 4, Adriana Ussery 2, Leena Norwarekar 2.

Monte Vista scoring: Rachel Finks 8, Victoria Richmond 7, Eboni Bruce 3, Ashley Weatherford 3, Kim Galarpe 2, Nicole Ashby-Jones 2, LiAiesha Brandon 1.

© East County Sports.com
ESCONDIDO (1-10-07) -- In what turned out to be a challenging warm-up for the start of Central League play on Friday, the visiting Christian High Patriots clipped Calvin Christian 44-40 on Tuesday night (Jan. 9) in a non-league game in North County.

Senior SARAH SEYMOUR showed the way for the Patriots with game-highs of 17 points and 13 rebounds.

"We had spurts of good basketball, but we were not consistent,"reported Christian coach CORI ESPELET. "Sarah Seymour showed great leadership on the court, and I really appreciate the way she keeps her composure when her shots were not falling in the first half."

KELSEY DePRIEST had 11 points and RACHEL CRISWELL popped in 10 for the Patriots.

Freshman NICHOLE MILLER didn't have the big offensive numbers but contributed 8 rebounds and played strong defense for Christian.

"I was happy to see some of our younger players stepping up as the veterans had a tough game," added Espelet. "Overall we did good things, but I want us to strive for excellence, and that takes a little harder work and a little more effort than we are giving."

Briana Jackson scored a game-high 22 points for Calvin Christian (7-4).

Christian opens Central League play on Friday (Jan. 12) at Coronado against the 7-9 Islanders at 6 p.m.

Christian scoring: Sarah Seymour 17, Kelsey DePriest 11, Rachel Criswell 10, Melody Criswell 2, Nichole Miller 2, Emily Reed 2.

Late Results: Monday (Jan. 8)
CASTLE PARK 47, EL CAJON VALLEY 41 -- Non-league; No other information reported.

El Cajon Valley scoring: Leena Norwarekar 13, Sheraina Moon 10, Samantha Julien 7, Taniya Patros 6, Adriana Ussery 5.

© East County Sports.com
RANCHO SAN DIEGO (1-9-07) -- It's not often that a coach who's team comes up on the losing side can find something positive from a defeat.

Steele Canyon's 5th year head coach, FRANK QUINONES, who's team was coming off a less-than-inspiring last two games, saw his team rear up to surprise perennial power Santana with a bona fide challenge in Monday's (Jan. 8) Grossmont Conference contest in Rancho San Diego.

The upstart Cougars led 28-26 at halftime before eventually falling 59-46 to the Sultans.

"I'm extremely proud of my girls. To have the lead against Santana…," said Steele Canyon coach FRANK QUINONES, his voice trailing off as he searched for words.

"I felt like we could play with Santana. It means a lot to me and to my girls, especially when we were up two (points) at halftime. I almost didn't know what to say to them, we've never been there before."

Even after Santana (17-3) used a strong third quarter to regain a 42-36 advantage with 8 minutes remaining, Quinones realized that his Cougars (10-7) still had a chance at the upset.

While Steele Canyon's superior inside strength limited Santana's ASHLEY BAKER to 15 points and DANIELLE BALOUGH to 12, the Sultans were boosted by surprising perimeter power on the shooting of JAMIE ELIAS, who canned 4 three-pointers on her way to a 15-point finish. Three of Elias' triples came in the second half.

NICOLE BRZECZEK, another of Santana's outside shooters, banged in 11 points -- more than half coming on points coming from above the arc.

"Our goal was to shut Balough and Baker down," Quinones said. "We weren't looking for Elias to hit those 3-pointers. They weren't hitting the perimeter shot very well until we shut down the inside. It was a 4-point game with 2½ minutes to play. We had Balough and Baker with four fouls apiece. But they beat us from the perimeter today."

JANVIER BARBARIN, who was coming off an injury, bounced back to lead the Cougars with 15 points. The 6-foot freshman post player added 6 rebounds, while junior BELINDA PICKENS pitched in 14 points and 5 rebounds for the Cougars.

Steele Canyon senior standout TINA MERLINO did not have one of her best scoring nights with 9 points, but was a monster on the boards with 19 rebounds.

" Steele Canyon hustled and played well in the first half," said Santana coach JIM MOTTERSHAW. "Their inside players scored 38 of their 46 points. We finally decided to play in the second half -- took better shots, passed the ball well and rebounded better."

Santana scoring: Ashley Baker 15, Jamie Elias 15, Danielle Balough 12, Nicole Brzeczek 11, Shae Bass 4, Miki Sankary 2.

Steele Canyon scoring: Janvier Barbarin 15, Belinda Pickens 14, Tina Merlino 9, Xanning Tyler 4, Samantha Beasley 4.

WEST HILLS 64, VALHALLA 24 -- The visiting Wolf Pack pounced on the Norsemen for a 24-4 first quarter lead and never let up as they turned Monday's (Jan. 8) Grossmont Conference contest into a rout.

"It was 37-13 at the half. We had good balance," said West Hills assistant coach SIG CHABROWSKI. "This is a great bunch of kids. We gave everyone a lot of playing time tonight."

MUAAU NADERHOFF scored 11 points, grabbed 7 rebounds, made 4 steals and dished 3 assists, while sophomore SHELBY RUSSO also scored 11 points and handed out 3 assists for West Hills.

"This is a big win for us," said Russo. "We played hard and we try our hardest all the time. We've been playing well lately, getting good effort. I look for good shots -- I especially like to take 3s."

For West Hills it was conquest by numbers as usual, as 10 Pack members contributed to the statistical columns.

SHERIKA MILLER added 9 points, 5 rebounds and 3 steals for West Hills, which sees itself as a primary contender in the Grossmont North League race.

EMILY ROBERTS grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds to go along with 6 points and 3 steals for Valhalla (4-8).

BREE MARTIN was limited to one field goal, as she settled for 7 points and 9 boards for the Norsemen.

"West Hills is a real good team," noted Valhalla coach JON OWENS. "I think our kids played hard and never quit, and I'm proud of them for that."

West Hills scoring: Shelby Russo 11, Muaau Naderhoff 11, Sherika Miller 9, Kimberly Clark 8, Corryn Kivett 6, Marilyn Naderhoff 6, Mariah Bennett 6, Rebecca Jones 5, Leilani Yawn 2.

Valhalla scoring: Kayla Houston 8, Bree Martin 7, Emily Roberts 6, Chelsie Cartmill 3.

GRANITE HILLS 54, EL CAPITAN 44 -- MORGAN SABALA scored 25 points to lead Granite Hills to an impressive Grossmont Conference victory over visiting El Capitan Monday night (Jan. 8).

The Eagles (9-6) gained a 14-4 scoring advantage from the free throw line, which proved to be the difference in the game.

Almost half of Sabala's game-high points came from above the arc as she nailed 4 three-pointers. She was only 5 for 10 from the free throw stripe, but MOLLY HILLENBRAND made all 5 of her free throws to help pick up the slack.

The Vaqueros (8-7) connected on only 32 percent of 53 shots from the field. They were off the mark from long range as they made only 2 of 16 three-point attempts.

ASHLEY BUNCE turned in another solid performance for El Capitan, hitting 6 of 11 shots for 12 points.

VALERIE LOGEL led El Capitan on the boards with 9 rebounds, one more than ASHLEY DUFFY, who also had 6 assists and 5 steals.

No individual statistics were reported by Granite Hills coach JERRY PARKER.

Granite Hills scoring: Morgan Sabala 25, Molly Hillenbrand 9, Amy Sylvester 9, Sabrina Jimenez 6, Lauren Bender 3, Kylee Wilson 2.

El Capitan scoring: Ashley Bunce 12, Ashley Duffy 9, Sam Spring 8, Liana Pitman 7, Brittney Loring 4, Jamie Ferguson 3, Valerie Logel 1.

© East County Sports.com
EL CENTRO (1-7-07) -- The trip to the desert paid major dividends for the West Hills Wolf Pack in Saturdays (Jan. 6) San Diego-Imperial Valley Shootout. The Pack (10-7) scored a season-high in pummeling Palm Desert, 83-41 at Central Union High.

Freshman KIMBERLY CLARK drilled 9 of 15 shots from the floor and added 2 free throws for a career-high 20 points to pace the Pack. She also snagged 7 rebounds and made 3 steals.

SHERIKA MILLER, another of the West Hills freshmen, added 10 points and 4 steals.

Senior MUAAU NADERHOFF pitched in 15 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals for West Hills, which led 41-25 at halftime.

The Wolf Pack clinched the victory with a 27-6 scoring run in the third quarter.

"We played hard," said West Hills junior REBECCA JONES, who chipped in 9 points, 4 assists and 3 rebounds. "I'm pleased to know that we came back and played better after last night's game (a loss to Helix). We learned that we need to have everyone participate to be successful. Today's game helps us to prepare for league games."

Yet another freshman in the Pack attack, MARILYN NADERHOFF, logged a team-high 10 assists and recorded 4 steals.

"I think this was a good match for us," said West Hills assistant coach SIG CHABROWSKI. "Everybody got in the game and got some good time on the floor. We played hard and took them away from the way they wanted to play. We're ready for conference and North League play to begin."

West Hills scoring: Kimberly Clark 20, Muaau Naderhoff 15, Sherika Miller 10, Rebecca Jones 9, Leilani Yawn 7, Mariah Bennett 7, Shelby Russo 6, Marilyn Naderhoff 5, Corryn Kivett 4.

VALHALLA 61, HOLTVILLE 32 -- Senior BREE MARTIN scored a career-high 30 points and bagged 13 rebounds as visiting Valhalla hammered hapless Holtville in Saturday's (Jan. 6) San Diego-Imperial Valley Shootout at El Centro Southwest.

Sophomore EMILY ROBERTS enjoyed one of her better games for the Norsemen (4-7) as she collected a game-high 15 rebounds, made 8 steals and dished out 6 assists while scoring 9 points.

Valhalla coach JON OWENS praised the work of Roberts.

"Emily had an awesome game," he said.

To look at the linescore it would appear that Valhalla dominated from the opening tip. But Owens said that wasn't the case.

"We started out slow but we were able to pick up our play," said Owens. "Holtville went up 5-2 after the first few minutes of the game. We pulled our press off and changed our defense from man play to zone, and that changed the momentum of the game."

By the close of the first quarter, Valhalla led 28-6.

Junior AMY WOODS had a solid floor game with 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 steals, 4 blocks and 4 points.

Due to illness, Owens had to call up two players from the junior varsity -- LAUREL SCOVIE and CHELSIE CARTMILL -- and they each contributed 6 points. All of Cartmill's scoring came from 3-point shooting.

Valhalla scoring: Bree Martin 30, Emily Roberts 9, Kelanie Blackwell 6, Laurel Scovie 6, Chelsie Cartmill 6, Amy Woods 4.

STEELE CANYON 36, EC-SOUTHWEST 33 -- Even though the Cougars have won 9 of their last 10 games, Steele Canyon coach FRANK QUINONES wasn't very happy by what he saw in Saturday's (Jan. 6) San Diego-Imperial Valley Shootout at El Centro Southwest.

"I can't put my finger on it, but we're not playing anything like we did when we played Santa Fe Christian in the championship game of our tournament last week," said Quinones. "It's been that way in our last two games. Some of our players lack intensity and heart right now. We definitely have some issues that we have to deal with. Hopefully this is just a bump in the road."

The Cougars (10-6) started out soundly, taking a 19-11 first quarter lead. After that though, it was a pretty lackluster performance by both teams.

Host El Centro Southwest (4-14) actually gained a 16-11 second half scoring edge.

TINA MERLINO hit 6 of 11 shots from the field to top Steele Canyon's scoring with 8 points. She also got 8 rebounds and blocked 5 shots.

BRIANA EITER chipped in 8 points, but none of the other Cougars scored any more than four.

"We'd better get ourselves straightened out in a hurry because we have Santana on Monday, then (academic) finals and then open up our league season on Friday (Jan. 12).”

Steele Canyon scoring: Tina Merlino 12, Briana Eiter 8, Samantha Beasley 4, Belinda Pickens 4, Jobeth Devera 3, Katerina Snew 2, Samantha Silva 2, Xanning Tyler 1.

GROSSMONT 63, OUR LADY OF PEACE 50 -- The Oregon State coaches were on hand to watch La'KENYA SIMON-WEST, and the senior guard put on a respectable show in Saturday's (Jan. 6) non-league action at Our Lady of Peace. Simon-West scored 27 points, hitting 3 triples, grabbed 13 rebounds and made 4 steals to lead Grossmont (12-4) to its fourth win in five games.

Oregon State, San Diego State and Long Beach State are among the schools recruiting Simon-West.

Meanwhile, TINA RIOS turned in a strong performance of 18 points, 5 rebounds and 4 steals for Grossmont.

MICHELLE GONZALEZ didn't score, but rose up to grab 9 rebounds and record 6 steals for the Foothillers. THERESE RIEDEL had 12 rebounds.

Grossmont scoring: La'Kenya Simon-West 27, Tina Rios 18, Phylicia Schultz 6, Therese Riedel 5, Terra Musgrove 3, Marcee Fitzpatrick 2, Heather Springe 2.

© East County Sports.com
LA MESA (1-6-07) -- After a dismal performance two days earlier, the Helix Highlanders regained their footing and stomped on visiting West Hills, 64-46 in Friday's nights (Jan. 5) non-league action.

BRITTANY WILLIAMS, a junior, who had one of her poorest outings in the Highlanders' loss to Santana on Wednesday, rebounded against the Wolf Pack to score a season-high 30 points. The Helix sparkplug made 13 of 28 shots from the field, added 4 free throws, grabbed 10 rebounds, handed out 8 assists, made 8 steals and blocked 4 shots in what was clearly one of the best games of her high school career.

" Brittany played a great all-around game," said Helix coach TRINA MERIDETH. "She nearly had a quadruple-double."

MELE LEASAU produced a double-double of her own with 16 points and a game-high 14 rebounds. The Helix senior also blocked 5 shots and made 2 steals.

The Highlanders did not focus on the 3-point shot as they've done in games past. They pounded the ball inside and scored off their transition game.

JAZ AFUSIA took Helix' only 3-point shots, hitting one as she finished with 7 points. She also had 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 blocks and 2 steals.

Her sister, JEM AFUSIA, contributed 10 rebounds to go along with 7 points.

"These were two good teams," said Merideth. "It was a very tough game. It was important for us to come back from the holidays and play really hard. We did not play hard on Wednesday, but tonight we did."

West Hills (9-7) attempted 19 shots from above the arc but made only 2.

Ironically, freshman MARILYN NADERHOFF, who did not attempt a 3-point shot, led the Wolf Pack with 14 points. She was 8 for 8 from the free throw line and topped her team with 4 assists.

"We made some mistakes," said West Hills assistant coach SIG CHABROWSKI. "It was a total lack of communication. We played them tough. We played hard but obviously not as hard as we should have."

Helix scoring: Brittany Williams 30, Mele Leasau 16, Jem Afusia 7, Jaz Afusia 7, Elizabeth Caldwell 4 (3 blk.).

West Hills scoring: Marilyn Naderhoff 14, Mariah Bennett 9, Sherika Miller 8, Muaau Naderhoff 7 (8 reb., 3 stl.), Shelby Russo 3, Ashley Alderton 3, Corryn Kivett 2.

GROSSMONT 64, GRANITE HILLS 31 -- La'KENYA SIMON-WEST scored 26 points and THERESE RIEDEL rolled a triple-double as Grossmont crushed Granite Hills in Friday's (Jan. 5) non-league action on the Eagles court.

It was business as usual for Simon-West, who included 4 triples in her offensive numbers and collected 7 rebounds and made 3 steals for the Foothillers (11-4), who have won 3 out of 4 and 5 out of 7 against elite competition.

Riedel, who has been mired in a slump of late, broke loose for 10 points, 14 rebounds and 10 blocked shots.

"It looks like she's coming back to being her old self," said Jollett of Riedel. "She played strong in the post for us."

Grossmont zipped in front 21-7 after one quarter and led 37-14 by intermission.

"Baseline to baseline we played strongly on defense," said Grossmont coach TIM JOLLETT. "We challenged every shot. I was happy with the way we played. To limit the other team to only three players who scored, isn't that easy to do."

MORGAN SABALA netted 19 points to lead Granite Hills (8-6). LAUREN BENDER (7 points) and MOLLY HILLENBRAND (5 points) were the only other Eagles to score.

Grossmont dropped in a 12 triples. Simon-West set the pace with 4, while the RIOS sisters -- TINA and SHANDIS -- hit 3 apiece and MARCEE FITZPATRICK hit the other 2.

MICHELLE GONZALEZ did not contribute to Grossmont's scoring column but came away with 7 rebounds and 4 steals for the Foothillers.

"Defensively Grossmont really got after us," said Granite Hills coach JERRY PARKER. "They forced us into a lot of errors."

Grossmont scoring: La'Kenya Simon-West 26, Therese Riedel 10, Shandis Rios 9, Tina Rios 9, Marcee Fitzpatrick 6, Phylicia Schultz 2 (7 reb.), Heather Springe 2.

Granite Hills scoring: Morgan Sabala 19, Lauren Bender 7, Molly Hillenbrand 5.

SANTANA 60, VALHALLA 15 -- It was another lark of a night for the underrated Sultans, who vanquished host Valhalla in Friday night's (Jan. 5) non-league action.

The Sultans (16-3), who have won 12 of their last 13 leaped out to a 19-3 first quarter lead and were breezing 36-7 by halftime. There was little difference in the second half, except that a running clock was instituted the outcome from being even more one-sided.

It was not a case of Santana coach JIM MOTTERSHAW wanting to run up the score. That was hardly the case as the veteran Sultans' skipper substituted freely throughout the game.

"It was one of those games where we started slow and picked up momentum as the game went on," said Mottershaw.

It certainly could have been worse for Valhalla had DANIELLE BALOUGH and her 21-point scoring average been available to the Sultans. Balough, however, missed the game due to illness, and BRITTANY FENN left the game in the first quarter after turning her ankle.

NICOLE BRZECZEK and ASHLEY BAKER took the Santana offense by the reins and pouring in 16 points apiece. Baker, not known for 3-point shooting, knocked down a pair of triples on this night.

JAMIE ELIAS tossed in an additional 10 points for the Sultans, who also got 7 assists from SHAE BASS. Sophomore KAILA SMITH scored 6 points and made 4 assists for Santana.

For Valhalla BREE MARTIN was the stalwart with 8 points, 7 rebounds and 3 blocks. EMILY ROBERTS also had 9 rebounds for the Norsemen.

KATIE LAINE is out indefinitely with a leg injury.

"We are a real young team," said Valhalla coach JON OWENS. "Our players didn't quit and played hard the whole game."

Santana scoring: Ashley Baker 16, Nicole Brzeczek 16, Jamie Elias 10, Kaila Smith 6, Brianna Padilla 5, Miki Sankary 4, Brittany Fenn 3.

Valhalla scoring: Bree Martin 8, Kayla Houston 4, Emily Roberts 2, Kelanie Blackwell 1.

EL CAPITAN 58, MONTE VISTA 14 -- After staggering to four consecutive losses, the Vaqueros seemed to have regained their footing as they've won their last two games, including Friday's (Jan. 5) rout of visiting Monte Vista.

El Capitan's defense was smothering, limiting the Monarchs to 8 points over three quarters.

The Vaqueros recorded 23 steals, led by ASHLEY DUFFY's 9. Duffy, a 5-foot-9 sophomore, enjoyed one of her better shooting nights, knocking 8 of 12 attempts on her way to a game-high 16 points. Duffy was also the assist leader with 7.

Senior VALERIE LOGEL continues to make major contributions for the Vaqueros. Against the Monarchs Logel missed only one of 6 shots as she totaled 11 points, grabbed a team-high 7 rebounds, and recorded 4 steals.

JAMIE FERGUSON pitched in 9 points, 3 rebounds and 3 steals, while SAM SPRING did not miss a shot as she finished with 8 points, 3 boards and 3 thefts.

It was another long night for the Monarchs (4-12), who did not have a player score more than 4 points.

VICTORIA RICHMOND had 2 blocks for the Monarchs, and RACHEL FINKS had 2 steals.

"Seeing the development of freshman EBONI BRUCE and sophomore LiAIESHA BRANDON bodes well for the Monarchs' future. Box scores are what everyone gets to see, but few see the daily growth and development that is happening every game and every practice at Monte Vista," said the ever-optimistic Monarchs coach MICHAEL SKIBBE.

El Capitan scoring: Ashley Duffy 16, Valerie Logel 11, Jamie Ferguson 9, Sam Spring 8, Liana Pitman 6, Ashley Bunce 4, Abby Carlino 4.

Monte Vista scoring: Victoria Richmond 4, Rachel Finks 4, Megan Boyce 2, LiAiesha Brandon 2, Eboni Bruce 1, Janay Patton 1.

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (1-5-07) -- The Christian Patriots jumped out to a 22-2 first quarter lead and then breezed to a 50-14 non-league victory over Holtville Thursday (Jan. 4) Ryan Athletic Center.

The Patriots (6-9), who had not played a game since Dec. 19, outscored hapless Holtville (0-7) in every quarter. It was the second time Christian has handled Holtville, taking a 63-22 decision last month in the desert.

Despite the easy victory, coach CORI ESPELET was not overly impressed with her team's play.

"You could tell that we had some time off," said Espelet. "Our high turnovers and our lack of rebounding effort were exposed today."

SARAH SEYMOUR led the Patriots with 16 points. KELSEY DePRIEST added 11. Freshman NICOLE MILLER contributed 9 rebounds in extensive playing time.

"It is hard in games like this to measure other parameters of the game, however, we know that we have a lot to improve if we want to compete in league," Espelet added.

Christian scoring: Sarah Seymour 16, Kelsey DePriest 11, Melody Criswell 9, Emily Reed 8, Rachel Criswell 4, Nicole Miller 2.

© East County Sports.com
LA MESA (1-4-07) -- Billed as a showdown between two of East County's top girls basketball team, the visiting Santana Sultans and the favored Helix Highlanders turned in an interesting bout in Wednesay's (Jan. 3) non-league encounter.

There were conflicting views as to the quality of play in a game won by Santana, 50-39.

Santana coach JIM MOTTERSHAW said,"It was a very physical game played between two playoff-caliber teams."

While Santana (15-3) maintained a slim advantage through the majority of the first 2½ quarters, the Highlanders (10-5) eventually edged ahead in the opening seconds of the fourth quarter, 32-31.

Santana, which has won 11 of its last 12, quickly regained control as NICOLE BRZECZEK hit a 3-pointer to put the Sultans back on top, 34-32.

Despite turning the ball over 25 times, the Santana quintet never trailed thereafter.

"We played lights out in the fourth quarter," said Mottershaw, noting that his Sultans gained a 13-8 scoring advantage.

DANIELLE BALOUGH once again was the shining star for Santana with 20 points, which included 8 of 11 free throw shooting. Brzeczek finished with 10 points, including a pair of 3s and 2 blocks.

Probably the unsung hero for Santana though, was ASHLEY BAKER who gathered a game-high 15 rebounds.

Steady SHAE BASS, who has already accepted a softball scholarship to Michigan State, pitched in 9 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists for the Sultans.

The bottom of the barrel line as far as Helix was concerned hovered around the Highlanders' poor shooting. Helix connected on only 16 of 72 shots (22 percent).

"This wasn't the same team. The girls did not play like the same team we've been coaching all year," said Helix assistant coach WILLIE HATHAWAY, who has seen the Highlanders win 8 of the last 10 games. "But give credit to Santana."

Helix head coach TRINA MERIDETH agreed.

"Santana out-played us," she said. "They played good basketball the whole game."

Santana scoring: Danielle Balough 20, Nicole Brzeczek 10, Shae Bass 9, Jamie Elias 7, Ashley Baker 4.

Helix scoring: Mele Leasau 11, Brittany Williams 8, Jem Afusia 8, Sinoi Leasau 5, Jaz Afusia 5, Elizabeth Caldwell 2.

WEST HILLS 66, MONTE VISTA 19 -- Playing their first home game since Nov. 27, the Wolf Pack jumped out to a 16-4 lead and held a 53-14 advantage after three quarters in Wednesday's (Jan. 3) non-league game in Santee.

Senior MUAAU NADERHOFF led West Hills with 20 points, hitting 10 of 14 shots from the floor.

"It was a big night because we were finally had a home game," said Naderhoff, a 5-foot-10 senior who also grabbed 6 rebounds, blocked 3 shots and made 3 steals. "I was able to get good shots in a good place close to the rim."

West Hills (9-6) shot better than 44 percent from the field, hitting 27 of 61 attempts.

Twenty-five of West Hills' baskets came with assists as KIMBERLY CLARK, LEILANI YAWN and MARILYN NADERHOFF each had 5 scoring passes.

Clark, Marilyn Naderhoff and MARIAH BENNETT contributed 4 steals apiece to West Hills 26 thefts in the game.

"We played well on the road," said West Hills assistant coach SIG CHABROWSKI. "But it's nice to play at home for a change."

West Hills scoring: Muaau Naderhoff 20, Rebecca Jones 9, Mariah Bennett 8 (4 ast.), Marilyn Naderhoff 8, Shelby Russo 6 (3 stl.), Sherika Miller 4, Kimberly Clark 4, Ashley Alderton 3, Leilani Yawn 2, Corryn Kivett 2.

Monte Vista scoring: Rachel Finks 8, Janay Patton 6, Nicole Ashby-Jones 2, Megan Boyce 2, Eboni Bruce 1.

STEELE CANYON 61, OTAY RANCH 52 -- The visiting Cougars from Steele Canyon rallied from a 15-4 first quarter deficit to post their 8th win in their last nine starts in Wednesday's (Jan. 3) non-league game in South Bay.

"We should have drilled this team," said Steele Canyon coach FRANK QUINONES. "BRIANA EITER really took charge tonight. I'm happy with her play."

Eiter, a junior guard, scored 17 of her career-high 19 points in the second as Steele Canyon broke a 22-22 halftime tie. Eiter hit a trio of 3s, giving her 14 for the season. She also made 4 steals.

TINA MERLINO, who was dogged by foul problems in the first half, tallied 10 points and 4 rebounds -- far below her season averages.

Merlino, SAMANTHA BEASLEY and BELINDA PICKENS each had three fouls in the first half and sat most of the second quarter.

"Our bench players came up big for us," said Quinones. "JAZMIN DAIGLE has been up and down from JV. She was a little spark plug for us tonight."

With 2.5 minutes left, Beasley and Merlino fouled out.

"Those were key losses but we did a good job holding them off," said Quinones.

Steele Canyon scoring: Briana Eiter 19, Tina Merlino 10, Xanning Tyler 8 (5 ast.), Samantha Beasley 8 (5 ast., 5 stl.), Janvier Barbarin 5 (5 reb.), Jazmin Daigle 4 (3 reb., 2 ast., 2 stl), Belinda Pickens 4 (6 reb.), Samantha Silva 3.

HOOVER 54, EL CAJON VALLEY 22 -- Non-league; No details reported.

El Cajon Valley scoring: Sabrina Julien 8, Adriana Ussery 5, Sheraina Moon 5, Stephanie Smith 2, Taniya Patros 1, Leena Narwarekar 1.

© East County Sports.com
ANTIOCH, Calif. (12-31-06) -- ROBBIE SANDOVAL and his Mount Miguel Matadors have been playing basketball incognito the past couple of weeks. No bragging, no announcements, just stealth basketball.

Despite flying below the media radar, the Matadors continue to be one of the nation's better girls basketball teams. And this team has yet to play at full strength, even though they have compiled a 10-3 record.

Mount Miguel lost to the state's No. 2 ranked team, Brea Olinda, 60-47, in Saturday's (Dec. 30) finals of the premier Platinum Division of the West Coast Jamboree in Oakland.

"I'm not all that disappointed," said Sandoval of the Matadors loss to the 13-0 Wildcats. "We play the best competition around. All three of our losses have come to teams that are ranked nationally or ranked in their respective states. I've been coaching long enough to know that if you want to give your kids exposure to the college coaches, you have to play in these kind of major tournaments."

The Matadors held a 15-14 edge over Brea Olinda after the first quarter, but then fell behind 26-21 by halftime. The Wildcats steadily increased their margin before sealing the victory.

PRECIOUS ROBINSON led the Matadors with 18 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocks. DANESIA WILLIAMSON pitched in 11 points, 4 steals, 3 assists and 3 rebounds, while AUTUMN SPIKES contributed 10 points, 8 rebounds and 2 steals.

Robinson, Williamson and LASHAWN JOHNSON represented Mount Miguel on the all-tournament team.

Mount Miguel scoring: Precious Robinson 18, Danesia Williamson 11, Autumn Spikes 10, Lashawn Johnson 4, Victoria Murphy 4.

SANTA FE CHRISTIAN 64, STEELE CANYON 58 -- Steele Canyon coach FRANK QUINONES promised his team that if they won the championship of the Barona-Cougar Holiday Classic Prep Division, he would take them lock stock and barrel to Magic Mountain.

Well, the Cougars could see the mountain… but couldn't make it up the hill.

The Cougars did prove themselves worthy of an appearance in Saturday's (Dec. 30) championship game as they held several leads, and maintained the advantage at 47-45 by the close of the third quarter. Eventually, however, the Eagles' advantage in team speed and a superior transition game denied the Cougars the championship and their trip to Valencia.

Despite falling behind 16-6 in the early going, these Cougars, unlike some of their predecessors, refused to back down.

The Cougars went on a 10-0 to tie the game and then took a 25-24 lead on BRIANA EITER's second 3-pointer of the game. The lead went back and forth from there before Steele Canyon settled on a 35-31 halftime lead.

Steele Canyon (8-6) shot 50 percent from the field in the first half, hitting 15 of 30 shots. Senior TINA MERLINO paved the way by scoring 14 of her team-leading 20 points in the first half. The 6-foot senior was 7 of 10 from the field, all of her shots coming from within eight feet of the basket.

It was a different story in the second half. The smaller but quicker Eagles of Santa Fe Christian (10-1) sealed off the paint, denying the taller Cougars close range shots.

"They did a much better job of denying the ball," said Merlino, who also topped the Cougars with 10 rebounds, 5 blocks and 4 steals. "They weren't doing that in the first half. We were able to get the ball inside and put it in the basket."

Forced to take more shots from the perimeter, Steele Canyon, which saw its 7-game winning streak end, connected on only 10 of 21 shots (34 percent) during the final two quarters.

Meanwhile, the Eagles, who were only 10 of 28 in the first half, canned 14 of 30 shots in the second half.

"We started letting them run their stuff in the second half," Merlino said. "They started driving more instead of shooting from the outside."

Freshman JANVIER BARBARIN added 15 points and 6 rebounds for Steele Canyon, which also received 11 points and 6 rebounds from Eiter, and a team-high 7 assists from SAMANTHA BEASLEY, who was named to the all-tournament team.

"Yeah we all wanted to go to Magic Mountain as a team, and we wanted to get this championship even more," Merlino admitted. "In situations like this we used to lack confidence. But that's not the case now. We've moved up a whole level. We've got that confidence going now -- we're a whole lot more competitive than we were in the past."

Steele Canyon scoring: Tina Merlino 20, Janvier Barbarin 15, Briana Eiter 11, Xanning Tyler 4, Belinda Pickens 4, Samantha Beasley 2, Samantha Silva 2.

EL CAPITAN 56, EL PASO-PARKLAND 41 -- A quadruple-double by sophomore ASHLEY DUFFY and a career-scoring high by junior SAM SPRING helped El Capitan snap a 4-game losing streak in Saturday's (Dec. 30) final round of the Barona-Cougar Holiday Prep Classic - NCAA Division at Grossmont.

Duffy connected on 9 of 23 shots, including 3 of 8 from beyond the arc, for 21 points. But that's only part of her story. Duffy made El Capitan girls basketball history by reaching double digits in steals (13), rebounds (10) and assists (10).

Not surprisingly, Duffy was named to the NCAA Division all-tournament team.

There have been some great players in this program, but none of them have ever achieved a quadruple-double.

As flashy as Duffy was on this afternoon, she did not score a single point in the opening quarter. Fact is, El Capitan trailed 6-5 after the first eight minutes, with VALERIE LOGEL (basket) and LIANA PITMAN (3-pointer) providing the Vaqueros' offense.

It wasn't until the final quarter that the Vaqueros (7-6) final put the game in the win column with a 20-7 scoring spread.

Spring's performance was not all about scoring, as she also had 7 steals, 3 assists and 2 rebounds.

El Capitan scoring: Ashley Duffy 21, Sam Spring 12, Liana Pitman 9 (3 reb.), Ashley Bunce 5 (4 reb., 2 stl.), Crisela Banks 3 (4 reb.), Jamie Ferguson 2 (3 reb., 2 stl), Abby Carlino 2, Valerie Logel 2 (3 reb.).

MARIAN CATHOLIC 83, SANTANA 50 -- The Sultans appeared to be court-weary as they squared off against unbeaten Marian Catholic in Saturday's (Dec. 30) NCAA Division of the Barona-Cougar Holiday Prep Classic at Steele Canyon.

The Sultans, who saw a 10-game winning streak end, trailed only 41-34 at the half. The third quarter was all about Marian, as the Crusaders (15-0) stung Santana with a 21-2 scoring spree.

"We got tired, forced our offense and didn't get back on defense very well. We played like a tired team," said Santana coach JIM MOTTERSHAW.

Santana was playing its third game in 24 hours.

"Marian was the better team tonight," Mottershaw said. "They were quick, strong and shot the 3-ball real well."

Not many teams have won more games than the 14-3 Sultans. Mottershaw was quick to note that Santana's only three losses have come to Top 10 ranked Eastlake, Bishop's and Marian.

A 5-foot-8 senior post player, DANIELLE BALOUGH manages to be the high scorer no matter what the competition throws at her. She tallied 16 against Marian and was named to the all-tournament team.

SHAE BASS added 7 points and 7 assists, while ASHLEY BAKER topped the Sultans with 7 rebounds.

Santana scoring: Danielle Balough 16, Shae Bass 7, Brittany Fenn 6, Jamie Elias 5, Miki Sankary 5, Nicole Brzeczek 5, Briana Padilla 3, Keila Morris 2, Ashley Baker 1.

SANTANA 65, ESCONDIDO 53 -- JAMIE ELIAS scored a career-high 22 points -- more than half of them coming on four 3-pointers -- as Santana (14-2) eliminated Escondido (8-7) in the semifinals of the Barona-Cougar Holiday Prep Classic - NCAA Division at Steele Canyon.

With Escondido leading 15-10, Santana began the second quarter with an 18-0 scoring run to take control.

Season scoring leader DANIELLE BALOUGH added 20 points for the Sultans, while ASHLEY BAKER rolled a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds.

The fuse to this Santana offensive explosion was SHAE BASS, who -- although scoring only 5 points -- dished out a career-high 16 assists. Bass also grabbed 7 rebounds and made 2 steals.

This was an Ironman performance by the five Santana starters, including NICOLE BRZECZEK, who contributed 7 points. This quintet played the full 32 minutes.

"We pounded the boards, cut down on our turnovers and played good defense starting in the second quarter," said Santana coach JIM MOTTERSHAW.

Santana scoring: Jamie Elias 22, Danielle Balough 20, Ashley Baker 11, Nicole Brzeczek 7, Shae Bass 5.

HELIX 55, GROSSMONT 49 -- The Highlanders avenged an earlier 16-point loss to the Foothillers and captured the third place trophy in the WNBA Division of the Barona-Cougar Holiday Prep Classic Saturday (Dec. 30) at Steele Canyon.

BRITTANY WILLIAMS paced the Highlanders (10-4) with 19 points, 8 steals, 7 rebounds, 6 assists and 5 blocks. Williams scored 16 of her points in the second half.

Helix senior MELE LEASAU, an all-tournament pick, was a force on the boards with 19 rebounds against the Foothillers. She also scored 14 points and blocked 6 shots.

Helix crept to a 19-18 halftime lead and then used a 20-13 scoring run to get some breathing room in the third quarter.

"In the first and second quarters the score was very close," said TRINA MERIDETH. "We exploded in the third quarter then we let them back in the game. We held our composure late in the game and responded well to their pressure. It was a typical Grossmont Conference game between two longtime opponents. It was a great game for the fans."

Grossmont's La'KENYA SIMON-WEST, an all-tournament selection, generated 26 points and 8 rebounds for the Foothillers (10-4).

"We did a good job defensively, held them to the same number of points we did when we beat them the first time (71-55)," Foothillers coach TIM JOLLETT said.

It was a case of good news and bad news for Grossmont. The Foothillers hit 14 of 17 free throws led by the 6 for 6 shooting of PHYLICIA SCHULTZ. Simon-West hit 5 of 6 from the charity stripe. She also buried a trio of 3-pointers, giving her 43 treys on the season.

Now for the bad news: Grossmont shot a miserable 17 percent for the field, hitting just 12 of 70 attempts.

Helix scoring: Brittany Williams 19, Mele Leasau 14, Jem Afusia 7, Elizabeth Caldwell 6, Jaz Afusia 5, Sinoi Leasau 4.

Grossmont scoring: La'Kenya Simon-West 26, Phylicia Schultz 6, Terra Musgrove 6, Marcee Fitzpatrick 4, Therese Riedel 3, Tina Rios 2, Michelle Gonzalez 2.

JARUPA VALLEY 54, WEST HILLS 49 -- Freshman MARILYN NADERHOFF turned in another stellar performance for the Wolf Pack in Saturday's (Dec. 30) final performance of the Ayala Best of the West Tournament at Ontario Convention Center.

The 5-foot-7 guard -- the top shooter on the team -- hit 6 of 9 shots from the field and was 3 for 3 from the free throw line for 15 points. She also gathered in 4 rebounds, dished 2 assists, blocked 2 shots and made 2 steals.

Her senior sister MUAAU NADERHOFF powered in 10 points and grabbed 7 rebounds.

West Hills (8-6) trailed 39-35 after three quarters. The Wolf Pack tied the game early in the fourth at 39-all and marched in front on one of KIMBERLY CLARK's two 3-pointers of the game.

"After that we had a couple of unforced turnovers that led to baskets by Jarupa Valley (of Riverside County )," said West Hills assistant coach SIG CHABROWSKI. "We played good defense, were solid the whole game."

In the fourth quarter a Jarupa Valley player hit a 3-point basket to break a 43-all tie.

Muaau Naderhoff hit two free throws but that's as close as the Wolf Pack would get.

"They play a different style of ball up here," said Chabrowski. "They all have good point guards. If these point guards played (in San Diego County ) they'd be all-county."

"Our kids worked real hard up here -- played five games in five days. It should really help us when we get into conference and league play."

West Hills scoring: Marilyn Naderhoff 15, Muaau Naderhoff 10, Kimberly Clark 9, Ashley Alderton 5, Mariah Bennett 5, Leilani Yawn 2, Sherika Miller 2, Corryn Kivett 1.

PATRICK HENRY 55, GRANITE HILLS 52 (OT) -- All-tournament selection MORGAN SABALA hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to tie the game at 48-all at the end of regulation in Saturday's (Dec. 30) final day of the Barona-Cougar Holiday Prep Classic - NCAA Division at Santana.

Molly Hillenbrand and Sabala each had a basket in overtime, but Amy Sylvester fouled out during the extra four-minute session.

"Losing Amy really hurt us in overtime," said Granite Hills coach JERRY PARKER. "She is a demon on the boards and plays great defense."

Sabala topped the Eagles (8-5) with 23 points. It was the eighth time the senior guard has broken the 20-point barrier. She raised her 3-point basket count to 30 by hitting a pair in the loss the Patrick Henry.

Granite Hills scoring: Morgan Sabala 23, Lauren Bender 11, Molly Hillenbrand 8, Amy Sylvester 6, Sabrina Jimenez 4.

SANTA FE CHRISTIAN 61, VALHALLA 45 -- Senior BREE MARTIN scored 20 points and collected 9 rebounds, but it wasn't enough to earn the Norsemen a berth in Saturday night's (Dec. 30) Barona-Cougar Holiday Classic's - Prep Division.

But the steady Martin did, however, earn a berth on the all-tournament team, which is something considering there were 34 varsity teams in the five-day event.

KAYLA HOUSTON added 9 points and 7 rebounds, while EMILY ROBERTS led the Norsemen (3-6) with 6 assists and tied Martin for the rebounding high.

Santa Fe Christian buried the Norsemen from the free throw line, hitting 21 of 27 chances compared to Valhalla's 3 of 10.

"We gave a good effort against a very good team," said Valhalla coach JON OWENS. "We had too many turnovers but we stayed in the game for much of the contest."

Valhalla scoring: Bree Martin 20, Kayla Houston 9, Katie Laine 6, Amy Woods 4, Emily Roberts 4, Kelanie Blackwell 2.