The 10th annual Presentation Shootout drew a healthy crowd and featured five teams from the West Coast Athletic League. Though only one game was decided by less than 10 points, the day nonetheless produced high-level action and showcased a holiday bounty of talent.
Cardinal Newman overcomes Sacred Heart Cathedral
Cardinal Newman won its second straight game over a fellow defending State Champion and improved to 5-1 overall, defeating Sacred Heart Cathedral, 67-55. Hailey Vice-Neat scored 20 points and Maiya Flores added 18 for the Cardinals, who accumulated 49 combined points from beyond the arch and from the free throw line.
Aliyah Arcillas paced the Fightin’ Irish with 13 points. University of Cincinnati commit IImar’I Thomas was limited to 12 points, though she also grabbed a dozen rebounds. Sacred Heart Cathedral took a 29-25 lead into the locker room at halftime when Gianna Silvestri hit a three at the buzzer.
In the third quarter, Flores hit two of her five three-pointers on the night, and Thomas was held without a field goal as the Cardinals gained a one-point edge by the period’s end.
In the fourth quarter, the Fightin’ Irish saw their lead slip away. With 4:25 remaining in the game, a Sacred Heart Cathedral player was whistled for a foul and committed an additional foul out of frustration resulting in a technical. Lauren Walker hit both free throws of the bonus, and Vice-Neat calmly sank the technical shots to give Cardinal Newman a 56-49 lead.
Tal Webb and Avery Cargill, who at 5’9” and 5’6” are by no means the tallest on the team, corralled 12 and eight rebounds respectively. Cargill added 13 points.
“Our very first day of camp we discussed that we had to become a better rebounding team,” Cardinal Newman coach Monica Mertle said. “This game is a testament of that. The first half in general we were pretty sloppy. The girls did a good job of not letting (that) dictate their performance in the second half.”
Cardinal Newman, which won the 2016 Division IV State Championship, beat Division V State Champion Eastside College Prep at the Elite Showcase last Saturday. Sacred Heart Cathedral, the Division III State Champion, moves to 4-2 this season and has lost two straight. The Fightin’ Irish and Cardinals both lost to St. Mary’s-Stockton this month.
Woodside Priory stings St. Francis
Tatiana Reese racked up 26 points, including 11 in the first quarter, along with seven rebounds and four assists, and Ila Lane contributed 18 points and 15 rebounds to lead Woodside Priory past St. Francis, 65-53. The Panthers jumped out to a 17-10 first quarter advantage but needed a strong fourth quarter to put away the Lancers, who received 14 points and six rebounds from Adriana Frazier and nine points and five assists from Paige Uyehara.
“She needs a little bit of structure, and that’s it,” Woodside Priory coach Buck Matthew said of Reese. “Everything starts with her.” When asked about Lane, Buck said “She’s improving…I got her to start rebounding outside her area.”
Woodside Priory (4-2) did not convert any free throws in the first half, but had five in the decisive fourth, which the Panthers won 24-14. Kelly Duran and Lydia Foust scored 10 apiece for St. Francis (6-1), and Samantha McCabe tacked on eight points and seven boards for Priory.
St. Ignatius edges McClatchy
Ayzhiana Basallo took over for St. Ignatius in the closing minutes as the Wildcats trumped McClatchy, 64-60. Basallo scored 23 points, and Maggie Burke added 10 along with 10 rebounds, while Kamryn Hall and Jordan Cruz had 19 and 16 points, respectively, for the Lions.
The first three quarters were a see-saw battle, with McClatchy (5-1) taking the first and third quarters and St. Ignatius (7-1) the second. Basallo hit three of her four three-pointers on the afternoon in that third period, at the end of which the Wildcats held a plus one margin.
Halfway through the fourth quarter, the game was tied at 53. After a Lions’ bucket, Basallo scored and on an ensuing play found Burke for a lay-up to make it 57-55 with two minutes to go. She made a free throw, and after Nia Lowery, who finished with 13, scored and then assisted much like Basallo had, the St. Ignatius senior guard came through with another basket and a pair of free throws in a 25 second span to make it 62-59. After Lowery split a couple of free throws, Rachel Harvey went to the line after an intentional foul and clinched the victory by making a pair.
“Offensively our goal was to drive because we were in the bonus,” Basallo said. “Being a point guard you always have to be a leader on the floor.”
Valley Christian better than Berkeley
Valley Christian led wire-to-wire in a 53-43 win versus Berkeley. Kyanna Davis paced the Warriors (5-2) with 15 points, while Reja’h Bordenave had 14 for the Yellowjackets. Davis tallied eight of her total in the fourth quarter, when Berkeley (4-2), led by Alexouis Bruce, nipped away at the difference but had too much ground to make up.
“The defense, keeping them out of the paint,” Valley Christian coach Chris Swain said when asked about the keys to the game. The Warriors do not have a lot of noticeable height, but as Swain points out, “they all rebound well.”
Presentation doubles up Moreau Catholic
Ava Williams racked up 20 points in about as many minutes, and Presentation (6-1) wrapped up the Shootout with a 60-29 victory over Moreau Catholic (2-2). The Panthers’ second quarter put the game out of reach and after the third coach Wade Nakamura was able to rest all of his starters.
“We were dialed in defensively,” Nakamura said. “We’re so young, we’re still searching for leadership.” Though Williams is on pace to be a key player this season. “The sky’s the limit,” Nakamura said of his junior forward.
Gunn holds back Notre Dame
Tiazha Jackson had 18 points and Archer Olson tacked on 13 for Gunn as the Titans defeated Notre Dame-Belmont, 43-30.
Mountain View tops Skyline
Sophie Tobin scored 23 points to power Mountain View past Skyline, 57-39.
