Eagles start strong, finish strong in 29-8 win
By Lucia Landivar
The Christian Learning Center Eagles junior varsity girls basketball team won 29-8 over the Santa Cruz Cooperative Jaguars on a rainy, gray Tuesday afternoon,
The two teams were for the most part energized for on their match. The spectators were mostly Christian Learning parents and students, Santa Cruz Cooperative cheerleaders, and some teachers from both schools.
The Eagles started off strong, dominating the court at both ends. In just a few minutes, they easily took a 6 to 0 lead over the Jaguars. Eagles player Emily Ordonez was on fire. Ordonez was constantly aiming for the basket, and scoring the key baskets.
Andrea Chaves from the Jaguar team fought hard and certainly seemed as if she wasn’t going to give up that easily, and was persistently pressuring the Eagles.
Both teams started off the second period with vigor. Pressure from both sides was a constant. After many minutes struggling to score a basket, Eagles Eva Brown and Maria Anderson broke the tension for their team and scored two quick baskets. Anderson would score eight points in the quarter.
Jaguars tried to defend themselves and managed to score a free throw by Chavez, but the second period with the Eagles holding a dominating lead of 15 to 2.
Jaguar Chavez scored the first point of the third period with a free shot, but seconds later, the Eagles got going. Brown scored a basket for her team, as well as another free shot minute later.
The Eagles were flying high and seemed unstoppable. Brown kept scoring baskets for her team with the help of her teammate Ordonez. They were the dynamic duo the Jaguars had to fear. . The third period ended off with a score of 23-3 with the Eagles leading the game.
The fourth and last period started off with a free shot point scored by Jaguar Giuliana Varalta. With Giuliana’s sister, a starter for the Jaguar varsity, and her father shouting encouraging words to her in Portuguese, offering last minute tips on shooting, there was no way she could have missed that shot.
Nevertheless, the Christian Learning Eagles scored more points in short order before Varalta sank another free throw. The Jaguar best efforts just weren’t enough to stop the Eagles from dominating the court even for a few moments.
Jaguar Alexandra Cadaño, who can normally take the ball the length of the court and score, was getting stripped of the ball at half court by the aggressive Eagle defense. .Varalta, who also plays varsity and scores, could not find a way to score from the field, and was held to three free throws. The only Jaguar field goals – one in each half – were scored by Naira Rodriguez and sixth grader Isabella Peña.
Eagles’ Ordonez of the Eagles, by contrast, dribbled past several Jaguar girls and performed an impeccable lay-up as if she were dancing ballet on the court, and then, moments later, swished home a short set shot.
The game ended with the Eagles scoring a victory of 29-8 over the Jaguars. The win finished an undefeated 6-0 season for the Eagles. The Jaguars finished second with a 4-2 record.
(Lucia Landivar is co-managing editor of the website for Cooperative, where she is a junior.)
Griffins thrash winless Knights, 58-6
The SCIS Griffins showed no mercy against the Cambridge Knights on Tuesday, beating them by over 50 points and showing that they have not given up despite being in third place in the league.
In the first half alone, the Griffins managed to gain a 30-0 lead. The Cambridge Knights could not defend against Griffins Montserrat Hernandez and Maria Zelada, who combined for almost twenty points. But these two players were not the only Griffins to make a difference. In fact, eight different players scored points for the Griffins.
The Knights had considerable difficulty, failing to score at all until the third quarter, in which they scored all six of their points. Sol Burgos scored the first two, and Barbara Black scored the other four. However, the Griffins were fierce in the fourth quarter, outscoring their opponents 16-0.
This performance could boost the morale of the Griffins as they head into the semifinals to face the 2nd place Jaguars, and while the Knights' playoff prospects do not look very promising, there are always room for upsets and underdog stories in this league.
In the first half alone, the Griffins managed to gain a 30-0 lead. The Cambridge Knights could not defend against Griffins Montserrat Hernandez and Maria Zelada, who combined for almost twenty points. But these two players were not the only Griffins to make a difference. In fact, eight different players scored points for the Griffins.
The Knights had considerable difficulty, failing to score at all until the third quarter, in which they scored all six of their points. Sol Burgos scored the first two, and Barbara Black scored the other four. However, the Griffins were fierce in the fourth quarter, outscoring their opponents 16-0.
This performance could boost the morale of the Griffins as they head into the semifinals to face the 2nd place Jaguars, and while the Knights' playoff prospects do not look very promising, there are always room for upsets and underdog stories in this league.
