Girls’ basketball preview: Burroughs, Providence looking for league title repeats
Katia Dabbaghian proved to be a valuable asset for the Providence High girls’ basketball program for four seasons.
The talented guard was a four-time All-CIF Southern Section player, a Liberty League Player of the Year and a multiple-time All-Area honoree who helped the Pioneers to four league titles and enjoy deep playoff runs.
However, with her graduation last spring, Providence is having to deal with life without Dabbaghian, who is now at Glendale Community College.
“You really don’t replace a player like Katia,” Providence Coach Andrew Bencze said. “She just meant so much to our program for four years. She is a unique player and players like that just don’t come along that often.”
The Pioneers aren’t the only team mourning the departure of their star player. Burroughs graduated Davina Del Castillo, last year’s All-Area Girls’ Basketball Player of the Year and the Pacific League Player of the Year, and Burbank lost All-CIF standout Yazzy Sa’Dullah, who is at the University of West Virginia.
Bellarmine-Jefferson is the only team to have its entire lineup back after graduating no seniors from a team that won three games.
BURROUGHS
A year ago, the Indians (30-3) won the league crown for the third straight season, put together a 26-game winning streak and enjoyed their first berth in the CIF Southern Section Division I-A semifinals.
But gone are Castillo (11.6 points, 8.1 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 3.5 steals and 1.3 blocks a game), as well as All-CIF honoree Sienna Brown (8.4 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.1 steals and one block).
Despite the departures, Burroughs returns eight players from last year’s squad.
“Of the eight returners, the seniors have had success and they’ve been a part of three league titles,” said Indians Coach Vicky Oganyan, last year’s All-Area Girls’ Basketball Coach of the Year. “And none of those league titles were easy for us. ...So they have been through it and they know what to expect and they have the experience of being in a lot of tough situations.
“We’re hoping that the experience that our returning players have will help carry the rest of the girls who are new.”
Returners who saw their share of playing time last season are seniors Jordan Meltzer, Brooke Radcliff and Abby Ibarra, who are all captains, along with junior Kamryn Cardenaz.
“I don’t necessarily have one best player on this team,” Oganyan said. “Like last year if you asked me who my best player was, I would say Davina. But this year, we don’t have that one player who stands out, but I think that all eight returners can contribute and make up for it.”
Also returning are 6-foot-4 sophomore Marin Grote, juniors Haley Wilson and Jocelyn Rieken and senior Melissa Garcia.
“With our newcomers, nobody really stands out,” Oganyan said. “They all have potential and they all bring their own roles to the team.”
From what she observed during summer league play, Oganyan said she thinks Crescenta Valley should pose the toughest challenge in the Pacific League this season.
PROVIDENCE
With Dabbaghian (14.8, points, 7.1, rebounds, 2.9, steals, 2.8 assists and one block a game) leading the way a year ago, the Pioneers went 22-8 overall and 8-1 in Liberty League play, capturing their sixth straight championship. Providence advanced to the CIF Southern Section Division V-AA quarterfinals, falling to Flintridge Prep.
The Pioneers lost five players to graduation and all saw significant playing time.
“We don’t have any Katias on this team this year, but we do have a group of good players,” said Bencze, who is also the school’s athletic director. “We have done things a little differently this year because Katia’s not here holding down the fort. But I think we’re a better shooting team this year and we could possibly have one of our better teams.
“I know people will be saying ‘Oh, they lost Katia and all these good players, there’s no way they are going to be any good.’ But as coaches we love situations like this. I know this group will find its way and will be successful.”
Shouldering some of the leadership responsibilities will be returner Fabi Jimenez, a senior. She earned All-CIF accolades a season ago, converting 58 three-pointers and was second on the team in scoring (10.3) to go along with 2.3 steals.
“Fabi has always been a good shooter,” Bencze said. “But what she’s really improved on is her defense. You could see during the summer how much she had improved her defense and that is going to make her so much more of a complete player.”
The other returners are seniors Rachel Camonayan and Jasmine Ramirez and junior Christy Hoffman. New players who could contribute are freshman Arian Gordillo, junior Liz Cruz and sophomores Sophia Jimenez and Francesca Maravilla.
In the quest to win the program’s seventh consecutive league title, Bencze expects tough competition.
“I think the league is going to be very even this year and that’s what’s going to make it tough,” Bencze said. “I think we walk in with a little bit of an edge because we’ve won it and that helps us. But league isn’t going to be easy.”
BURBANK
Behind Sa’Dullah, the Bulldogs (18-12) placed fourth in the Pacific League and pulled off an upset in the first round of the Division I-A playoffs against Arroyo Valley last season. Sa’Dullah was tops for Burbank in scoring (18.1) and second in rebounding (6.1). In addition, she averaged 3.9 assists and 3.0 steals a contest to earn All-CIF honors.
“What is difficult to replace with Yazzy is her drive, her passion for the game and her will to win,” said Burbank Coach Bruce Breeden, who added co-athletic director duties to his workload. “She competed in every game and we will miss her leadership.”
Not only did Burbank lose its star player, but also graduated a large group of seniors that contributed last season.
“We are going to be young for sure,” Breeden said. “We only have three returning players from last year and one of them we lost in January with a knee injury. So not only are we young, but we’re experienced, as well. We will have six seniors, but only one played last year.
“But I see a lot of potential with this team. We do have some seniors coming up to varsity and some young players who could help us right away. ...I think the new players have adjusted to varsity pretty well.”
Among the returners are seniors Ani Sarkisyan and Christina Mkrtchyan, who are both captains. Junior Sarah Sarquiz, who was expected to be sidelined until after the first of the year, is on the court practicing after recovering from knee surgery.
“Sarah has been a big surprise for us. She’s been back on the floor for two weeks now and we will ease her back into it,” Breeden said. “We could really use her.”
Seniors Lenneah Pasion and Coleen Shamalian, along with 6-0 junior Emma Kerr and junior Stephanie Grigorian, could be impact players for the Bulldogs. A freshman who could help Burbank is Osanna Tirityan.
“In league I think CV could be good, depending on what guards they have back,” Breeden said. “But Burroughs is always good because they play so darn hard for Vicky. And I think it will be ourselves and Arcadia. I think once league rolls around we should be a lot better.”
BELL-JEFF
The Guards are coming off a season in which they went 3-13 and placed fifth in the six-team Santa Fe League with a 2-8 showing.
Practicing for less than two weeks, Bell-Jeff still hasn’t been able to field its full team just yet. Some of its players have just concluded playing for the school’s volleyball team and a group of four are cross-country runners who are competing in the CIF Southern Section finals Saturday.
“The great part about this team is that I didn’t lose any players from last year because I didn’t have any seniors,” said coach Claudia Villa, who took over the program last season. “Having everybody back is great, but we just have to wait for those other players to come and join the team.
“We also have three transfers who should be able to help us once they are eligible in January after sitting out. With all of that, it looks like we should have a pretty strong team.”
Bell-Jeff should have a balanced lineup with its share of seniors as well as younger players.
“My main focus right now is the team concept, so I really don’t want to single out any particular players at this time,” Villa said. “We are just going to wait and see how we come together as a team when we get all of our players out.
“But I think that we should compete in league and we have a good chance at making it to the playoffs.”
Last season, St. Genevieve (20-6, 9-1) won the Santa Fe League title.
Jeff Tully
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Jeff Tully, jeff.tully@latimes.com
Twitter: @jefftsports