Flintridge Prep girls’ basketball takes giant step toward another league crown
LA CAÑADA — One of the chief goals for the Flintridge Prep basketball team is capturing a fourth straight Prep League championship.
In looking to reach that achievement, Flintridge Prep has kept an eye on Chadwick, which is second in league.
The Rebels had an opportunity to distance themselves from the Dolphins when the teams met Tuesday night at Flintridge Prep.
Backed by another excellent effort from Taylor Yoshida, the Rebels were able to move a step closer to another league title.
Yoshida finished with a game-high 20 points to power Flintridge Prep to a 46-29 victory.
Flintridge Prep (20-2, 9-0 in league) completed the two-game season sweep against Chadwick (12-5, 6-2). The Rebels, ranked second in CIF Southern Section Division III-A after winning the Division V-A championship last season, recorded a 66-42 win against Chadwick on Jan. 13.
“It gave us a lot of motivation going up against Chadwick because they are right behind us,” said Yoshida, who had nine first-quarter points to help Flintridge Prep win its 19th league contest in a row. “We were hyped up for the game and we played well on defense.
“We definitely want to win league again and you are always trying to get better. We believe in ourselves.”
The Rebels have won 10 league championships since the start of the 2001-02 season. They appear on the verge of seeing that number increase.
Yoshida made a three-pointer from the right side to give the Rebels a 6-4 lead midway through the first quarter. She also displayed some grit on defense in the second quarter, picking up a steal and converting it into a basket to make it 20-10 with 2:54 to play.
Flintridge Prep limited Chadwick, second in Division V-A behind Bellarmine-Jefferson, to two second-quarter points.
“We made some adjustments in the second quarter and we did a good job at keeping some of their top players at bay,” said Flintridge Prep co-Coach Kevin Kiyomura, who shares the coaching chores with Jayme Chan. “We were able to settle into our game and we made some shots in the second quarter and again in the third quarter to open it up a little more.
“Winning the league title is one of the first goals that we want to accomplish. You know you are going to get good efforts from the other teams in our league. We also know we still can get better.”
The Rebels received 10 points and six rebounds from Kaitlyn Chen and nine points and three steals from Renae Tamura. Chen scored on a floating shot to extend Flintridge Prep’s lead to 31-19 with 40 seconds left in the third quarter.
Chadwick got 14 points and six rebounds from Hope Arnett and nine points and 10 rebounds from Madison Benson.
