Grant Mismatched, Not Flattened

As the coach of the Grant High girls’ basketball teams, I take great umbrage at the contumelies you used Jan.12 to describe our loss to Reseda (“Hightower, Reseda Leave Grant in Shambles” and “Reseda flattened Grant.”)

We were neither “in shambles” nor “flattened.” We were definitely mismatched since the City InterScholastic Athletic Committee, in its infinite wisdom, chose to place 4 3-A teams with 4 4-A teams in the Valley Pac-8 Conference. Whenever there is a 3-A team (such as Grant) that finished 0-10 in its league the previous season pitted against the two-time defending City 3-A championship team, a lopsided score is bound to ensue. Of the 4 Valley Pac-8 Conference games that were played Jan.11, all 4 were won by the 4-A teams, by an average of 43 points!

Since you sent no reporter to the Reseda-Grant game, I know you are unaware of the methods Reseda used to “flatten” us. With Reseda leading the game at halftime, 24-8, I decided to play my substitutes liberally so they would receive some valuable playing experience. Conversely, the Reseda coach, Andi (Andrea) Francola, utilized her starting 5 all 4 quarters. Two of her players saw no action at all, and one player was used sparingly for only 2 quarters. Reseda scored 24 and 28 points in the third and fourth quarters against my second team. I’m sorry, but I was not impressed by that action.

How do you think Reseda managed to score 28 points in the fourth quarter? Coach Francola, in her delight at “flattening” a 3-A team, decided to put a full-court press on us when Reseda was already ahead by 35 points! An admirable move, don’t you think?

Grant must face 2 more 4-A teams until it begins playing league games with other 3-A teams. Must we suffer another week of your disparaging remarks and headlines until then? SUSAN C. SWEET

Grant Coach