Girls’ Roundup : Savanna Puts Pressure on Trabuco Hills for Victory in 3-A

Karena Lee and Michelle Drew led balanced attack with 10 points each as Savanna High School defeated Trabuco Hills, 41-29, in a first-round Southern Section 3-A playoff victory Thursday at Savanna.

Savanna (18-8), which will play Covina in second-round play Saturday, established its domination early as it used a quick 2-3 zone to build a 14-4 lead after one quarter. Trabuco Hills (14-9), which made just three of its 29 first-half shots, was held to two second-quarter points as the Rebels extended their lead to 22-6.

Trabuco Hills narrowed the lead to 22-13, as Joelle Castro scored four points and DeDe Sampson added three in the first three minutes of the third quarter. That, however, was close as Trabuco Hills would get as the Rebels outscored the Mustangs, 7-4, in the final three minutes to take a 29-17 lead after three quarters.

Sampson, who scored four of her team’s first-half points, finished the game with 16 points to lead both teams.

“That was called first-game jitters,” Trabuco Hills Coach Paul Beidler said of his team’s slow start. “They were nervous and I could tell. Our defense was fine but our offense just couldn’t get going. At halftime, we went into the offense we use against man-to-man defenses to spread out their zone, and we were able to cut their lead.”

Trabuco Hills also was slowed by the absence of starting forward Marta Bickert, who has been sidelined since she sprained an ankle during practice before a Feb. 2 game against Laguna Beach.

Said Savanna Coach Brad Pickler, whose team was ranked seventh in the 3-A: “I didn’t expect (Trabuco Hills) to quit, but our girls just let down after we got that big halftime lead and got a little tired. After I called a time out (following the Mustangs’ early-third quarter spurt), we regrouped and we were able to get things back together again.”

Carrie Frederick, whose aggressive defense forced several first-half Trabuco Hills turnovers, finished with eight points and seven rebounds, while Jackie Boxley had seven points and five assists. Lisa Rios contributed six points and 11 rebounds for Savanna.

“We don’t have a girl who averages more than 10 points, but we play very well as a team and we have a lot of people who contribute consistently,” Pickler said.

In other 3-A games:

Foothill 49, Brawley 44--Tanya Foxe scored 28 points and had 11 rebounds to lead Foothill at home. Foothill (16-9) outscored Brawley, 17-8, in the second quarter, then held on. Kristy Walker made both ends on a one-and-one free-throw situation with 7 seconds to play to ensure the victory.

Foothill advances to play La Quinta Saturday at a site to be determined today.

Fullerton 54, Walnut 52--Fullerton led by seven with 1 1/2 minutes left and held on. Fullerton led, 30-27, at the half and outscored Walnut, 11-2, in the third quarter. Sommer McLane had 17 points and Jenny Comstock had 13 for Fullerton (16-7). Walnut ends, 10-14.

In a 4-AA game:

Downey 64, San Clemente 49--Heidi Crammer scored 19 points and had 11 rebounds to pace host Downey (19-6), an at-large team from the San Gabrial Valley League. Amanda Valentino scored 17 points for San Clemente (13-12), an at-large team from the South Coast League. Laura Farrell had a team-high 12 rebounds for San Clemente.

Downey advances to play Tustin, the Sea View League champions, Saturday.

In 4-A games:

Cypress 59, Glenn 35--Erika Manning scored 20 points and had 14 rebounds to lead host Cypress (19-7) in the opening round. Stacie Kosaka had eight points, 12 rebounds and seven assists and Sheryl Murakoshi had 17 points for Cypress. Frances Oda had eight assists for Cypress, which finished second in the Empire League behind Katella.

Cypress put the game way early, leading, 21-3, at the end of the first quarter and, 35-11, at the half. Glenn outscored Cypress, 16-8, in the third quarter to close to, 43-27, but got no closer.

Rancho Alamitos 64, South Hills 50--Jenny Newsome scored 22 points, including 16 in the first half, as host Rancho Alamitos (20-3) opened a 21-12 lead. Newsome fouled out midway in the fourth quarter. Shellie Tsuji had 14 points and Christy Kalbhenn had 11 points and nine assists for Rancho Alamitos. Shannon Morgan had 20 rebounds for Rancho Alamitos.

In 2-AA:

Whittier Christian 44, Mayfair 33--Cherilyn Culp scored 21 points to pace host Whittier Christian (15-7), which advances to play Banning Saturday.

In 2-A games:

Regina Caeli 41, Orange Lutheran 35--Regina Caeli outscored Orange Lutheran, 8-2, in the fourth quarter to break a 33-33 tie at Regina Caeli. Neysa Dunning, who scored 27 points, had five of the Cherubs’ points in the final quarter. Center Devon Koster led Orange Lutheran (12-9) with 15 points and 16 rebounds.