PREP ROUNDUP : Marina’s 15-0 Fourth-Quarter Run Helps to Keep Edison at Bay

Center Cherokee Parks scored 28 points to lead Marina High School past Edison, 60-52, Saturday night at Marina, and keep the Vikings in first place in the Sunset League basketball race.

Marina (15-8 overall, 7-1 in league play), the ninth-ranked team in Orange County, used a 15-0 run in the fourth quarter to put away the sixth-ranked Chargers (16-7, 5-3).

A field goal by Brandon Jessie (13 points) after a missed free throw gave Edison a 42-40 lead with 6:35 to play. But that’s when the Vikings went on their scoring spree, holding Edison scoreless for five minutes.

Dan Lovelady’s three-pointer with 1:34 left ended Marina’s run, but it only cut the lead to 55-45.

“I don’t know what happened,” Edison Coach Jon Borchert said. “I thought we got good shots in the fourth quarter, we just didn’t make them.”

The 6-foot-11 Parks made plenty of shots, sinking nine of 12 from the field and 10 of 11 at the free throw line. Edison’s 6-foot-10 Bill Martineau had 16 points but made only eight of 18 from the field.

Travis Boyd added 14 points and Sean Haselrig 12 for the Vikings, who shot 61% from the field in the second half and made 18 of 22 foul shots (82%) for the game.

“Cherokee responded to the challenge tonight,” Marina Coach Steve Popovich said. “This game was like a boxing match. Whoever was gonna crack first would lose.”