‘Moral Victory’ Not Enough for Brea-Olinda’s Anton

The steady stream of well-wishers at the Brea-Olinda bench slowed temporarily, giving Jody Anton a moment to herself.

Gracious in defeat to all who stopped by to offer congratulations after the Ladycats’ 48-42 loss to Palos Verdes Peninsula Saturday night, Anton used the solo second to stand up and assess the situation. And in that moment, Brea’s “moral victory” against the nation’s top-ranked high school girls’ basketball team wasn’t enough.

Anton, who led Brea with 20 points and 10 rebounds, quickly stomped a shoeless foot and slapped her hands together in frustration. The Ladycats, Orange County’s No. 1 team, had come close, but moral victories don’t show up on the scoreboard.

“It hurts,” Anton said. “We played as hard as we could, and that’s what counts, but it still hurts.”

Each time Peninsula, No. 1 in the USA Today poll, opened a lead, Anton responded. In the first quarter, the 6-foot senior forward sparked Brea with a three-pointer after Peninsula took a 6-0 lead.

Eight second-quarter points, including another three-pointer, had the Ladycats within two, 25-23, at halftime. Four more in a low-scoring third quarter (6-5, Brea) brought the Ladycats within one, 30-29, going into the fourth.

“Jody’s a big-game player,” Brea Coach Mark Trakh said. “I’ve come to expect those kinds of performances from her.”

But in the fourth quarter, Peninsula did not let Anton have the chance to win the game for the Ladycats. The Panthers (15-0) extended their defense, chasing Anton across the court, double-teaming her, denying her the ball.

“We knew they were going to go to her, so we had to make the adjustment with our defense,” Peninsula Coach Wendell Yoshida said. “I didn’t want her to have any open shots, but Jody’s hard to defend. It was a struggle.”

Anton’s final points of the game came with three minutes 35 seconds remaining, when she made two free throws to tie the score, 36-36. But Peninsula scored three baskets inside and made six clutch free throws to earn the victory.

“I was praying I could get open for another three-pointer, but it didn’t work out,” Anton said. “It says a lot for our program to be in position to win against a team like that. We scared them.”

Yoshida agreed. “A team with Jody Anton should scare people,” he said.