St. Bernard Figures to Battle for CIF Crown : Girls Basketball: Vikings top Westside preseason poll. Venice, Notre Dame Academy and Brentwood also get high ratings.

Around the campus at St. Bernard High School in Playa Del Rey, girls’ basketball is a hot topic.

Last season, the Vikings finished with a 23-4 record and advanced into the semifinals of the Southern Section III-A Division playoffs. Coach Lori Pawinski had three players gain All-Division III honors last season and all three return for the 1992-93 season as St. Bernard begins as The Times’ top-ranked Westside team.

“Our program is doing real well right now, and this year’s team is loaded,” said Pawinski, who is in her fifth season at St. Bernard. “We were ranked 13th in the state in Cal-Hi’s preseason poll, and that has put a lot of pressure on the kids.”

Leading the way for the Vikings will be two returning Division III selections in San Jose State-bound guard Joi Turner, who averaged 13 points per game last season, and point guard Kelly Shimabukuro, who averaged 12 points and five assists in 1991-92.

They will be joined by juniors Olympia Scott and Marte Alexander. Scott, a 6-foot-2 forward, was an All-Division III selection after averaging 12 points per game last season. Alexander, a 6-4 center, may be the Vikings’ most improved player.

The other players Pawinski will count on will be LeTisha Ducree, a 5-10 forward; Nyambo Anuluoha, a 5-11 forward, and Olanike Farodolu, a 5-9 guard.

“We have tremendous size and good quickness,” Pawinski said. “Also, our guards are very athletic. We will be an up-tempo team.”

The Vikings will get a chance to see how good they are early on when they play in the Brea-Olinda Tournament, where they could have a showdown with Brea-Olinda, the defending State Division III champion, next week.

Following is a list of the remaining top-10 area teams:

NO. 2 VENICE

Coach Debbie Dreier will not have any dominating players on this season’s team, but she will have balance.

The Gondoliers will have seven seniors on the 1992-93 team, but undergraduates Carly Furuno and Yuriko Jung are expected to be the team’s leaders.

Furuno, a junior, averaged 12 points per games last season, while Jung, a sophomore, averaged 16 points a game in 1991-92.

Inside, Venice will rely on Jennifer Douglas and Vickie Mackenzie, with Jill Hankawa and Jennifer Green at forwards.

“I think that we will do well in our conference,” Dreier said. “We will be real challengers in our conference.”

Last season, Venice finished 16-6.

3. NOTRE DAME ACADEMY

If Coach Ed Aronin was excited about the start of this season, it was because of Teryn Reynolds.

Reynolds is a 5-6 freshman who caught the attention of college recruiters this past summer.

“It is so hard to try to describe her,” Aronin said about his young phenom. “She is so poised and talented. She can do it all.”

Reynolds is so good that she moved returning All-Sunshine League selection Veronica Guzman from point guard to shooting guard. They will team up to give the Regals a dominant backcourt.

With Terri Ameri, a 5-8 senior, being their biggest player, Notre Dame will try to be a fast-break team this fall.

“Because we don’t have size, we will try to press teams all over the floor,” Aronin said. “We should be very strong this year if we can do it.”

Notre Dame finished 17-2 last season and reached the Southern Section IV-AA Division quarterfinals.

4. BRENTWOOD

In the playoffs last season, the Eagles were upset in the first round after an outstanding regular season. Coach Alan Mindell expects Brentwood to be even better in 1992-93.

“We have a lot of good players returning, so we should have decent balance,” Mindell said.

Brentwood has three starters back from last season’s 17-7 team, along with Lanita Foley, a starter two seasons ago who did not play in 1991-92.

Ebony Loeb, a senior forward, will be the Eagles’ top player, with Erin Hawkins, a 5-8 center, controlling the inside.

5. CULVER CITY

All eyes will be on Jenny Nakanishi this season. After all, all the 5-6 senior guard did last season was finish fourth in the Southern Section in scoring.

Nakanishi, who was a first team Southern Section Division III selection in 1991-92, averaged 25 points a game in leading Culver City to a 16-10 record last season, in which the Centaurs reached the III-AA Division quarterfinals.

6. UNIVERSITY

The Warriors will not have any dominating players this season like they had last year with Alana Collins, 5-11, who averaged 23.2 points per game and was The Times Player of the Year. Instead, Coach Patricia Pieser will count on Sandy Ginoza, a 5-8 junior center, and Arumi Quinnones, a senior point guard.

“It’s hard to know what the other teams will have, but I think that we will be contenders,” Pieser said.

7. FAIRFAX

After being an easy test for teams in recent years, the Lions will surprise some teams in 1992-93.

Second-year Coach Judi Edwards will feature Christina Jaust, a 5-10 senior, and Celia Mann, a 5-11 junior. Kiki Barksdale is also expected to play a key role for the Lions.

8. CROSSROADS

Sherrise Smith is a 5-4 sophomore point guard who Coach Larry Weiner hopes will lead the Roadrunners to the Delphic League title.

Last season, Crossroads finished with a 13-8 record and Weiner expects the Roadrunners to be better this season with junior Tamiko Hairston and sophomore Erin Irving returning.

“We’re an improving team that should have more team speed with the addition of Smith,” Weiner said. “She’s a very talented player who will help us a lot.”

9. MARLBOROUGH

The Mustangs should be tough after finishing 10-6 last season. Coach John Ferrante is expected to lead Marlborough in a close battle with Notre Dame Academy for the Sunshine League title.

10. SANTA MONICA

Coach Art Jackson will rely on 5-8 Elizabeth Young and 5-5 Maryann Gohari to help the Vikings improve from last season’s 11-10 team.