Village Christian Gets Tough in Hostile Territory, 73-70 : Division IV girls: Crusaders build early lead, then maintain poise in holding off rally by host San Diego Lincoln.

It may not seem ladylike to refer to a bunch of girls as “tough,” but toughness was what it took for Village Christian’s girls’ basketball team to pull off a 73-70 win over San Diego Lincoln in the first round of the Southern Regional Division IV State playoffs Tuesday night.

The Crusaders pounded the ball inside to build an early lead--one that grew to 14 points at the end of three quarters--and were unflustered down the stretch when Lincoln made a belated run.

They also were undeterred despite the presence of a screaming gym full of Lady Hornet fans in a place called “The Hive.”

“There’s no question I was proud of our ballclub,” said Village Christian Coach John Domke, whose team improved to 25-2.

“We knew that (Lincoln) would be very aggressive, and for the most part we handled that. Then we kept our poise and made some big plays at the end.”

The lead was a rather cozy 57-43 after three quarters, but the Crusaders were hardly home free.

Lincoln still had guard Shondel Robinson. Robinson, who poured in a game-high 35 points, led a quickly paced 18-8 run that shortened Village Christian’s lead to 65-61 with 2:54 remaining.

But the Crusaders reasserted themselves behind sophomore guard Lindy James (26 points, 14 rebounds), who drove for a basket, made a steal at the other end, and then a free throw to restore the lead to seven.

Next up, a semifinal matchup Thursday night against top-seeded Playa del Rey St. Bernard.

As one might expect, another tough one.