GIRLS’ BASKETBALL 1994-1995: SEA VIEW LEAGUE : On Court, Burgess Strikes Right Note : Basketball: Disappointments along the way help to motivate Woodbridge standout, who’s also an accomplished singer.

At first, Angela Burgess just wanted to sing.

Burgess, a senior at Woodbridge, has been singing since she was 2 years old. As the daughter of a singing coach, she had ample opportunities to do so--at home, in musicals, at church or wherever anyone would listen.

But when Burgess reached the end of eighth grade, she and her parents realized something: Angela was taller than almost all of her classmates.

So she and her father, Ken, decided to give basketball a try. Ken made her a deal: You play, and I’ll coach the team.

But there was a catch: There were no leagues for girls in the area, so Angela instead played in a boys’ league in Irvine.

She was the only girl in the league.

“I really didn’t want to do it, because it was embarrassing,” Burgess said. “I spent half the game worrying about what I looked like, but once I got into it, I got the respect of the guys--they saw I could actually play.”

And it didn’t take long for Burgess to adjust. She scored in double figures her fourth game and had 15 points and 12 rebounds her fifth game.

“I started getting used to playing around the fourth game, and I took it from there,” she said. “I saw I could do this. I’m thinking, ‘This isn’t very hard.’ ”

Basketball has come pretty easy for Burgess since then, too. She averaged 13.3 points and 12.4 rebounds last year, when she was a key member of Woodbridge’s team that made it to the State Division II finals.

The Warriors finished 32-1 last season, their only loss a 71-38 thumping by Sacramento El Camino in the State final. It weighed heavily on Burgess.

“To experience a loss that way was heartbreaking; it was really hard,” she said. “It’s pretty harsh losing one game and having it be your last, and losing that bad.

“I was one of the more depressed ones after the game. I had played three years with Jamie (Oenning, Woodbridge’s leading scorer), and ending it that way for her was awful for me.”

Burgess was held to nine points and seven rebounds, and could not keep up with El Camino’s Emily Hart, who had 15 points, 13 rebounds and six blocked shots.

But that game provided Burgess the motivation to work hard in the off-season, particularly in the weight room. As a result, Burgess, already considered one of the county’s strongest players, is even stronger.

“At the beginning of the summer I started squatting 125 pounds,” she said. “But the last time we lifted (maximum weight), I set a school girls’ record of 300 pounds. It was more than some of our football players could do.

“My goal is to lead the county in rebounding, so that’s why I worked hard on lifting.”

Burgess said it’s not a given the Warriors will return to the State final, but with four returning starters . . .

“I guess the ones who played before kind of expect to get there, since we got there last season,” she said. “As long as we play each game and win each game, I don’t see why not.”

“We really want to get there. I don’t want to leave without winning (a section title) this year, but if we win State, it would be the best senior year anybody could have.”

Burgess said she hopes to play basketball and compete in track and field (shotput and discus) in college.

Several schools are recruiting her, but Burgess, who will make her decision during the late signing period, is leaning toward Brigham Young.

Burgess said she could even focus on her two favorite pastimes in college. She may major in musical theater.

1993-94 / IN REVIEW

Standings

League Overall School W L W L Woodbridge 14 0 32 1 Newport Harbor 12 2 24 8 Tustin 9 5 17 9 University 7 7 13 9 Corona del Mar 5 9 11 13 Santa Margarita 5 9 7 15 Irvine 4 10 10 14 Saddleback 0 14 4 18

Highlights

Woodbridge picked a bad time to lose its only game of the year--the State Division II final. The Warriors lost to Sacramento El Camino, 71-38, shooting 24.2% (16 for 66) from the field. Woodbridge couldn’t find much competition in the Southern California playoffs, recording easy victories over Bakersfield East, 71-41, and San Bernardino, 84-63, before edging past Alemany, 46-41, in the regional final. It found the going tougher in the Southern Section playoffs. The Warriors were taken to overtime in the quarterfinals by Oxnard Rio Mesa before they won, 49-44. They won the section title with a 59-47 victory over Hemet. Of Newport Harbor’s eight losses, four came against teams that qualified for a State final. The Sailors lost twice each to Woodbridge and Brea-Olinda. Brea defeated Newport Harbor, 70-40, in the Southern Section Division III-AA final, and 67-39 in the regional final. Newport Harbor’s run through the playoffs was kept alive by Gina Heads. Irvine’s appearance in the Division I-A playoffs was short-lived. The Vaqueros lost to Channel Islands, 48-36, in the first round. University also fell in the first round, 62-61, to Corona. . . . Newport Harbor’s Genevieve Evarts and Jamie Oenning of Woodbridge shared league player of the year honors. Jennifer Stanley of University led the league in scoring with a 17.5 average. Rosalie Kane of Corona del Mar was the league’s top rebounder, at 14.3.