Estancia’s Hot Hand in Field Leaves Rosary in the Cold

The words slipped out, easier said than done, as Estancia Coach Russ Davis sat on the bench before his team’s game against Rosary.

“Whoever shoots the ball best,” he said, “will win.”

And then third-seeded Estancia shot 57% from the field in a 64-52 victory over the visiting Royals Saturday in the first round of the Southern Section Division III-A girls’ basketball playoffs.

The Eagles next play San Dimas at a site to be determined.

Estancia’s performance was so good, it didn’t matter that Jessica Waltz (averaging 14.5 points) scored only three, that the Eagles committed 18 turnovers, or that a lot of people thought Estancia would get its comeuppance after a season of playing softies.

But Rosary Coach Rich Yoon said Estancia was as good as its 21-5 record.

“I think they can play with anybody,” said Yoon, whose team (13-13) had 10 losses to teams with a combined record of 171-35, including Woodbridge, Mater Dei and Fountain Valley. “Waltz is probably one of the better point guards I’ve seen.

“One of our main things was to stop Waltz, but she did a lot of things that don’t show up in the scorebook.”

As important as controlling the game’s tempo, she didn’t take shots away from her red-hot teammates. She shot only twice.

Vivi Rodriguez, averaging about nine points, scored 24 on a 10-for-15 performance. Katie Stapleton scored eight on a four-for-four night. Megan McCartin scored seven on a three-for-four effort.

In all, Estancia made 25 of 44 shots, including 10 of 13 in the crucial third quarter, as the Eagles blew the game open.

Rosary overcame a 10-point, second-quarter deficit and pulled to 27-25 within 39 seconds of the third quarter. But Sarah Cody was whistled for two fouls in a 15-second span--the second (her fourth) not surprisingly brought Yoon out of his seat, and he was whistled for a technical.

Over the next 62 seconds, Estancia went on a 7-0 run, capped by McCartin’s put-back and her steal and layup.

Waltz, with four fouls, went to the bench and Rosary made one more run, pulling to 34-31. But Rodriguez answered with a three-pointer, and Stapleton and McCartin hit with 15-footers. The Eagles made six of their last seven shots and stretched the lead to 14.

In other Division III-A games:

Azusa 52, Corona del Mar 37--Lindsay Warmington scored 13 for Corona del Mar (17-9). Jennifer Gardner added 10 points.

Costa Mesa 62, Ojai Nordhoff 51--The Mustangs (15-12), an at-large team, upset second-seeded Nordhoff in Ojai.