Team Approach Pays Off for Mater Dei

Mater Dei won the girls’ basketball State title last year . . . then had a postgame quarrel in the locker room.

A turbulent ride with starry-eyed players made for one long headache for players and coaches on the road to success, ending in a shouting match and tears.

That team--though it had four players with Division I talent--is the antithesis of this year’s. The flash and dash of Times’ all-county players Melody Peterson and Rhonda Gondringer is gone. So are point guard Allison Luckey and center Margaret Hollis.

“It was kind of frustrating last year, our chemistry wasn’t as great [as this year],” Mater Dei guard Lori Hurlbut said. “There were some attitudes on the team and it got in the way of the team goal, which was to play together. Everything was team, team, team. And it wasn’t that way. I don’t think we trusted each other as much last year. And we didn’t have to. The talent made up for that.

“This year, we know we have to rely on everybody else and it has to be a team game.”

Coach Mary Hauser filled the sizable shoes of Peterson (who averaged 17.3 points) and Gondringer (16.3) with denim and hard hats. Lots of hard hats.

Mater Dei has the deepest bench this side of Brea Olinda’s and steadily rotates players into the lineup. Not everyone gets as many minutes as they would like, but most everyone gets quality minutes. There’s a difference.

“I think we filled their shoes basically by not focusing on two individuals, but focusing on all five individuals and their importance,” said Hauser, whose four-year record at Mater Dei is 100-15. “We have a group of kids who are good players but not great players. But all they want to do is play 110% and will do anything they can to win.

“This team is the most enjoyable group of kids I’ve ever coached in my life.”

The Monarchs (18-6) go into the Southern Section Division I-A playoffs Saturday against Aliso Niguel (14-10) as the No. 4-seeded team and owner of a state championship title that has been all but forgotten by coaches and onlookers. That happens when a team goes 82-6 the previous three seasons and coaches are almost starting from scratch.

Only one starter remains from last season--senior Charline Mendoza, a spunky 5-5 guard who is the team’s second-leading rebounder (5.7). Only one other player returns with appreciable experience--Hurlbut, a finesse shooter who averaged 15 points (largely from the three-point arc) coming off the bench in the playoffs after averaging less than seven during the regular season. She’s averaging 11.7 points this season, including two three-pointers a game.

But there’s no reason to pity Mater Dei. Although 10 county teams had more victories, only three were ranked higher in the final poll.

“Even though we went 18-6,” Hauser said, “I think we’ve had a successful year.”

The Monarchs defeated the state’s top-ranked team at the time, Brea Olinda. They won 15 of their last 18 games. They won their fourth consecutive South Coast League title despite having two other top 10 teams in their league.

They go into the playoffs without a single state ranking--not even breaking the Southern California top 10.

Mater Dei takes advantage of its greatest strength--depth--by never letting up during its 32 minutes on both ends of the floor.

“[Assistant coach Geri Gainey] and I learned from our high school coach [at Mater Dei], Carolyn Campbell, in the fourth quarter, the team in the best shape is going to win the game,” Hauser said. “When you’re physically tired, you become mentally tired, and that’s when you make mistakes. Fatigue will cause mental breakdowns.”

Mendoza, Hurlbut and junior Mary Neff start in the three-guard, two-forward lineup, and the merry-go-round begins almost immediately with freshman Maile Shimoda, sophomore B.J. Day and junior Cassie Pappas.

“[Mendoza] is as underrated as [Laguna Hills’] Whitney Houser because she does the intangibles,” Hauser said. “She defends the best player and she’s second on the team in rebounds and steals, and she handles the ball. She’s required to do a lot of things that don’t go down statistically.”

Tina Garcia (11.5 points, 8.4 rebounds), a forward/guard who played in Washington last year and will play at Nevada Las Vegas next season, was expected by coaches to blossom after she became familiar with the program. She has emerged as a strong force on and off the court, especially with younger players.

However, the most surprising contributors have been Shimoda and Neff, who hound opposing point guards. Shimoda (4.7 points, 3.2 assists) has been a surprising offensive catalyst as well in a reserve role--especially lately.

So, Mater Dei’s no-names go into the playoffs without the same pressures as last year’s top-seeded team, which makes Hurlbut harken back to something Mendoza said after the 64-61 overtime upset of Brea on Jan. 18.

“I heard Charline say, ‘Anyone who beats Brea has to think that they’re good.’ ” Hurlbut said. “You can’t deny their status in Orange County or the nation. We can look back on that game and say if we can beat them, we can beat anybody.”