Kobayashi Calls Shot, Backs It Up

Kelli Kobayashi, Alemany High’s soft-spoken senior guard, has built a reputation as one of the region’s premier three-point shooters.

But even her coach and teammates were stunned when she launched her first bomb from a television studio in the San Fernando Valley hours before her girls’ basketball team took the court against Mission League rival Harvard-Westlake for the Division III Southern Regional championship.

In true Joe Namath form, Kobayashi boldly predicted on live television that the Indians would defeat the Wolverines.

“It gave me chills,” said Alemany Coach Melissa Hearlihy, who was beside Kobayashi during the cable television interview.

Kobayashi went out and scored eight points in the fourth quarter to put the regional title on ice.

The effort helped Alemany survive a poor shooting night and beat the Wolverines, 50-45, for the regional championship Saturday night at the Pyramid in Long Beach.

“I was so glad,” freshman Karina Siam said of the prediction.

“I knew we were going to win when I heard her say that.”

Thus inspired, Siam scored 19 points.

This may not be Alemany’s most talented team, but it has been its most gullible.

“I think if I told them they could fly, they would believe me and jump off a cliff,” Hearlihy said.

The Indians will indeed fly in the near future, but they will use conventional means--an airplane.

They’ll need it to get to Sacramento for the state championship game next weekend.

It will be Alemany’s first trip to the state final.

Alemany, one of the Valley-Ventura area’s proudest programs, lost regional finals in 1992 and ’94.

Those teams had more size. More college prospects. Less heart.

“This team has brought the program to a whole new level,” said Hearlihy, who has won 299 games in 13 seasons at Alemany.

The Indians will meet Sacred Heart Cathedral Prep of San Francisco, a 56-50 winner over Lafayette Acalanes in the Northern Regional Saturday night.

The title game will be next Saturday at 1:15 p.m. at Arco Arena.

“I wish both of us could go to Sacramento,” Kobayashi said, referring to rival Harvard-Westlake. “We’ll represent the Valley the best we can.”

Harvard-Westlake (28-6) and Alemany (27-6) split two regular-season meetings and shared the league title each of the past two seasons.

“There’s no other team I’d rather see going if it wasn’t us,” Wolverine senior Corrie Roberts said.

Alemany made just 17 of 88 shots (19%), while Harvard-Westlake connected on only 19 of 79 (24%).

“It was an ugly game and it hurts,” said Wolverine guard Brooke Porter, whose team led, 23-21, at halftime.

Porter scored 12 points for Harvard-Westlake and L’Tanya Robnett added 10.

Kobayashi scored 14 points and Kate Beckler had 14 points, 16 rebounds and five steals.

“You figure that if you hold those two under 15, you’re in pretty good shape,” Wolverine Coach Brian Taylor said.

But Harvard-Westlake didn’t count on the cool nerves of Siam, who tied a regional record by making nine of 10 free throws, including six of six in the second half.

“It seems like every game we’ve needed Karina to step up, she has,” Hearlihy said.