Rebuilding Brea Is Living on the Edge

Brea Olinda has won 188 consecutive league games, a state record and believed to be a national record. But twice this season, the Ladycats trailed in the final minute, only to pull out Century League victories.

For the first time in a long time -- the streak has spanned parts of 19 seasons -- Brea had displayed vulnerability.

“In the past when Brea has had a rebuilding year, our talent was deep enough to weather the storm and we’d classically reload instead of rebuild,” said Jeff Sink, in his 11th season as coach. “This year, we’re rebuilding. Right now, we’re still prone to turnovers and making mistakes that young teams make.”

Brea lost three of its first five games, but lost more recently to Lynwood by six points and to San Clemente by seven. The Ladycats defeated Rancho Cucamonga Los Osos, 69-42, on Saturday and assumed the Grizzlies’ No. 25 position in The Times’ rankings.

Jeanette Pohlen, a 6-foot sophomore forward, has played point guard out of necessity but still averages a team-high 14.4 points.

Brea’s prospects for success in the Southern Section Division II-A playoffs -- and short-term success in getting through the remaining five games in the Century League undefeated -- are riding on three senior starters: guard Crystal Wilson and forwards Nikki Awaa and Kim Goeggel.

“If those three kids gel and play the way they are capable of, we’re going to have a nice stretch run,” Sink said. “Right now we’re asking our role players and younger kids to be better than they should have to be.”

Brea plays at Villa Park tonight at 5:45 p.m. In their first meeting, the Ladycats trailed by eight points with 1:59 left but won, 38-35.

“Streaks really become the legends and the cornerstone by which you measure future success only after they’re broken,” Sink said.

“The freshmen and sophomores on my team weren’t even born when this started.”

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Hard-working senior point guard Kayla Rutherford, who averaged a team-high 17.4 points and 7.2 rebounds for Westlake Village Oaks Christian, was lost for the season after she tore a knee ligament against Saugus on Jan. 4.

The absence of Rutherford, the lone returning starter for the 2002 Southern Section champions, means the Lions’ new go-to players are freshman point guard Chelsea Carlisle and sophomore Michelle Clark, who average 12 and 15 points, respectively.

“We went from being an old team to a young team,” Coach Don McMaster said. “I don’t know if we can pick up 18 points, but hopefully we can pick up nine points and play better defense.”

The Lions have won five in a row without Rutherford, including a 56-55 come-from-behind Frontier League victory over Ojai Nordhoff. In an early-season nonleague game, with Rutherford, the Lions beat Los Angeles Brentwood, 68-52.

“She scored 38 and we won by 16,” McMaster said. “That’s the unknown. When we go back up against them, hopefully we’ll have figured out how to play at that level.”

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Brittney Butler scored 35 of her team’s 42 points Wednesday in West Los Angeles Baptist’s 42-40 Mulholland League victory over L.A. Wildwood.

“Apparently, she recognizes she has to do the scoring,” Wildwood Coach Paul Manning said.

The team is averaging 30 points. Butler is averaging 23.3.