Three local scholastic girls basketball teams are dreaming of CIF gold this winter as they start up another season on the hard courts.
At The Bishop’s School, head coach Marlon Wells and the Lady Knights finished 21-10 last winter, good for third place in the Coastal League. Bishop’s reached the CIF Division IV semifinals.
Key players this season look to include junior Gizelle Studevent, senior Michelle Brunker and junior Ingo Orekhova.
“We should improve on last season’s record,” Wells noted. “We are young and deeper than last year also.”
Bishop’s opens play in the Matador Classic today, Nov. 29.
At La Jolla Country Day School, head coach Terri Bamford and the Lady Torreys are coming off seven consecutive Coastal League and CIF championships. Last year’s squad finished 24-8.
The Lady Torreys return seven players, including four starters and three rotation players. Key players this season will include seniors Janae Fulcher, Dominique Conners and Chelsea Burns; sophomore Ariana Elegado and newcomer Gillian Howard.
One of the players who has worked really hard to make the team is sophomore Alexis Samuels, who was diagnosed with ocular myasthenia at the age of 4.
Samuels may not be able to see the ball being passed to her as well as others, but that hasn’t stopped her. She has limited peripheral vision from her condition, but few would recognize that on the court. With her hard work, dedication and commitment, Samuels has earned a varsity spot on the team.
According to Bamford, LJCD will look to run an up-tempo offense and hard-nosed full-court defense this year.
“This team has the ability to control the tempo of the game,” Bamford said. “Offensively, the team is multidimensional and has the ability to shoot threes, dominate in the post and attack the basket.”
The Lady Torreys will open up their schedule in the sixth annual Sweet Sixteen Invitational Basketball Tournament at La Jolla Country Day School.
The tournament runs through Saturday, Dec. 1 at LJCD, 9490 Genesee Ave., and features teams from Arizona, Colorado, Northern California and Los Angeles as well as San Diego.
Tickets are $18 for a four-day pass or $5 per day. For game times, scores and match-ups, visit www.ljcds.org/page.cfm?p=995.
The Lady Torreys will then compete at the Troy Tournament and the Nike Tournament of Champions. LJCD has also scheduled single games with San Clemente and Bishop Gorman of Las Vegas.
At La Jolla High, head coach Ty Eveleth and the Lady Vikings will look to rebound from last season’s 11-12 record (2-7 Western League). La Jolla fell to Kearny in the first round of the CIFs.
This season’s team features six returnees. Key players look to be seniors Olivia Waldon, Sandra Harpster and Ashley Fu, along with key newcomers such as freshman guard Valerie Nawahine and sophomore guard Bianca Mitchell.
“We have the nucleus of a very competitive team this year,” Eveleth remarked. “I think if we work hard, we have the potential to have a very successful season.
“The coaches are extremely excited about this group of players. A strong preseason schedule should prepare us for the challenges to be faced in Western League play.”
La Jolla was scheduled to open its season versus Coronado on Wednesday evening, Nov. 28, as the Village News was going to press.