THE PREPS : Girls’ Division II Basketball Regional : Woodbridge Gets to Take On Someone Its Own Size

The Woodbridge High School girls’ basketball team finds itself in the Southern California Division II regional playoffs matched against a team of similar size, or lack thereof. Woodbridge travels to Sanger High--about 20 miles outside of Fresno--for a first-round game tonight at 7:30.

Sanger (25-6) won the Central Section 2-A championship with a 46-42 victory over Mt. Whitney of Visalia last Thursday.

Sanger is third-seeded. Woodbridge is sixth-seeded. The winner plays the Escondido San Pasqual-La Mesa Helix winner in the semifinal round Thursday.

Woodbridge (25-6) doesn’t have a player taller than 5-foot 9-inch Angie Hubner, a junior center. Sanger doesn’t have much more height.

Renee Schneider, a 5-10 senior center, leads the team in scoring with a 15.5-point average. Kari Vance, a 5-10 senior forward, adds 12.5 points a game.

Woodbridge was able to overcome its lack of height in the playoffs. But not against Chino Friday night, when Woodbridge lost the Southern Section 2-A title game, 47-41.

In the championship game, the Warriors couldn’t handle Felicia Franke, the Cowboys’ 6-0 junior center. Franke had 18 points and gave Woodbridge fits inside.

Woodbridge’s fast-breaking offense and swarming pressure defense led to victories over taller opponents in the quarterfinals and semifinals.

Woodbridge features a balanced scoring attack. Its top scorer is Kathy Millat, a 5-8 senior forward who averages 16.7 points, 9 rebounds and 5 steals. Lisa Wehren, the Warriors’ other forward, is only 5-7.

The guards are Randee Mahony, a 5-6 senior, and Leslie Rathbun, a 5-6 sophomore. Mahony is the Warriors’ second-leading scorer, averaging 11.4 a game.

“We’re all a threat,” Hubner, who averages 7 points a game, said last week. “There’s no one out there who can’t score or play defense.

“We’re a really balanced team. If one of us has a bad game, the others can pick up the slack.”