Girls’ Basketball: Frankie leads HB to win
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POWAY — Girls’ basketball teams outside of the CIF Southern Section may feel as though they are at a disadvantage in defending the play-making abilities of Frankie Wade-Sanchez.
A team from the Southern Section might respond that there is no such edge.
No scouting report yet produced has been comprehensive enough to bring the Concordia signee’s scoring binge to a halt, and so the show continued at Poway High on Wednesday night.
Wade-Sanchez scored 26 points with 10 rebounds, and Huntington Beach defeated the seventh-seeded Titans, 52-43, in the first round of the CIF Southern California Division II Regionals.
The pain from losing a close CIF-SS Division 1A title game to Torrance Bishop Montgomery did not appear to factor into the play of the 10th-seeded Oilers (24-9).
Wednesday night’s game started out much the same way, though. Once again, the Oilers relied heavily upon their senior leaders, Wade-Sanchez and Kaylyn Nakaji.
Wade-Sanchez notched the first nine points of the game for the Oilers, who led 9-5 after two free throws by the senior forward at the 4:47 mark of the opening period.
“I definitely wanted to come out strong for my teammates and set the energy for everyone,” Wade-Sanchez said. “I think this was definitely a team effort, especially for some of the seniors.”
Indeed, it was a team-wide effort, particularly on the defensive end. Adrienne Dang, Xolani Hodel, and Nakaji produced multiple steals for the Oilers.
Nakaji remained a strong source of secondary scoring for Huntington Beach, scoring 16 points with six rebounds.
Huntington Beach led, 27-17, at halftime.
A 12-1 run to start the third quarter gave Poway (24-7) its first lead since the Titans led, 1-0, on an Erin Brunansky free throw.
Ashley Pyle (11 points, five assists, five rebounds) sparked the rally with four points and three assists in that span. She kicked the ball out to Dana Stewart for a three-pointer that tied the game, 27-27.
Two more free throws by Brunansky established the Titans’ second lead, 29-28, with 2:18 left in the third.
Oilers Coach Russell McClurg said that his team watched its halftime lead evaporate as a result of poor defensive rotations.
“We were flat,” he said. “Defensive errors cost us in that second half.”
Nakaji scored Huntington Beach’s first points from the field in the third on a floater in the paint with 1:57 left in the frame.
A transition basket by Pyle with the clock running out in the period sent the teams into the fourth quarter tied, 33-33.
Wade-Sanchez took charge to start the final frame, scoring five straight points on a layup and a three-pointer.
After Pyle set up Val Tulafono (11 points) to make it a one-possession game, the Oilers got a key basket from a rare source of offense.
As the goalkeeper of the school’s girls’ soccer team, Rachel Harris is more accustomed to stopping scoring plays than starting them, but she drained a critical three-pointer to stretch the lead to 41-35 with 5:40 remaining.
“Our coach wanted me in the corner, and I remember Kaylyn drove,” Harris said. “Coach always says be ready to shoot. I was ready to shoot.
“It was good timing for the shot, but credit to the teammates. They did everything. I hit a shot.”
Harris and Hodel will be living life on the road this week. Their soccer team is also in the Southern California Regionals, and they will make a trip to Fresno Thursday to oppose fourth-seeded Bullard.
As for the basketball team, Huntington Beach draws the No. 2 seed in Mater Dei in the second round on Saturday. The Monarchs blew out Los Angeles Eagle Rock, 75-33.
McClurg has taken pride in being one of Orange County’s most successful public schools. His players are doing the best they can to look at the matchup with Mater Dei as just another game.
“It’s a private school, but it’s just another school,” Harris said. “They’re nothing special. You look at Mater Dei and you think sports. They’re good at everything, but it’s just another school.”
CIF SoCal Division II Regionals
First Round
Huntington Beach 52, Poway 43
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Huntington Beach – 15 - 12 - 6 - 19 – 52
Poway – 13 - 4 - 16 - 10 – 43
HB – Wade-Sanchez 26, Nakaji 16, Harris 5, Dang 3, Hodel 2.
3-pt. goals – Wade-Sanchez 2, Harris 1, Dang 1, Nakaji 1.
Fouled out – None.
Technicals – None.
Pow – Pyle 11, Tulafono 11, Brunansky 10, Williams 8, Stewart 3.
3-pt. goals – Stewart 1.
Fouled out – None.
Technicals – None.
Twitter: @ProfessorTurner
