Southern Section Girls’ Basketball : Eagan, Blair Star for Brea-Olinda

The obvious star in Brea-Olinda High School’s victory Saturday was Carrie Eagan.

The junior guard scored 22 points to lead the Wildcats to a 69-51 victory over Esperanza in the CIF 3-A Southern Section quarterfinals of girls’ basketball at Esperanza in front of 800 spectators. Brea-Olinda (23-3) plays Walnut, who beat Fontana, 67-63, Tuesday night in the semifinals.

But Eagan didn’t carry Brea-Olinda by herself. She got some support from was Kristen Blair, a 5-foot 8-inch sophomore who helped contain one of the best players in the county, the Aztecs’ Sharon Warmus.

Warmus scored eight points in the first quarter as the Aztecs opened a 16-12 lead, before Brea-Olinda Coach Mark Trakh inserted Blair to cover Warmus. She frustrated Warmus, who scored only 10 points in the final three quarters to finish with 18.

Blair contributed offensively also, scoring 10 points before fouling out with 3:56 left.

“We had to try something to slow Warmus down,” Trakh said. “She is just one of the best athletics in the county. Blair did a great job, and to get 10 points from her was just a real bonus.”

About the time Warmus was being cooled down, Eagan made her first basket, a 15-foot jump shot with 2:57 left in the second quarter to give the Wildcats a 25-21 lead.

She missed her next two shots but made the next three and forward Char Scheussler scored a basket to close out the first half with Brea-Olinda leading, 32-27.

Eagan scored eight points in the third quarter, and the Aztecs scored only seven points as the Wildcats took control, 49-34.

Scheussler finished with 15 points and sophomore center Susan Tousey scored 10 to pace the Orange League champions.

Danna De Filippo was the only Aztec in double-figures, besides Warmus, with 12. The Empire League champions end their season, 20-6.

In other 3-A action:

Foothill 60, Katella 37--Chris McFerson, Foothill’s 6-3 senior center, scored 18 points, grabbed 9 rebounds and blocked 9 shots to lead the defending 3-A champions to an easy win at Foothill High School.

Stephanie Fleischaker added 10 points and 15 rebounds and Robin Welch scored 10 points for Foothill, which improved to 27-1 and has won 26 straight since losing to Esperanza in the second game of the season.

Kelli Johnson, who scored 10 points, was the only Katella player to finish in double figures. A wild-card playoff entry, Katella had upset two league champions (Hacienda Heights Wilson and Norco) to advance to the quarterfinals.

Foothill, which shot 57% from the field Saturday night (26 of 45), will meet Louisville in Tuesday night’s semifinals.

Louisville 69, Mission Viejo 49--Andrea Knapp scored 22 points and Marianella Cruz added 17 to lead the Royals at Louisville High in Woodland Hills. The third-seeded Royals, San Fernando Valley League champions, improved to 25-4, while the South Coast League champion Diablos end 24-4.

In 4-A action:

Gahr 73, Fountain Valley 67--Molly Wampler, a 6-1 junior transfer from Crescenta Valley, scored 34 points and grabbed 16 rebounds to lead the Gladiators into the semifinals.

Fountain Valley led, 37-33, at halftime, but Gahr (26-3) outscored the Barons, 18-9, to take the lead into the final quarter. Meliss Handley scored 19 points for Fountain Valley (18-10) and Jackie Cook and Dawn Lawler added 16 and 13 points, respectively.

In 1-A action:

Connelly 65, Charter Oak 55--Guard Amy Vernatti and forward Cathy Casey each scored 20 points to lead the Koalas (23-0) at home.

Vernatti, a 5-5 senior, led a second-quarter surge, scoring eight points, as the Koalas outscored the Lancers, 19-11, in the period. Casey, a 6-0 sophomore, and Sheila Duffy each had 15 rebounds for Connelly. Gina Varpinski scored 19 points for Charter Oak.

Santa Clara 55, Whittier Christian 42--The Heralds fell behind, 35-14, at halftime and never recovered at Santa Clara High. The second-seeded Saints improved to 22-4 and will meet Connelly in the semifinals.

In 2-A action:

Lompoc 58, La Quinta 41--The Braves outscored the Aztecs, 17-4, in the third period to take a 43-24 lead and control of the game at Lompoc High. La Quinta closes at 20-7.