SOUTHERN SECTION BASKETBALL PLAYOFFS : Newsome Runs Rancho Alamitos at Full Speed

GARDEN GROVE —  Jenny Newsome seems to set her cruise control at 65 miles per hour before each game, then drives, rebounds, defends and motors at a steady pace until game’s end.

Newsome, a 5-8 senior guard/forward, is one of the main reasons the Rancho Alamitos High School girls’ basketball team has advanced to the Southern Section 3-A final for the first time in the school’s history.

The top-seeded Vaqueros, 21-3 for first-year Coach Bob Becker, play unseeded Costa Mesa (16-11) for the championship at 6:45 p.m. at Cal Poly Pomona.

Her relentless style fits right into Rancho Alamitos’ up-tempo, run-and-press format under which Newsome has become one of the county leaders in scoring. She averages 23 points a game.

She also averages 12 rebounds a game, despite not being particularly tall.

“I think she is one of those girls who only knows one way to go: She goes hard ,” Becker said. “And she practices just like she plays. She is not just a game player. She has always been very consistent for us.”

It is her leadership that has helped the Vaqueros better last year’s season in which they advanced to the playoffs for the first time before losing in the second round.

Eric Hamamoto, the head coach last year who is now a girls’ assistant coach, said Newsome is “not a great fluid athlete. She is just a very driven, hard-working, tough player.”

He had to kick her out of the gym most nights, Hamamoto said.

“If I had to clone any part of her it wouldn’t be her physical talent, it would be her drive,” he said.

This season, Rancho Alamitos set its sights on winning the Garden Grove League championship for the first time. The Vaqueros finished second, which has only strengthened their resolve to win the division championship.

Newsome, a three-year varsity starter, has a 4.0 grade-point average this year and holds three school records in track. She set school records in the 400- (61.9 seconds) and 800-meter(2:32.3) runs as a sophomore and was a member of the school’s record-setting 400-meter relay last year. She also holds the girls’ school record for most consecutive free throws at 19.

Said Becker: “She is just so smart, so level-headed. There is no way without her kind of thinking we would be where we are. She makes sure that all the other girls are focused into what they have to do.”

RANCHO ALAMITOS vs. COSTA MESA

RECORDS--Rancho Alamitos (21-3), Costa Mesa (16-11).

SITE--Cal Poly Pomona, 6:45 p.m.

RANCHO ALAMITOS UPDATE--After beating St. Paul by 10 points after a first-round bye, the top-seeded Vaqueros have run all over their playoff opponents. They defeated La Canada by 43 points in the quarterfinals and San Dimas by 24 points in the semifinals. Coach Bob Becker’s “hard-to-guard” offense calls for the Vaqueros to spread the scoring around so teams don’t key on guard/forward Jenny Newsome. Newsome, an all-Southern Section selection last season, leads the team with 23 points and 12 rebounds per game.

COSTA MESA UPDATE--No Mustangs’ basketball team, boys or girls, had advanced to the Southern Section final in the school’s 30-year history--until this season. The girls’ basketball team, led by freshman Olivia DiCamilli (15.8 points, 11 rebounds) upset third-seeded Bellflower and second-seeded South Hills to reach the final. DiCamilli is averaging 21.5 points and 19 rebounds in four playoff games. Two other Costa Mesa players average in double figures: junior Rachel Ward (11.2) and senior guard Thuy Nguyen (11).

KEY TO THE GAME--Both teams are short and depend on full-court pressure and a running game. But Costa Mesa has a slight height advantage, especially at guard. They both have shooters capable of hitting the perimeter shot. Defensively, Costa Mesa may get the edge. Costa Mesa plays man-to-man, whereas Rancho Alamitos is known to play zone. Another key is conditioning. Rancho Alamitos usually plays 10 players, Costa Mesa usually uses eight. With both teams committed to the up-tempo game, and with the game being played on the longer collegiate court, the Vaqueros might have an advantage.

CONSENSUS--As Rancho Alamitos assistant Coach Eric Hamamoto says: “Because our styles are so close, it’s just going to be who is on that night.”

3-A GIRLS’ CHAMPIONSHIP GAME LINEUPS

RANCHO ALAMITOS (21-3) COSTA MESA (16-11) Name Hgt. Yr. PPG Pos. Name Hgt. Yr. Stephanie Nastelli 5-5 Sr. na F Rachel Ward 5-11 Jr. Anita Strecker 5-9 So. 10.4 C Robin Nichols 5-6 Sr. Melinda Lira 5-3 Jr. na G Olivia DiCamilli 5-9 Fr. Shellie Tsuji 5-3 Jr. 14.6 G Thuy Nguyen 5-4 Sr. Jenny Newsome 5-8 Sr. 23.0 G Michele Bryant 5-6 Sr. Coach Bob Becker Coach Jim Weeks

RANCHO AL Name PPG Stephanie Nastelli 11.2 Anita Strecker 3.5 Melinda Lira 15.8 Shellie Tsuji 11.0 Jenny Newsome 2.0 Coach Bob Becker