Girls basketball: Estancia in over its head

Barry Faulkner

HUNTINGTON BEACH - The Estancia High girls basketball team came up

short against highly regarded Santa Margarita in the opening round of the

Marina Tournament Tuesday. But this had more to do with size than points

in a 63-56 loss to the ninth-ranked team in Orange County at Marina High.

Santa Margarita’s starters held an average four-inch height advantage

over Coach Paul Kirby’s opening lineup and used every bit of it to

advance to tonight’s 7:30 quarterfinal. The Serra League representative

outrebounded Estancia, 46-18, and got 45 combined points from six-footers

Megan Moen and Lena Shaw, as well as 5-foot-11 forward Garland Cooper

(all but a Shaw 15-footer coming from down low or the free-throw line).

But, despite being towered over, Estancia (7-5) used aggressive

perimeter defense, effective offensive execution against Santa

Margarita’s zone, and an opportunistic transition game to make things

more interesting than Santa Margarita (10-1) might have liked.

‘We were really down (29-14, midway through the second quarter), then,

all of a sudden, I looked up and we were only down by 10 (at halftime),”

Kirby said. “I don’t know how we hung in there.”

Estancia, unintimidated from the outset, claimed an 8-4 lead, before

Santa Margarita put spurts of 9-0 and 11-0 on both ends of a Lisa Hirata

three-pointer.

Two foul shots by Estancia senior Jessica Orellana ended the 20-3

Santa Margarita run and, after one of Santa Margarita’s 22 field goals

from inside six feet, three-pointers by freshman Trisha Wase and senior

Zuyin Herrera helped fuel a 12-4 Estancia surge, en route to a 41-31

halftime deficit.

Santa Margarita, with quick, unselfish passing, often defeated

Estancia attempts to front post players. The blue-and-gold-clad Eagles

also took advantage of offensive rebounds to pile up points in the paint.

Santa Margarita led, 55-42, entering the fourth quarter, opened the

final period with its only three-pointer, and expanded the cushion to

63-46 with 5:19 left.

But Estancia, which forced 20 turnovers (committing 15 of its own),

refused to bow to Santa Margarita’s physical prowess.

Hustling at both ends of the floor, Estancia cut the lead to 63-53

with 3:32 remaining, forcing Santa Margarita Coach Richard Schaff to

shuttle some starters back into the game.

A Barrera three-pointer with four seconds left, however, were the only

points scored from there, as Estancia dropped into today’s 9 a.m.

consolation quarterfinal against South Torrance, also at Marina.

Wase, listed at 5-4, but probably close to 5-0, hit 8 of 11 field-goal

attempts to finish with a team-high 17 points. She also shared team-high

honors with five rebounds and chipped in four assists.

Barrera, who nailed a trio of three-pointers, finished with 11 points,

while Hirata closed with nine points and five boards and Xochitl Byfield

added eight points.

“Hopefully, we’re taking something away from every game, so, by the

time (Pacific Coast) league comes around, we’ll be ready,” Kirby said.

MARINA TOURNAMENT

First round

Santa Margarita 63, Estancia 56

Score by Quarters

Santa Margarita 17 24 14 8 - 63

Estancia 11 20 11 14 - 56

Santa Margarita - Moen 21, Cooper 16, Bone 11, Shaw 8, Lynch 7.

3-pt. goals - Boone 1.

Fouled out - None.

Technicals - None.

Estancia - Wase 17, Barrera 11, Hirata 9, Byfield 8, Orellana 6, Gray

5, Matsufuji 0, Rodriguez 0, Cassity 0.

3-pt. goals - Barrera 3, Hirata 1, Wase 1.

Fouled out - None.

Technicals - None.