Laguna Beach girls' basketball advances to CIF semifinals

Laguna Beach junior Sophie Marriner, center, competes against Los Angeles Yeshiva.

By Scott FrenchSpecial Contributor

Feb. 19, 2022 3:39 PM PT

Sophie Marriner dominated in the paint and the defense of the Laguna Beach High School girls’ basketball team limited visiting Los Angeles Yeshiva to nine field goals, storming into the CIF Southern Section semifinals for the first time in school history with a 45-33 triumph Friday afternoon.

Marriner scored 19 points and grabbed 26 rebounds, just missing out on her third 20-20 game of the season, and Kate Cheng nabbed 16 rebounds, 11 on the offensive end, as the third-seeded Breakers (20-7), matching the school record for victories, used a strong first half to open an advantage too big for the 14th-ranked Panthers (13-9) to overcome in the Division 5AA quarterfinal.

Laguna Beach took a quick 9-2 lead on a Cheng three-pointer and three Marriner baskets in the lane, extended it to 15 before halftime, then stayed at least nine points in front despite struggling to deal with a devastating backcourt press — especially after expert ballhandler Kenna Rudolph fouled out with 2:55 left in the third quarter — that forced many of the Breakers’ 28 turnovers.

Laguna Beach sophomore Alexandra Grombchevsky (13) draws a foul on a drive to the basket against Los Angeles Yeshiva.

Yeshiva, a Jewish school that needed a 1 p.m. tip-off to ensure the game would be well over before the Sabbath began at sundown, shot poorly — just 13.6 percent — and were outrebounded 64-31. Laguna Beach scored 22 second-chance points, 10 of them in the fourth quarter, and had more rebounds at its basket, by a 20-18 count, than did the Panthers.

“We got a little sloppy, a focus thing for us,” said Breakers coach Matt Tietz, whose team will travel on Tuesday to play the winner of Monday’s quarterfinal pitting No. 2 Los Angeles Milken (16-8) at No. 11 Bermuda Dunes Desert Christian Academy (14-11). “We got a little sloppy with the basketball, then we were reaching on defense. I think we got a little bit too antsy at the end and didn’t let the game just flow, but the girls battled, and that’s the most important thing.

“If we keep battling, keep playing good defense, keep moving the ball on offense, we’ll be right there in any game we play.”

Laguna Beach senior Anna Cheng, right, scores a three-pointer against Los Angeles Yeshiva.

Freshman Kira Heumann led Yeshiva with 11 points and teamed with her big sister, Alexa, to lead a four-player backcourt press. The Panthers twice forced Laguna Beach into turnovers on three straight possessions and three times on successive possessions, but they turned the miscues into only 11 points.

“We wanted to pressure them, but they did a good job of handling it and did a great job of getting offensive rebounds,” said Yeshiva head coach Tyus Edney, the UCLA legend who played four NBA seasons. “We made them miss, and they would get us back.”

Anna Cheng scored 11 points for Laguna Beach, Kate Cheng added seven points, and Rudolph grabbed seven rebounds. Marriner, just 5-foot-7, had at least five rebounds in every quarter and 15 in the second half.

Laguna Beach junior Sabrina Yang, left, reacts after the Breakers beat Los Angeles Yeshiva 45-33 on Friday.

“That’s my thing,” she said. “I love going for the ball, because I know that I can get us another chance. And we can get that second chance, we can put the ball in the basket, and that’s all we need.”

This was Laguna Beach’s first trip to the quarterfinals in girls’ basketball. Taking another step, Tietz said, was “awesome. ... Our girls are pumped. They’re champing at the bit to get to the next round.”

Said Marriner: “I know that we can crush it, and, honestly, my hopes are to win CIF.”