By Casey Sublette
Staff Writer
The Mira Costa girls basketball team was eliminated from the first round of the CIF playoffs on Feb. 18 against the Camarillo Scorpions. The Mustangs fell after a score of 58-45 making their final season record 12-17.
The teams were evenly matched throughout the first half but Camarillo pulled away in the second half to hand Costa a loss.
“It was a good game,” sophomore guard Camille Mills said. “We could have improved on communication, passing the ball and limiting turnovers.”
The Scorpions struck first putting the first points on the board. Mills countered with the Mustangs’ first points. Junior center Rachel Humphrey picked up the pace for Costa on offense and defense ending the period with a 10-7 Camarillo lead.
The second period was closer than the first. Three straight points from freshman guard Meghan Peneueta helped put Costa on the right track. After a few more scores, two sloppy turnovers by the Mustangs led to points for the Scorpions. To put Costa in the lead, junior guard Trinity Goss hit two three-pointers as well as a mid-range jumper. Another score from Camarillo tied it up but Humphrey had the go-ahead basket going into the half with a 27-25 Costa lead.
Camarillo started the third quarter with nine points. Mills had a score followed up by a steal, helping the Mustangs stay in the game. Back-to-back scores from freshman point guard Haley Tojo and Humphrey softened Camarillo’s lead and ended the quarter with a score of 43-36.
Camarillo came out strong in the fourth quarter, holding Costa to only nine points. Mills and Goss had back-to-back scores before the Scorpions packed on a few more points. Humphrey wanted to finish strong and had three rebounds and a basket. Peneueta followed Humphrey’s lead with a steal and a score. Camarillo then put up six straight points, which closed out the game. The Scorpions came out on top at home with a final score of 58-45.
It was a tough loss for the Mustangs who were without sophomore Shaylyn Austin, juniors Ashley Reese, Taylor Lewis and senior Mackenzie Austin.
Humphrey put the team on her back with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Goss followed closely with 10 points. Freshman Keilani Ikehara added eight assists and Mills had eight rebounds.
“Our team is very young,” senior captain Jessica Tondo said. “It leaves the varsity team with many strong returners.”
The team had a long off-season trying to find a coach, which took away from the preparation for the season. After hiring coach Miranda Biteler, the Mustangs lost in their first game of the season against South Torrance 50-47. Costa followed the loss with wins against Reseda High School and Jordan High School. It was an up and down season for the Mustangs.
“Our season was okay,” Peneueta said. “New things like the coaches and new plays made it difficult to adapt. A lot of our games were close and we should have won them.”
Bay League was tough for the Mustangs, who went just 2-8 after beating Leuzinger twice. They then petitioned to make the CIF playoffs although coming in 5th place for Bay league. They were accepted and in their first game lost to Camarillo.
“This year was definitely a rebuilding year for the varsity team, and the basketball program as a whole,” Tondo said. “We had a rough start, and such a sudden change needs time to develop. The season could have gone a lot better, but given the circumstances, we did what we could.”
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