By Cameron Richter
Bobby Wymbs
Staff Writers
Coming off of a difficult loss in in the California Interscholastic Federation Championship game, Costa had to jump right back into another high pressure game as they took on University High School on Wednesday in the first round of state competition at Fisher Gym.
If the game had only lasted one quarter, it would have been a nail-biter. After that first quarter, however, one team began to dominate and pull away on the scoreboard. It’s very rare to see four double digit scorers in a high school basketball game, but that’s exactly what Costa did.
Costa eventually would come out on top, as they defeated University 77-43 to improve its overall record to 23-11 for the season and 1-0 in state play. Freshman forward Allie Navarette led the Mustangs with 19 points. Behind her was junior guard Keilani Ikehara with 14 points. After Ikehara was senior guard Camille Mills with 11 points and senior forward Alison Bartak with 10 points.
“We were a little nervous coming into the game, because University had a great record,” coach John Lapham said. “From the end of the first quarter on, we played incredibly well. Our press worked well, and we had a 19-0 run in the second quarter that essentially put the game away.”
At the start of the game, it seemed like it was going to be very close and competitive as both teams exchanged points until it was 13-13 at nearly the end of the first quarter. Mills then hit a last second shot to make the score 15-13 Mustangs, going into the second quarter. This shot seemed to spark a huge momentum change in Costa’s favor.
“I think we were just taking the time to understand the team in the first quarter,” Bartak said. “We did not really know what to expect other than number five being the main player.”
To start the the second quarter, Costa began to full court press and University began to fall apart. In the entire eight minutes of play, the Mustangs only allowed two points from University while scoring 17 to make the score 34-15 Costa, at half.
“We started pressing and having them turn the ball over,” junior guard Hayley Tojo said. “We played as a team and moved the ball for a good shot.”
University figured out the way to beat Costa’s press in the third quarter, but Costa retaliated with their offensive play. They scored 20 points alone, bringing their total to 61 while allowing only 15 points on defense. The score going into the final quarter of regulation was 61-30, Costa.
“Coming into the second half, we knew we needed to keep the energy up. University High won the CIF City Section, so they are a strong team, and we knew they could get going,” Lapham said. “But we made some early shots, got our break going, and played a very strong third quarter.”
In the final quarter, Costa began to let up on their aggressive offensive play since they leading the game. The Mustangs would go on to win their first state game, 77-43.
“I was really happy overall, but wanted to single out Patience Taylor, Bartak, and Ikehara as having a great night,” Lapham said. “And then of course Navarette had a career high of 19 points, doing just a great job getting good shots and hitting them.”
The Mustangs, with this win have advanced to the second round of the state CIF playoffs and will play the winner of Serra and El Dorado. The time and location has yet to be announced.
“At this point I think we can compete with any team we play,” freshman forward Alexa Underwood said. “We need to play better each game as the competition gets better.”
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