~ December Issue ~
 

Girls Basketball Makes a Splash
By Dylan Coplin, Sports Editor

        The basketball team this season has proven it is possible to win games. With a homeless season so far, the team has a record of 1-3. But the lost games were very close in score and proved that the Eagles are hard to beat.        Their first preseason game match up was against Cleveland High School. The game started fast, both teams were playing offense very well. It ended in favor of Cleveland but El Segundo trailed by only 3. Sophomore Samantha Heyman put up 13 points and seven assists to lead the team in the first quarter. The second quarter was not as strong but seniors Taraneh Lipscomb and Jo’Vine Tulikihihifo did some damage defensively. Each rebounded more than 12 times to lead both teams in rebounds. They were unstoppable in the paint. Especially offensively, Tulikihihifo scored 16 points and Lipscomb scored 15 in the contest. The score was very close throughout the game, but El Segundo could not score the final two points to win it. Cleveland went on to win the game eventually by one point, 57-58.
        The second game against St. Mary’s Academy was a huge upset to the Eagles’ morale. The team was limited to 45 points in the whole game. Only Heyman who stepped up and tried to carry the team, could make baskets, she ended the game with 20 points leading both teams. The second highest scorer for the Eagles was senior Candace Cleverly with only 8 points in the game. The team had a bad shooting game overall, with low a percentage. But even though the Eagles could not get points, the game was close until the end. It ended in favor of St. Mary’s Academy 45-62.
        The last game of the South Shoot-Out tournament was against Alhambra. This game turned out the best so far of all the games. Even with Tulikihihifo not playing, the girls really stepped it up and shut down Alhambra. Senior Abish Valdez played amazingly with 11 points 5 rebounds, and 3 assists to help the Eagles to the lead. Lipscomb almost had a double-double game with 11 points and 9 boards making a good effort to make up for Tulikihihifo not playing. The Eagles did a tremendous job shutting down the Alhambra offense by only limiting the team to seven points in the second quarter. The first win of the preseason was against Alhambra with a final score of 46-40.
        The girls’ team is looking better than ever with all varsity players from last year returning this year.