Ceres High’s and Central Valley’s girls basketball teams battled this past week.
The Bulldogs dominated the crosstown matchup by rolling to a 58-16 win over the host Hawks Thursday evening.
“Overall, the girls played well,” Ceres High head coach Megan McGill stated. “We talked about being aggressive on defense and pushing the ball on offense. We did that for the most part. The girls ran the floor really well and everyone got involved. That being said, we’re still striving to play 32 minutes of our best basketball and I believe we are getting closer to that every day.”
“We knew what to expect,” Central Valley leader Derrick Goblirsch said. “They’re super athletic. Defensively, I thought we executed in the first half. We held them to 23 points. We only had seven points. Offensively, we were having a hard time putting the ball in the basket. It’s hard to win when you don’t score.”
The third-place Bulldogs improved to 16-5 on the year and 5-2 in the Western Athletic Conference.
The seventh-place Hawks dropped to 7-14 overall and 1-6 in the WAC standings.
“As we dive into the second round of league, I think we’re ready to show the WAC what we’re capable of and our best games are still ahead of us,” McGill said.
“The goal is to compete,” Goblirsch said. “If we execute our game plan and stay healthy, we can play with all the teams in our league.”
Sovannary Carter scored a team-high 17 points for Ceres High.
Arrayah Stallworth added 13 points.
Lilly Staggs totaled eight points.
Haley Tsurui netted six points.
Mariah Renteria and Persia Rochell both had four points.
Bri Tsurui and Presley Vierra contributed two points apiece.
Julyanna Valencia scored a team-high five points for Central Valley.
Alayah Villa added three points.
Bella Delatorre, Lily Madrigal, Emily Mariani and Airieana Martinez all contributed two points.
Hawk standout Marion Dennison re-aggravated a right ankle injury in the second quarter and did not return to the game.
She ranks first on the team in scoring and third in rebounding.
Dennison has missed four of Central Valley’s first seven league games due to injury. “When she’s out there, it changes the dynamic of the team,” Goblirsch said. “She’s a leader on the court. She does a little bit of everything for us.”
Ceres High improved its head-to-head record against Central Valley to 3-0 under McGill’s guidance.
“There’s always that extra motivation for the girls when it comes to playing against CV,” McGill said. “For me personally, it’s just another game that I want to win.”
The Hawks and Bulldogs clashed in front of a loud crowd last week.
“It was a good atmosphere,” Goblirsch said. “We had a small cheering section, which was nice.”
Central Valley is looking forward to the rematch, which will take place at Ceres High on Feb. 13.
“Hopefully, we do better next time,” Goblirsch said. “That’s the goal. We’ll be prepared.”
