MORAGA, CA – They could not beat the Cagers at the St. Mary’s College Jamboree last weekend, but St. Joseph Notre Dame only fell 57-47 in a game that was not observed, and that’s not too shabby.
In a game that was observed the Pilots girls did surprise Pinewood, 56-51, and in doing so made a bit of a statement behind a very solid performance by incoming senor Zhane Duckett, and the Mastora sisters, incoming junior Malia Mastora and incoming sophomore Makena Mastora.
Pinewood led by as many as nine points late in the first half, and 40-33 about six minutes into the second of two 20-minute running clock halves, but Duckett and her fresher legs led an 11-0 run that turned things around.
Pinewood would lead one more time, 47-46 on a three-pointer by incoming senior Klara Astrom, but a basket by St. Joe’s and a three-pointer by Makena Mastora made it 51-47 and they held off a Pinewood team that did not have enough in the tank to come back.
Duckett, who was sidelined with a concussion when Pinewood routed the Pilots 64-36 at the Lamorinda Classic in January, finished with 25 points, seven steals, six rebounds, three assists and she had three three-pointers.
“I was out when we played them, and this is not the same, but it feels good to get a win, a kind of redemption,” Duckett said.
“She (Duckett) makes a big difference,” said St. Joseph Notre Dame Coach Shawn Hipol. “She’s a three-year starter already playing with the intensity of a senior in the summer.”
Malia Mastora hit two three-pointers and ended up with 12 points and five rebounds. Makena Mastora, who is listed at 5-8 on last season’s roster, but looks like she might already be starting to catch up with her 5-9 older sister, made three three-pointers and finished with 11 points, five rebounds and two steals. Incoming freshman Talana Lepolo, who Hipol says is “special” did look promising and chipped in with seven points.
Pinewood was led by Stanford-committed senior Hannah Jump. The three-point specialist blanked from outside the arc but still finished with 14 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Incoming sophomore Courtni Thompson added 10 points with two three-pointers, incoming senior Trinity Copeland had eight points and seven rebounds, incoming sophomore Annika Decker had two three-pointers and scored eight points, and Astrom had two free-throws besides the late three-pointer plus five rebounds.
“We’re not at a Mitty level, they’re loaded and deep,” Hipol remarked. “But it’s my fifth year here and the program has started to grow and the girls are getting more confident and comfortable with what we’re doing. It was only a summer game but Pinewood is really good and it was nice to beat them.”
Salesian has promise with new young talent mixed with talented returners
Salesian had it a bit rough at the St. Mary’s Jamboree but they were without incoming senior power forward MaKayla Edwards and senior sharpshooter Nia Chinn, and those are two important pieces of the puzzle for Pride Coach Stephen Pezzola.
Senior 6-5 post Angel Jackson could not find her scoring rhythm but she played well defensively and Pezzola showcased some solid young talent.
A name to look for beginning next season is incoming freshman Silivia Fonongaloa. She played well in three games observed at the St. Mary’s Jamboree.
Against Carondelet Fonongaloa held her own when she had to match up with 6-3 incoming senior Ali Bamberger, the No. 2 ranked post behind Jackson in Northern California. In this Father’s Day game the Pride was without Jackson as well as Chinn and Edwards but almost pulled it out in a 41-40 loss.
Fonongaloa is a big girl but can move and played the first 13 minutes of the first half and then after a short rest came back for the final three minutes, and that shows some endurance for a young player. She finished with 10 points, including a spin move and left-handed finish, and five rebounds.
Another young player that Pezzola is looking to for the future is incoming freshman Nevaeh Asiasi, the younger sister of former De La Salle star and current UCLA standout Devin Asiasi. In fact, her layup at the buzzer rolled off the rim or the shorthanded Pride would have beaten Carondelet.
The Salesian player that stood out at the Jamboree was incoming senior combo guard Anjel Galbraith. She had 13 points, four rebounds, four assists and four steals against Carondelet, 12 points in a 50-34 loss to Pinewood, and 10 points in a 64-35 loss to Archbishop Mitty. Galbraith not only attacked the basket and finished but made three three-pointers in the three games observed.
Carondelet also took some lumps at the Jamboree, and until they find a coach to replace Elgin Leslie, former Clayton Valley boys Coach and Ali Bamberger’s father Eric Bamberger is guiding them in summer action.
Ali Bamberger had 12 points and five rebounds in the Salesian win. She suffered a mild concussion in a 60-38 loss to the Cagers when she was tripped and a girl landed on the side of her head, but she should be back in action soon if not this weekend at the Jamboree 2 at St. Mary’s.
Besides Bamberger, Carondelet returns a solid group of players. Two that showed improvement and should have outstanding seasons are incoming 6-2 senior forward Tatyana Modawar and incoming senior guard Erica Miller. Both made two three-pointers against Salesian, while Modawar added six rebounds. In the Cagers loss Miller had nine points on three three-pointers and Modawar made a trey and finished with five points, five rebounds, two assists and two blocks.
There will be coverage this weekend of Jamboree 2 on Saturday and then on Sunday the Caravan heads to Stockton for the Stockton Classic put on by Lincoln-Stockton head coach and girls basketball analyst Chris Roemer.
After this weekend’s action there will be a roundup of sorts that will feature other teams and players from the St. Mary’s Jamboree and Jamboree 2 and the Stockton Classic.
