It’s only the first week of Bay League action but the outcomes of Friday’s rivalry games between Mira Costa and Redondo will undoubtedly have playoff implications both on the basketball court and the soccer field.
Mira Costa’s boys basketball team hopes to keep a foothold among the top of the Bay League standings after the Mustangs (8-9, 1-0) held off host West 40-34 in a defensive struggle Tuesday evening.
Elliott Ozer recorded 18 points and 10 rebounds and Cooper Pugnale contributed six points and 10 rebounds for Mira Costa who hosts Redondo Friday in a 7:30 p.m. showdown.
Mira Costa beat El Segundo 62-57 and Santa Monica 67-54 in final tune-ups before league play began. Ozer scored 30 points and Thomas Johnson recorded 18 points and 10 rebounds in the Mustang’s win over Santa Monica.
After their match up with Redondo, the Mustangs continue league play when they travel to Leuzinger Tuesday for a 7:30 p.m. contest. Leuzinger upset Palos Verdes (No. 6, Div. 4AA) 69-67 in the league opener for both teams.
Redondo (7-8, 0-1) looks for its first league victory after losing at Peninsula 74-56 on Tuesday. Peninsula entered Bay League action ranked No. 1 in the CIF Division 2A poll.
Jacquise Bates led the Sea Hawks with 20 points and Martyre Demarco added 11 points and Derek Biale scored eight in the losing effort.
In a rare pre-league meeting, Redondo defeated Mira Costa 66-54 in the 7th-place game of the Redondo Sea Hawk Classic tournament in December, giving Redondo head coach Tom Maier an idea of what to expect.
“We’ll need to keep Johnson out of the paint, slow Ozer down and execute our offense against their zone,” Maier said. “We know they will make adjustments to what we did to them the first time around and we need to be ready. Also, we will be playing at their place which is not easy.”
Maier believes the strength of his team is the play of his guards and having two key players return from injuries will provide a boost for his team.
“We have back Brandon Boyd and Austin Moore, both starters from last year,” Maier said. “Brandon was out since the summer with an ACL tear and Austin was out since this summer with a patella tendon tear.”
In non-league action, Redondo emerged victorious at Santa Monica 53-34 last week before losing a tough road battle to North Torrance (No. 16, Div. 3AA) 66-64 despite Jacquise Bates’ game-high 28 points.
Redondo plays Sonora (No. 7, Div. 3AA) at Villa Park on Saturday before resuming league play Tuesday with a home game against West at 7:30 p.m.
Girls Basketball
Mira Costa and Redondo square off on the Mustangs’ home court Friday at 6 p.m. in a crucial game of the young Bay League season. Mira Costa (10-6, 1-0) held off West, the 10th ranked team in Division 3AA, with a 52-50 victory in Tuesday’s league opener.
Kylie Nakamine scored a game-high 17 points along with four assists and six steals to lead the Mustangs. Joelle Herron added 10 points and freshman Camille Mills contributed with 10 points and nine rebounds.
Mira Costa head coach Craig Takahashi feels Nakamine, a four-year starter on varsity, plays a key role for the Mustangs.
“Our strength is having a solid point guard in Kylie Nakamine,” Takahashi said. “She is averaging 14 points a game and she is leading the nation in free throw percentage 92.6%. She is the rock of the team. Our overall team defense has also been really good, thanks to the help of freshman Camille Mills.”
Takahashi believes handling Redondo’s tough defense will be the key to defeating the rival school.
“To beat Redondo we just need to play smart and not turn the ball over a lot,” Takahashi said. “They have a really good press so we just have to be patient and stay composed.”
Heading into Bay League action, Mira Costa lost to visiting Bishop Montgomery (No. 2, Div. 4AA) 59-54 in hard fought non-league game Thursday. Nakamine scored 19 points and Ashley Reese added 15 points in the loss.
Redondo (10-8, 1-0) is ranked 13th in Division 1AA and defeated Peninsula 46-36 Tuesday. The Panthers entered the game ranked 9th in Division 3AA.
The Sea Hawks used a team effort to beat the Panthers. Ashiana Antar scored 12 points, Riki Murakami recorded eight points, three assists and two steals, Allie Goldberg added eight points and Shayna Stuart contributed seven points, five rebounds, three block and three steals for Redondo.
The Sea Hawks prepared for their league opener hosting a non-league game against Edison on Saturday. Even though Edison, ranked No. 1 in CIF Southern Section Division 1A and fifth in the state in the MaxPreps.com poll, defeated Redondo 52-37, the game provided a good test for coach Marcelo Enriquez’s Redondo squad.
“They’re an outstanding team and it was a tough challenge for us,” Enriquez said. “They’re a great offensive team, big and tall, and a good opponent.”
Despite the loss, Redondo’s defense played tough limiting Stanford-bound forward Bonnie Samuelson, who entered the game averaging 29 points per game, to only 17 points.
“Our defense is our number one strength,” Enriquez said. “We’re doing an outstanding job on the defensive end and our rebounding is coming along. Our weakness right now is our offense. We still have some inconsistencies but we’re doing some good things. We were 7-of-11 from the 3-point line against Edison which is the best we’ve done all year. We still have too many turnovers and need to take care of the basketball. We rushed too many shots and need to relax.”
Senior guard Rachel Scarlett had a positive outlook entering league play and Redondo’s game with Mira Costa Friday.
“We’re in a pretty good place,” Scarlett said. “We needed to work on rebounding a lot and focused on that during this game (against Edison). Mira Costa is tough this year and it will take a strong defensive effort to beat them, which is our strongest asset this year.”
Enriquez believes it will take a team effort similar to Tuesday’s game to knock of Mira Costa.
“We’ll need to have an outstanding effort from everyone’s part to defeat Mira Costa,” Enriquez said. “They’re a very good team, the defending Bay League champs and we’ll need a great offensive and defensive game to beat them.”
Redondo continues Bay League action Tuesday when the Sea Hawks host West 6 p.m.
Boys Soccer
Mira Costa coach Gary Smith is in his 18th year and expects his Mustangs to compete for another Bay League crown after his squad won its first league game with a 3-1 victory at West on Tuesday.
Augie Diaz, Joe Valenzuela scored goals in the first half to put the Mustangs ahead 2-0 and Mathias Gesser secured the game with a goal in the 70th minute scoring on a header off a corner kick by Alex McCarthy. Goalkeeper Teddy Sampson made four saves in the Mustang’s victory.
Smith admitted he was disappointed with the play of his team and felt his players may have had the jitters.
“We need to improve our possession game,” Smith said. “We have a balanced team with good height, good speed and talent. Having 22 players on our roster provides us with the depth we need and gives us the opportunity to hold competitive scrimmages during practice.”
Smith said he likes his team’s chances for a Bay League title but feels Palos Verdes will be the team to beat. He also knows his team can ill afford to overlook Redondo. Mira Costa (8-1-2, 1-0) hosts Redondo (4-3-5, 1-0) Friday in a 6 p.m. game under the lights.
“Our boys never have a problem getting up for Redondo,” Smith said. “The rivalry game is always an important one to win.”
In a final tune-up before league play, Mira Costa defeated Beverly Hills 4-0 behind Diaz’s three goals. Sampson and Gavin Jernigan combined for the shutout.
Redondo coach Ignacio “Nacho” Lopez is in his third year as head coach and has seven returning starters on his squad. The Sea Hawks defeated host Peninsula 2-0 Tuesday behind goals by Nathan Hierlihy and Ruben Pereveda after tying a tough North Torrance team 1-1 on Friday.
Lopez hopes his defense will provide a win against rival Mira Costa Friday.
“Our line of defense and the keeper are keeping us in the game,” Lopez said. “We need to capitalize the opportunities of goal that we generate during the game. The Bay League is very competitive and I know Mira Costa is always a tough team to beat. They had a positive record in the preseason.”
Lopez said he feels Palos Verdes, Mira Costa and West will join Redondo as contenders for the league title. Redondo hosts West Tuesday at 3 p.m.
Girls Soccer
Like its boys team, Mira Costa continues to benefit from a long-term successful head coach. Patty Perkinson is in her 16th season at the helm of the Mustang program and will take her squad to Redondo Friday in a key Bay League game at 3 p.m.
Mira Costa has won five consecutive Bay League titles and after defeating Chadwick 3-0 behind Kimbi Keever’s two goals in a non-league game last week, the Mustangs (9-2-3, 1-0) got off on the right foot by edging West 1-0 Tuesday in the league opener for both teams.
Melina Cohen scored the game’s only goal in the 56th minute and goalkeeper Dana Eisenhower recorded six saves for the Mustangs.
Mira Costa continues league action Tuesday with a 3 p.m. contest at Leuzinger.
Meanwhile, league contender Redondo dug itself an early hole with a 2-1 loss at Peninsula Tuesday. The Sea Hawks had trouble controlling the ball in the first half before Cecy Perez tied the game 1-1 off an assist by Shannon Simon in the 28th minute. Peninsula scored the winning goal in the 43rd minute off a deflection from a Redondo player.
Now in her eighth year at the helm of the Redondo program, head coach Shelly Marsden remains optimistic about the Sea Hawk’s chances for a post-season appearance but knows it won’t come easy.
“We have serious talent, depth, and senior leadership,” Marsden said. “However, we do have trouble scoring at times and while our defenders are quite good, we lack varsity experience on our backline. As usual, the Bay League will be tough. Costa runs a very solid soccer program. West is always motivated. Peninsula has shown well in pre-season and Palos Verdes is loaded.”
Marsden expects a hard-fought game in her team’s first game against rival Mira Costa.
“They have talented freshmen” Marsden said. “They have great goal keeping and have a few senior players who are talented with four years varsity experience.”
Redondo plays at West Tuesday at 3 p.m. in another critical league match for both teams.
Girls Water Polo
Mira Costa outdueled Santa Monica (No. 5, Div. 6) 9-6 in a non-league match with Emily Milstead and Marisa Purcell each scoring three goals in the victory.
The Mustangs played at Palos Verdes (No. 9, Div. 1) Wednesday and continue Bay League action next Wednesday when they host Peninsula in a 3 p.m. contest.
Redondo (9-7, 1-0) won its Bay League opener with a 12-10 victory at Peninsula Monday. Jaycee Baldus scored six goals, Tiffany Morales tallied three goals, Emily Ewart scored twice and Julia Unarie added one for the Sea Hawks.
Redondo hosted West on Wednesday and will utilize a short break before hosting league favorite Palos Verdes Friday, Jan. 21 at 3 p.m. ER
