History in the Making at Oakland : El Camino and Harbor Women’s Teams in State Tournament for First Time

Not much was expected of the El Camino and Harbor College women’s basketball programsat the start of the season, but each will make school history tonight when they compete in the state tournament at Merritt College in Oakland.

Harbor (27-6), ranked 16th in the state by the JC Athletic Bureau, will meet fifth-ranked College of the Sequoias (30-6) at 6 and unranked El Camino (18-13) will play top-ranked Lassen (32-1) at 8. The winners advance to Friday’s semifinals, and the championship game is scheduled for 7 p.m. Saturday.

“I know a lot of people wrote us off from the very beginning,” El Camino Coach Kristy Loesener said. “From the start of conference, at the coaches meeting, they thought only Long Beach was going to state. I smirked because I knew we’d be good even though our (nonconference) record was so poor.”

Simply making the playoffs was considered an accomplishment at Harbor, which was 5-21 last season. Second-year Coach Louie Nelson, whose team failed to win a Southern California Athletic Conference game last season, was surprised at his team’s development.

“I never expected to get to the state tournament,” said Nelson, the SCAC coach of the year. “I told (Harbor Athletic Director Jim) O’Brien that my goal was to make it to the playoffs and then you never know what happens or how far you’ll get.”

El Camino, which placed second in the South Coast Conference, upset 12th-ranked Ventura, 59-50, in overtime, and third-ranked Saddleback College, 74-70, to earn its first trip to state.

“We’re just playing extremely well at this point,” Loesener said. “We all knew we had what it took, but we just haven’t been putting it together until now. . . . We’re so deep and so well-balanced. We have people coming off the bench that are adding just as much as starters.”

The Warriors have the state’s second-best defense, giving up an average of 51.9 points a game. Freshman center Shasta Paris (Narbonne High) leads El Camino with averages of 11 points and 8.5 rebounds a game. Freshman forward Crystal Fields averages 10.3 points and 9.8 rebounds and reserve guard Lilian Cabaleiro is averaging eight points.

Harbor entered conference play with a 16-6 record. The Seahawks went undefeated in the conference, beat Chaffey, 71-57, to open the playoffs and fifth-ranked L.A. Valley, 77-59, to earn a trip to Oakland. Harbor has won 17 consecutive games.

“We’re executing well and everyone is focused,” Nelson said. “Sequoias beat us good the first time we played them, but we’re a different team now. I’m hoping to catch them by surprise.”

Harbor is eighth in the state in offense (77.5) and fourth in defense (54.1). Sophomore forward Kim Young, the SCAC’s most valuable player, ranks fourth in state scoring at 24.7. Freshman guard Bridgete Williams (Morningside High) ranks 10th at 22.8 and center Angelina Adams leads the team in rebounding at 11.5.

“Kim is playing like she should be,” Nelson said. “She’s setting an example as a leader. She’s hitting the big shots and doing everything correctly.”

Nelson said Harbor will have to be sharp defensively to beat Sequoias. He said his club took the Giants for granted when the teams played in December. Sequoias won, 74-48.

“I got a couple of surprises on defense,” Nelson said. “Sequoias is a big team and they execute real well and they run the floor real well. We’re just going to go after them.”

Sequoias, the Coast Valley Conference champion, is led by three freshmen: Tanisha Huddleston (14.9 points, 9.5 rebounds), Lanesha Watley (13.7, 6.6) and DeShannen Conley (10.9, 5.3). Sequoias beat San Mateo, 78-30, and Merritt, 85-58, in the regional.

Lassen will challenge the El Camino defense with its productive offense. The Golden Valley Conference champion Cougars lead the state in scoring at 90.8. They are led by Australian sophomore guard Cherie Hogg (19.3 points, 9.5 rebounds, five assists), who was named the Golden Valley’s most valuable player. Freshman Melissa Batchelder averages 17.4 points and 9.8 rebounds and sophomore Tiffany Shaw averages 11 points.

Lassen beat Hartnell, 98-54, and Ohlone, 107-92, in the regional. The Cougars’ only loss was against second-ranked College of the Siskiyous.

“I think we’re underrated and I also think they’re overrated,” Loesener said. “They’re offense-oriented, they score in the 100s, but we’re going to run too. It’s not going to be easy. We have our work cut out for us, but we’re very confident.”

If the Warriors beat the Cougars, they will play the winner of the Long Beach-Siskiyous game on Friday. Long Beach (24-6) is the South Coast Conference champion and Siskiyous (26-5) is the state’s second-ranked team.

If Harbor wins, it would play the winner of the Golden West-Allan Hancock game on Friday. Golden West (27-5) is the two-time defending state champion and Allan Hancock (28-5) is ranked seventh.

The only way for the Seahawks and the Warriors to meet is if both reach Saturday’s final. El Camino beat Harbor, 48-45, on Jan. 3 in Torrance.

“We’d like to meet them again, actually,” Loesener said. “It would be a great matchup. It would be a neutral sight and that would be even better.”