Spirited Eagles rout Rancho

Barry Faulkner

COSTA MESA -- The Estancia High boys basketball team took care of

its gift exchange on the court Thursday, sharing the ball like it was

good will on the way to a 76-29 victory over Rancho Alamitos in the

first round of the Estancia Coast Classic at Estancia High.

After opening a little sluggishly, allowing the Vaqueros (0-7) to

take an 11-9 lead with 2:04 left in the first period, the Eagles

(9-1) scored the next 24 points and kept pouring it on until they

led, 69-17 in the opening minute of the final quarter.

Using their supreme height advantage, bearing down on defense and

maintaining intensity long after the outcome was decided, the Eagles

extended their winning streak to eight. They also pleased Coach Chris

Sorce.

“As a coach, you get chills, because you preach team, team, team,”

Sorce said. “And these guys were the ultimate teammates in the third

quarter. That may have been the most unselfish high school basketball

I’ve ever witnessed. I guess our guys still have the Christmas

spirit, because they were playing as if it was better to give than

receive. They were making the extra pass, it seemed, every time down

the court.”

Up comfortably, 35-13, at halftime, Estancia, playing for the

first time in its own gym, outscored the Garden Grove League

representative, 30-4, in the third quarter. In the period, the Eagles

made 12 of 21 field-goal attempts, while holding the Vaqueros to just

2 of 12 from the field. Seven different Eagles scored in the

third-quarter blitz, which provided a treat for the home crowd.

After a 6-0 spurt to open the quarter, the Eagles answered

Rancho’s first second-half field goal with eight straight points, on

a Joey Lindquist follow shot and layups by Matt Cachola, Lindquist

and Zack Novak.

Rancho, held to a season-low scoring output, netted its final

field-goal of the third period with 4:44 remaining, prompting a 16-0

Estancia run that helped the Eagles close out the quarter with a

65-17 edge.

Baskets by Erik Andersen and Hugo Escobedo gave the Eagles their

biggest lead, 69-17, matching the margin they defeated El Monte to

set a school single-game record, Dec. 16 in the Garden Grove

Tournament.

But Rancho picked up its pace as Estancia emptied the bench, which

included a trio of freshmen whom Sorce was happy to get some varsity

exposure.

Two of those freshmen, 6-foot-3 Dallas Kopp and 5-5 Shaun Markley,

hit their only field goal attempt to finish with two and three

points, respectively, much to the delight of the Estancia veterans

who stood and cheered their buckets from the bench.

“That was nice to see our older guys cheering and pulling for the

freshmen,” Sorce said.

Freshman Michael McDaniels chipped in two rebounds in his limited

minutes, giving those on hand a preview of the years to come.

This season continues tonight at 8, when the Eagles, off to their

best start since the 1995-96 squad opened 12-1, meet Anaheim in the

championship quarterfinals. Anaheim surprised Corona del Mar, 43-41,

in Thursday’s first round.

Thursday’s victory saw four Eagles either match or exceed their

previous career single-game scoring highs.

Scott Sankey, a 6-5 junior, skied over smaller Vaqueros all night

to collect a career-high 14 points, hitting 7 of 9 field-goal

attempts and also chipping in five rebounds.

Lindquist, the Eagles’ 6-7 senior center, also had his way in the

paint against the Vaqs, whose tallest starter was 6-0 senior Jose

Perez. Lindquist took full advantage, amassing game highs in points

(21) and rebounds (12). He also blocked two shots, hit eight of 14

field-goal tries and was 5 of 6 from the foul line, before exiting

with the rest of the starters before the end of the third quarter.

Escobedo, a sophomore guard, was 3 of 3 from the field, including

one of the Eagles’ three three-pointers, to post a career-high seven

points.

Cachola matched his season high with nine points, while also

contributing five assists and four steals, typifying the

unselfishness that warmed Sorce’s heart.

Sophomore Carlos Pinto added five points, four assists and four

rebounds, while Novak rounded out the starters with five points and

three steals.

Junior Jordan Stroman added eight points and four rebounds, while

Tyler Hoffman contributed three assists.

The Eagles path to a potential title-game matchup with Villa Park

was bolstered when Mayfair, the tournament’s No. 2 seed, lost its

first-round matchup after reportedly suspending 11 varsity players

for misconduct during a recent trip to Hawaii.

If the Eagles can get by Anaheim, they would face tonight’s

Trabuco Hills-Rosemead winner in Saturday’s 6:25 p.m. semifinal.