Seniors finish home careers in style

Mike Sciacca

In the final home basketball game of their prep careers, Leslie

Schmalzried, Lizzy Friedman and Katie Gallagher -- the three seniors

on the Laguna Beach High girls’ basketball team -- went out in style

with a 54-44 win against visiting Tesoro on Senior Night at Dugger

Gym on Tuesday.

In the second game of the Senior Night doubleheader, the Laguna

Beach boys’ team, led by seniors Peter Renault, Alex Norfleet and

Kyle Hogan, recorded a 66-55 victory over Tesoro.

Gallagher, still out of the lineup with a back injury, cheered

from the bench as Schmalzried and Friedman each came up with an

impressive, double-double performance in the Pacific Coast League

contest.

Schmalried, playing her first game since suffering an ankle injury

in a Jan. 30 game against Corona del Mar, finished the game with 16

points and 10 rebounds in addition to blocking four shots.

Friedman’s double-double included 14 points and 11 rebounds, and she hit six of eight free throw attempts.

“They definitely came into this game looking to make something

special out of Senior Night,” Laguna Beach assistant coach Dan Breece

said. “This senior class has really raised the bar for our program.”

Laguna was led in scoring by freshman Emily Friedman’s 19 points,

which included a three-for-five performance from three-point range.

Emily Friedman also had four assists and three steals.

In their previous game, the Breakers gave first-place Calvary

Chapel a battle, but ended up with a 61-51 loss.

The Friedman sisters, Lizzy and Emily, scored 12 and 18 points,

respectively, for a Laguna team that suited up just eight players for

the game.

Laguna was 3-6 in league and 7-16 overall heading into Thursday’s

game at University.

In their final home games of their respective Laguna careers, Kyle

Hogan netted one three-point shot and led all scorers with 21 points,

Peter Renault nailed five three-point shots and scored 19 points, and

Alex Norfleet hit the Breakers’ other two three-pointers and finished

with 12 points in a 66-55 triumph over Tesoro.

Previously, Laguna had a fourth-quarter comeback fall short in a

72-68 home loss to Calvary Chapel.

Hogan had another big night, leading Laguna with 31 points, nine

rebounds and three assists. He went 12 of 14 from the foul line and

the team’s assist leader dished out three in the game.

Jake Wheeler came off the bench to have his best game of the

season, coach Rob Cullinan said, with six points and nine rebounds.

Ivan Kovacevic and Norfleet each scored nine points, freshman Jeff

Clark, in his second straight start and third of the season,

contributed five points, three steals and three assists, and Austin

Sands, the team leader in blocked shots, came up with three blocks.