Girls get solid victory over Calvary Chapel
Mike Sciacca
Tying its own team record for most points scored in a single-game,
Laguna Beach High downed Calvary Chapel Tuesday, 63-48, in Pacific
Coast League girls’ basketball action.
The Breakers, who won their 10th game of the season, outscored the
Eagles in the first three quarters, most notably, by a 24-9 count in
the third quarter.
“We controlled this game from start to finish, never letting
Calvary in the door,” Laguna coach Stacy Howard said. “We were led by
four great performances.”
On such performance came from senior Aja Roley.
The senior guard/forward scored a game-best 21 points and seven
rebounds. In addition, she held Bethany Hurst, one of Calvary’s top
scorers with a 10.5 points per game average, to just four points.
“Aja saw the floor well, made great decisions all night and did
exactly what we asked of her on both ends of the floor,” Howard said.
Sophomore Claire Bevacqua came off the bench to score 18 points on
six of 10 shooting from the field, and six of seven from the foul
line.
Bevacqua also had five steals on the night.
Freshman guard Brittany Clark scored 10 points and capped a solid,
all-around performance with six assists, six steals and five
rebounds.
“Our most relaxed performance of the evening came from Deana
Awadalla,” Howard said. “In a game where Calvary forced us to hit
from outside, Deana took and hit the shots we needed, hitting two,
three-pointers and connecting on another field goal to give her eight
points on the night.
“But Deana’s six assists and five boards were a better reflection
of her hustle all night. Completely focused, Deana led us all night
with great control of the game, both offensively and defensively,
with great communication and adjustments. She saw the floor
incredibly well and had a couple of passes that really threaded the
needle.”
The victory kept Laguna in a three-way tie for second-place in the
league standings.
Prior to running past Calvary Chapel, the Breakers scored what
Howard termed “our most exciting win as a program, to date,” -- a
43-42 win at Northwood.
The Breakers were led by the double-double effort of Bevacqua, who
finished the game with 17 points and 11 rebounds.
“We rallied from a horrible start to beat them,” Howard said.
“Claire’s athleticism and ability to make things happen on the floor
has really ignited our team and has given us a new-found confidence
on the floor.”
Laguna trailed, 20-9, after the first quarter and was down by 11
points in the third period.
But the Breakers battled back to take the lead with under two
minutes left in the game. They never trailed after that, and went on
to outscore the Timberwolves, 12-6, in the quarter.
Senior post Katie Sexton scored eight points and added eight
rebounds in another big game performance for the Breakers.
“We played great defense and out-rebounded them, 41-25,” Howard
said. “I think that it was a big confidence boost for us and keeps us
on the winning track heading into our last week of league play.”
In boys’ basketball, Laguna defeated Corona del Mar, 48-43, on the
Sea Kings’ home floor.
The triumph gave the Breakers, who won their 11th game overall,, a
season sweep of their chief rival.
Freshman guard Cheyne Martin topped all scorers with 14 points and
junior guard/forward Ivan Kovacevic had 13 points.
“We did an outstanding job defensively,” Laguna Coach Mark Hill
said. “Our guys really hustled and did a great job in shutting them
down.
“But we had a major breakdown a few nights later against
Northwood.”
Hill said that breakdowns along the Breakers’ defensive front was
a problem in a 62-52 loss against the Timberwolves.
Kovacevic’s 19 points led Laguna.
Senior forward/center Austin Sands contributed 12 points and
Martin finished with 11 points.
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