Mesa dominates Eagles

COSTA MESA — The balance of power in the girls’ basketball Battle for the Bell continues to swing toward Costa Mesa High, which rang in a new Orange Coast League season with a 60-33 victory over cross-town rival Estancia Friday on the Mustangs’ floor.

It was the ninth straight victory for the Mustangs over Estancia, which before that streak started, had won nine consecutive matchups with Mesa.

The two teams will meet twice more in league play, Jan. 23 at Estancia and Feb. 1 at Costa Mesa, which gives Estancia Coach Tommy Rausch both motivation and hope.

“If [the Mustangs] are going to win the Bell, they’re going to have to earn it,” said Rausch, whose Eagles (3-15, 0-1 in league) had a 6-0 run in the first quarter and a 7-0 burst in the third quarter to help counter strong starts by the Mustangs in each half. “We’re going to make some adjustments.”

Costa Mesa (10-6, 1-0), which Coach Jim Weeks said was rusty, having not played in 13 days, opened an 8-1 lead. Then leading, 29-20, at halftime, the defending league champions scored the first nine points of the third quarter and kept on rolling.

A 12-0 Mesa run that ended the third quarter and began the fourth, helped erase any thoughts of a comeback by the Eagles.

The Mustangs’ biggest lead was the final score, culminated with a three-pointer by senior reserve Denise Rosello with 49 seconds left.

Costa Mesa balanced outside shooting (seven three-pointers), with an inside attack (a game-high 16 points from 5-foot-11 senior center Jasmine Werdel) as well as some transition buckets off steals and turnovers, to dominate the Eagles.

Estancia, meanwhile, relied upon freshman Kassie Stratton and senior Tiffany Monteiro for its final 10 points of the first half and its first two of the second.

Stratton had all of her team-high 11 points before intermission, while Monteiro had eight of her 10 points before the break. Stratton and Monteiro had 23 of the Eagles’ 30 field-goal attempts in the first half.

But with better defensive focus in the second half, Costa Mesa made the Eagles resort to other options for offense.

Werdel, who added nine rebounds and six blocks, had 11 points after intermission.

Senior Michelle Figueroa had 10 points and nine rebounds, while junior Amy Gentling (eight points and eight rebounds) and senior Tatiana Caicedo (nine rebounds and two points) helped the Mustangs earn a 54-30 rebounding edge.

Senior Kathy Trinh had five assists to go with her four points, while Rosello finished with nine points, sinking three of four three-point attempts.

Senior Abby Koff led the Eagles with five rebounds, despite missing much of the first half in foul trouble.

Orange Coast League

Costa Mesa 60, Estancia 33

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Est – Stratton 11, Monteiro 10, Koff 4, Ramirez 3, E. Soto 2, Ruiz 2, Arreola 1.

3-pt. goals – Stratton 1, Ramirez 1.

CM – Werdel 16, Figueroa 10, Rosello 9, Gentling 8, Langmos 6, Trinh 4, Scheidt 3, Caicedo 2, Bauermeister 2.

3-pt. goals – Rosello 3, Gentling 2, Langmos 2.

BARRY FAULKNER may be reached at (714) 966-4615 or at barry.faulkner@latimes.com.