The Hollister B girls hoop team ended up 9-2 for the Monterey
Peninsula College Summer League, which was good enough for the
league title. The B team was scheduled to play Seaside for the
championship, but the Spartans didn’t have enough players.
The Hollister B girls hoop team ended up 9-2 for the Monterey Peninsula College Summer League, which was good enough for the league title. The B team was scheduled to play Seaside for the championship, but the Spartans didn’t have enough players.
The top players for the Baler B team included Jamie Flores, Dani Andrewson, Denise Simens, Erika Rodrigues and Jen Crepeau.
The Baler A team finished fourth with a record of 5-5.
Coach Tom Dean had two teams in the recently completed Seaside Jamboree. The Baler A team sported a 2-3 record, including a barnburner of a loss to Alisal at 57-55. Down by five with 16 seconds left, Trisha Lee was fouled while attempting a three-point goal. She netted all three free throws. The Balers man pressed, stole the ball and had a good look for a tying shot, but the shot rimmed off.
Lee finished with 26 points, while center Jamie Hall had 21 points.
“We only had seven players and they had 13,” said Dean. “We got tired.”
The Balers defeated Menlo-Atherton 51-39 with Hall pouring in 23 points. Lee had 11, while Kristina Leal had six and helped out on the boards.
The Baler B team lost 54-53 to Alisal when the Trojans sank a game-winning bucket with one second left on the clock. The B team finished 3-3 for the jamboree.
Dean cited Simens for improved play this summer.
“She has really stepped up and played very strong down low,” said Dean of Simens.
Playing without Andrewson and Crepeau, the B team was defeated by Notre Dame by five points, blowing an eight point lead with eight minutes left.
It has been a summer of firsts for the Baler basketball program. The team declared itself an AAU team so it could run drills. In addition, it was the first time that a Baler basketball player played for a traveling AAU team. Lee and Hall played for a team out of West Valley College. Hall, who played for the West Valley A team, traveled to Oregon and Washington for tournaments.
Dean will send two teams to a camp at San Jose State. The camp runs August 4-7 from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. In contrast to what Dean did with the summer league teams, the upper class will form one team, while the freshmen and sophomores will form the other. The younger team will be coached by former Baler Naomi Ruiz.
On a down note for the program, Rodrigues has opted to transfer to Anzar High this fall.
“Erika has really played well for us this summer,” said Dean. “She would have probably started for me this year. I wouldn’t be surprised if she is in the running for the Mission Trail Athletic League MVP this year.”
