San Benito continues control of TCAL with North Salinas next
HOLLISTER
Last year when the San Benito Lady ‘Balers traveled to hostile territory, traveled to North Salinas, the Tri-County Athletic League was all wrapped up.
With their 49-38 victory over Alisal in the previous game, San Benito already had league title in hand when they played the Vikings a second time.
The only thing left on the line was an undefeated season in the TCAL, and North Salinas erased any hope of that happening when they edged the Lady ‘Balers 51-47.
“This time we’re anxious, we’re ready to go,” guard Kelsey Russell said Monday.
The two teams will meet up Friday night in Salinas under far different circumstances. While San Benito remains undefeated in the TCAL – and is currently riding a 13-game win streak, no less – the TCAL remains up for grabs.
San Benito controls their destiny and the league at 7-0, but North Salinas (6-1) and even Gilroy (5-2) all remain in close contention.
“Last year we went in like, ‘Oh, we’ve got this in the bag,'” said post player Megan Halstead, who dropped 14 points on the Vikings earlier this year. “We already had league and we weren’t really fighting for anything, per se. But this year, there is so much more on the line for us.
“We’ve got to go out with the same intensity that we always have.”
Regarding last game, however, San Benito’s Vanessa Farias said it wasn’t until the fourth quarter when the Lady ‘Balers began to implement their offense.
Feeding off the high-energy crowd in the early stages, she said, San Benito didn’t remain calm and collected, and instead were “running – go, go, go.”
In that respect, Russell adds the Lady ‘Balers don’t want to come out too aggressive either. Otherwise San Benito may be called for costly fouls in a game that was decided by just 11 points last time, a game in which Vikings Bina Abbott and Edthel Lugo – North Salinas’ two leading scorers – fouled out during the fourth quarter.
The Lady ‘Balers won that contest 55-44 on Jan. 12 in Hollister.
“But coach says, ‘It’s definitely going to be a rough game,'” Russell added.
San Benito head coach David Kaplansky has been preparing his team for the box-and-one as well as the triangle-and-two defenses North Salinas usually employs.
In fact, the Vikings used the triangle-and-two defense the last time they played San Benito, which went scoreless through the first two and a half minutes of regulation.
“Most importantly,” Kaplansky said, “we really want to get off to a good start. Last year when we played over there, we gave up a 16-3 (first) quarter, and it really affected us for the rest of the game.
“We want to establish ourselves early. The key to having success on the road against a good team like North Salinas is that we get off to a good start.”
That 16-3 start in last year’s showdown certainly did affect the team, considering San Benito only lost by four points.
But Friday’s face-off, Kaplansky said, will be determined as to which team can bring the pressure, and which team can handle it.
“If we come out a winner against a top team (in North Salinas), that’s gonna give us some breathing room,” he said. “It’s gonna be about who comes out with the most energy and enthusiasm, and who ultimately handles it – the environment, the pressure and the stress that comes with a first-place basketball game.”
–
San Benito will visit North Salinas Friday night. Tip-off is at 7 p.m.
