The Lady Balers’ inside-out offensive approach was no match for
visiting Everett Alvarez on Tuesday at Hollister’s Mattson Gym,
where San Benito’s slow start quickly blossomed into a 35-13
halftime lead and an eventual 69-25 victory in the team’s
Tri-County Athletic League opener.
HOLLISTER
When an opponent zigs, San Benito zags.
The Lady Balers’ inside-out offensive approach was no match for visiting Everett Alvarez on Tuesday at Hollister’s Mattson Gym, where San Benito’s slow start quickly blossomed into a 35-13 halftime lead and an eventual 69-25 victory in the team’s Tri-County Athletic League opener.
Post player Victoria Aguilera scored a team-high 11 points to lead the Lady Balers, while teammate Cassie Pate added nine. A handful of Baler guards pocketed plenty of points as well, including Vanessa Casalegno (8 points), Cyrena Salinas (8), Jackie Echaorre (8) and Erin Glasspool (5).
San Benito had 11 different scorers in Tuesday’s win, which pushes them out to a 12-1 overall record, 1-0 in the TCAL.
“The perimeter shots really opened things up,” San Benito head coach David Kaplansky said. “We just went back and forth with what they gave us.”
Back and forth, that is, with the inside-out attack.
Although San Benito got off to a slow start against the Eagles (2-9, 0-1 TCAL), holding just a 2-1 lead after nearly five minutes of play, the Lady Balers began to penetrate the paint midway through the first quarter, and Alvarez had few answers to stop them.
“That’s when the pace picked up,” Kaplansky said.
Pate received a jump-pass from the outside and converted a three-point play to push San Benito out to a 5-1 lead, while Aguilera did the same on a jump-pass from the perimeter, banking in a basket from close range.
About as soon as things started to seem routine, though, the Lady Balers began to open up their outside shooting. Jackie Echaorre got things started when she drained a 3-pointer, Aguilera followed with a long-range jumper, and Echaorre again hit another deep field goal at the buzzer to give San Benito an all-of-a-sudden 15-5 lead after one quarter.
“That’s what this team is predicated on,” Kaplansky said.
The inside-outside assault carried over into the second stanza, too. On consecutive offensive possessions to open the quarter, Glasspool hit a trey from the corner, Pate followed with a put-back in the paint, and Salinas nailed a 3-pointer of her own — outside, inside, outside.
The Lady Balers, as a result, sprinted out on a 14-0 run to open the second quarter, and never looked back.
Alvarez’s Rhaissel Perez led all scorers with 12 points.
The sizable San Benito victory sets up Monday night’s showdown in Salinas, where the Lady Balers will battle North High at 7 p.m. The Vikings (11-2, 1-0 TCAL) won their league opener on Tuesday night as well, defeating Salinas 65-24 at home.
TEAM 1 2 3 4 F
EA 5 8 10 2 25
SB 15 20 17 17 69
San Benito (69): J. Echaorre 2 1 1 8, M. LePore 1 0 2 4, C. Salinas 1 2 0 8, M. Vallejo 1 0 1 3, E. Glasspool 1 1 0 5, M. Cortez 1 0 0 2, C. Pare 3 0 0 9, V. Casalegno 2 0 4 8, M. Fortino 0 0 3 3, E. Miskin 1 0 0 2, V. Aguilera 6 0 1 11.
See Friday’s edition of The Weekend Pinnacle for a TCAL preview.
JV Note:
Behind 10 points from Kayla Ortiz, the San Benito girls junior varsity basketball team held off visiting Everett Alvarez 30-24 Tuesday night in the TCAL opener at Hollister’s Mattson Gym.
Head coach Karen Fortino said Alvarez, which only trailed by a single point at halftime, played a quick game against the Lady Balers and also showcased strong rebounding, which prevented San Benito from scoring transition baskets.
“I was completely impressed with the way Alvarez played,” Fortino said. “We had a tough time offensively getting in there, and we had a tough time getting rebounds against them.
“But we’ll take the win.”
Victoria Bustamante had six points and Ellie Burley added four points for the Lady Balers, who improved to 8-1 overall with the win.
“They fought and played until the end, and that’s all you can ask for,” Fortino said.
San Benito (1-0 TCAL) will visit North Salinas on Monday night. Tip-off is 5:30 p.m.
TEAM 1 2 3 4 F
EA 5 8 4 7 24
SB 5 9 7 9 30
