In its second chance, the San Benito girls basketball team won its first game of the year Thursday, beating Watsonville 56-25 in the opening game of the Wildcatz Tournament.
The Balers used a strong defensive press to force Watsonville to struggle from the field. San Benito, led by 14 points from Taylor Fabing, pulled away slowly over the course of the game.
At halftime, San Benito grabbed the early lead 28-10 thanks to the strong defense.
“I had seen Watsonville play before at the Gilroy tournament and I was impressed,” SBHS head coach Mitch Burley said. “They had some pretty good players but they didn’t make many shots. We were playing some good defense and forced them to miss some shots.”
In the second half, the strong shooting of Fabing, who made three 3-point shots in the opening moments of the third quarter, allowed San Benito to run away with the victory.
Denise Martinez added 11 points and Ellie Burley contributed 10 in the victory.
“Our expectations are growing,” Mitch Burley said. “We won handily and we played well on defense and offense.”
The Balers play Salinas at 8 p.m. Friday in the second game of the Wildcatz Tournament in Watsonville.
AHS girls basketball
Despite being limited to only six players, the Anzar girls basketball team improved to 2-1 Thursday with a 60-25 victory over Marina.
With four players unable to play because of injuries or illness, the Hawks received points from all eligible players in the victory, head coach Tracy Carpenter said.
“It was an early season type of game,” he said. “We pressed on the defensive end and we ended up shooting really well.”
It was the most points the school has scored in 82 games, said Carpenter, who also serves as the school’s co-athletic director.
“We are still a work in progress,” Carpenter said. “We are going to continued to work hard to improve.”
SBHS girls soccer
The San Benito girls soccer team improved to 3-0 Thursday with a 3-0 victory over Pioneer.
The Balers host Harbor at 10 a.m. Saturday.
