Then there was one. Last week three Culver City girls’ teams entered the playoffs and when the week was over there was only one team standing tall. The soccer and water polo teams’ loss their CIF playoff games but the basketball team kept Culver City’s name from fading into the playoff sunset. Their 63-43 victory over Quartz Hill last Saturday at Culver City in the highly competitive 1AA CIF playoffs also kept their 11-game winning streak alive.
The Lady Centaurs, who are currently 18-9, played yesterday against Los Alamitos and if they win that game their next game will be this Saturday against the winner of the Etiwanda versus King High School of Riverside at 7 p.m. Scores were not available at press time. For scores, please call the school to find out where the game will be played.
“I thought we played really well,” Culver City Head Coach Julian Anderson said after their win against Quartz Hill. “I think we were sharp and pretty much on point but we still need a couple of our bench players to step up and keep the momentum going or help us get back into the game if we are behind.”
The Centaurs made eight three pointers against Quartz Hill but if they expect to go deep into the playoffs they must develop a strong inside game. Senior center Gwendolyn Machado is a key piece to Culver City’s puzzle of success with the inside game if she can stay out of foul trouble
“She is our X factor,” said Anderson. “If she can score, it can turn a game around and put us in a good position to win the game. She is also a very good rebounder.”
Kailey Tooke, who led Culver City with 17 points against Quartz Hill, thinks the Centaurs are ready to take that next step and go deep into the playoffs.
“I felt good and I think it was a good start to the playoffs,” Tooke said. “If we do what the coach tells us to do we can go far in the playoffs.”
Culver City’s team is full of quick and sharp shooting guards like Katie Lin. The senior hopes the team can continue to win games in the playoffs.
“I think we can really do well if we make sure we stay sharp in practice,” Lin said. “Practice is really important but we also have to cut down on our turnovers and put ourselves in better positions on defense.”
Every successful team has a player that steps up and surprises everyone. This year that player is freshman guard Hayley Yamamoto. She plays like a senior on the court but after the game the young freshman is all smiles.
“It’s really cool to play at the varsity level,” said Yamamoto after the victory over Quartz Hill. “I did not think I was going to play varsity this year but everything worked out. It’s more intense than I thought it would be.”
Quartz Hill was led by All-CIF player Katilin Stephenson, who came into the game averaging 19 points and 22 rebounds per game. Against Culver City she scored 19 points and grabbed 17 rebounds and had four block shots.
“Culver City is a great team,” Stephenson said. “You could tell that they really wanted to win. They were very aggressive and their outside shooting was excellent.”
Supporting Tooke against Quartz Hill was Megan Yoon with 15, Alexis Arancibia had eight, Lin scored six and Lindsey Tanita and Machado both scored five points.