Lancers spear Ranger hoopsters
By Jesse Phelps

A promising season reached a premature conclusion Saturday night for Nordhoff's talented girls' varsity basketball squad when it was beaten at home by Bishop Amat, 78-50, in the second round of the CIF Division IIIA playoffs.

The Rangers were outrebounded by the hustling Lancers, 61-29. Down by 10 at the half, the Rangers opened the third quarter even colder. The team went without a field goal or defensive rebound for the first four minutes of the third quarter, despite two quick time-outs called for by head coach Ted Cotti.

"That was the game," Cotti said. Nordhoff spent the rest of the third and the entire fourth quarter playing catch-up.
The first-half deficit was due, in large part, to Nordhoff's inability to convert from the free throw line. After missing seven free throws in the half, the Rangers had a chance to cut the lead to seven at the break but missed a wide-open, three-point shot.

Cotti said he and his staff also failed to scout the opposition accurately.
"Girls who supposedly couldn't shoot buried three threes in first half," he pointed out.

Freshman point guard Ariane Roache led the team in defeat, finishing with seven assists and 13 points. All-County forward Alison Bennett had 14 points and 12 boards.

Things looked so promising for the team after its first-round game Thursday, when Roache, Tahnie Benitez and Johanna Rothermel all scored in double figures in a first-round thrashing of the El Segundo Eagles.
Nordhoff won 60-31 behind strong team defense and a balanced scoring attack.

Roache shot five of seven from the field, including a three-pointer, and added five assists. Benitez poured in 10 points and added seven rebounds in limited minutes. Rothermel came off the bench to score 10 points.

Perhaps the performance of the night belonged to senior forward Becky Kennedy, who cleaned the glass all night, notching 12 rebounds to go along with seven points.
Kenndy said the experience of playing tough competition early in the year helped prepare Nordhoff for the playoffs. "Playing bigger schools in preseason helped us a lot," she said. "All those big games and tournaments that we went to, really made it possible for us just to come and kick butt."

Nordhoff gave up the opening points of the night, but led 17-7 at the end of the first quarter on a three-pointer by Alexis Kenyon on a nice feed from Roache. By the half, the lead was 35-16 and it was 53-25 after three, as Nordhoff continued to score twice for every basket it conceded.
The second half saw Cotti empty his bench completely. Sasha O'Brien came up big off the pine, grabbing four fourth-quarter rebounds.

When the game was over, Nordhoff looked ready to make a run deep into the tournament but the coaches and players from Bishop Amat had other ideas.

© 2003 The Ojai Valley News

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