Weston Ranch’s girls basketball team could not climb out of an early hole in an 80-67 loss to the Christian Brothers Tournament host Thursday.
The Cougars (1-1) trailed 24-14 by the end of the first quarter when they were whistled for 10 fouls to Christian Brothers’ one. For the game, Weston Ranch had 23 fouls while the Falcons (2-0) finished with 11.
“We got frazzled and let it take us out of our game,” Weston Ranch coach Chris Bauer said of the foul disparity.
They were able to keep pace for the remainder of the contest and cut the deficit down to five with 1:40 remaining.
Jazmin Strane turned in 17 points and 10 rebounds for Weston Ranch. Sophomore guard A.J. Brown and Jakia Richmond added 10 points each, and Candisse Griffin scored nine. Weston Ranch takes on Ponderosa at 3 p.m. today.
Ishana Burch led Christian Brothers with 16 points, and 6-foot sophomore center Jaden Garrett had 15.
Christian Brothers bothered Weston Ranch with its press defense early on, but Bauer was happy with how his team executed to adjustments.
“To be exposed to that type of pressure and the different presses they throw at you this early (in the season) is huge,” Bauer said. “In the second half we played a hundred times better.
“It’s only our second game of the year, so I don’t expect us to be in midseason form. We have a lot of little things that should be easy to fix in practice.
Escalon Tournament
Riverbank 41, Ripon Christian 39
The Knights (1-1) did well to fight back from a 13-2 first-quarter deficit but gave up the final field goal — a turnaround jumper — in the final minute.
Mikaela Alger posted 14 points and 13 rebounds, and guard Kaylie Colyn scored 12 points.
Sophomore
Weston Ranch 57, Merced 14
The Cougars (2-0) tipped off their own tournament with a dominating effort.
Briana White led the way with 12 points, seven rebounds and five steals. Danica Ramos added 11 points, and Vanessa Contreras had 10.
Weston Ranch encounters Bret Harte in the semifinal round today. The other semifinal pits Brookside Christian and Del Oro.
