WESTON RANCH — With Sac-Joaquin Section postseason positioning at stake, intensity was not a problem for Weston Ranch and Sierra’s girls basketball teams Thursday in their Valley Oak League finale.
Execution, on the other hand, took a little time to make an appearance.
When it was all said and done, Weston Ranch put together a late fourth-quarter comeback, erasing a six-point fourth quarter deficit in its 44-36 win over the Timberwolves. The Cougars (11-3 VOL, 17-8 overall) held Sierra to just six fourth quarter points, earning the lead for the first time since late in the first quarter.
“There came a point in time when Weston Ranch really stepped up the speed,” Sierra head coach Stephan Unterholzner said. “And the girls just let Weston Ranch control the tempo of the game. Rather then doing what we were doing the whole game, which was control the game and play it our way.”
Sierra (7-7, 15-10) looked the part of the better team, coming out of halftime and blasting Weston Ranch with an 8-0 run. The Cougars responded with a mini-run for themselves, only to see their chances of hosting a first round playoff game seemingly slipping away.
Sierra senior Alysia Atkins (14 points) took over late in the third, asserting herself as the offensive threat when Cougar standout Jazmin Strane left the court with her third foul. Atkins scored on three consecutive trips, helping the Timberwolves build a 30-22 lead with less than a minute left in the third.
“We definitely wanted to win that game,” Atkins said after the loss. “It would have given us a better guarantee at making the playoffs, but there is still a chance we can get in.
“With a win it would have been better.”
The Cougars responded immediately in the final period, holding the Timberwolves without a field goal for the first three minutes of the quarter. Emoni Wilson blew a breakaway layup, only to come down the following trip only to make the breakaway layup and complete the three-point play.
“For me, I was thinking about my best friend (Timnesha Wilson) and the other seniors on the team and how important it was to win this game for them,” Cougar Jasmine Strane said. “I did not think that they should have to leave with their final VOL game being a loss.
“That really was important to me.”
Strane’s play in the fourth quarter supports that, as she finished with nine points and a game-high 17 rebounds, 10 of which came in the first half. Timnesha Wilson was as impressive, closing the contest with a game-high 20 points. Sierra’s Jordan Johnson finished with a dozen.
Timnesha Wilson was honored before tip-off for becoming the first girls basketball player in school history to amass 1,000 points in their varsity career. Wilson’s 20-point night gives her 1,100 throughout her three-year varsity career. She is only the second player in school history to accomplish the feat, with 2008 graduate James Nunnally closing his career with just over 1,200.
“For the seniors it was our last home VOL game and nobody would want to lose that game,” Timnesha Wilson said. “I talked to Jazmin (Strane) at halftime and basically told her I didn’t want to lose. We had to work hard and play together; and really step up as leaders.”
The Cougars are currently eighth in the SJS power ratings, while Sierra is 14th. The win likely assures the Cougars a home game in the Division-III opening round, while Sierra will have to wait until the final brackets are announced Sunday.
Execution, on the other hand, took a little time to make an appearance.
When it was all said and done, Weston Ranch put together a late fourth-quarter comeback, erasing a six-point fourth quarter deficit in its 44-36 win over the Timberwolves. The Cougars (11-3 VOL, 17-8 overall) held Sierra to just six fourth quarter points, earning the lead for the first time since late in the first quarter.
“There came a point in time when Weston Ranch really stepped up the speed,” Sierra head coach Stephan Unterholzner said. “And the girls just let Weston Ranch control the tempo of the game. Rather then doing what we were doing the whole game, which was control the game and play it our way.”
Sierra (7-7, 15-10) looked the part of the better team, coming out of halftime and blasting Weston Ranch with an 8-0 run. The Cougars responded with a mini-run for themselves, only to see their chances of hosting a first round playoff game seemingly slipping away.
Sierra senior Alysia Atkins (14 points) took over late in the third, asserting herself as the offensive threat when Cougar standout Jazmin Strane left the court with her third foul. Atkins scored on three consecutive trips, helping the Timberwolves build a 30-22 lead with less than a minute left in the third.
“We definitely wanted to win that game,” Atkins said after the loss. “It would have given us a better guarantee at making the playoffs, but there is still a chance we can get in.
“With a win it would have been better.”
The Cougars responded immediately in the final period, holding the Timberwolves without a field goal for the first three minutes of the quarter. Emoni Wilson blew a breakaway layup, only to come down the following trip only to make the breakaway layup and complete the three-point play.
“For me, I was thinking about my best friend (Timnesha Wilson) and the other seniors on the team and how important it was to win this game for them,” Cougar Jasmine Strane said. “I did not think that they should have to leave with their final VOL game being a loss.
“That really was important to me.”
Strane’s play in the fourth quarter supports that, as she finished with nine points and a game-high 17 rebounds, 10 of which came in the first half. Timnesha Wilson was as impressive, closing the contest with a game-high 20 points. Sierra’s Jordan Johnson finished with a dozen.
Timnesha Wilson was honored before tip-off for becoming the first girls basketball player in school history to amass 1,000 points in their varsity career. Wilson’s 20-point night gives her 1,100 throughout her three-year varsity career. She is only the second player in school history to accomplish the feat, with 2008 graduate James Nunnally closing his career with just over 1,200.
“For the seniors it was our last home VOL game and nobody would want to lose that game,” Timnesha Wilson said. “I talked to Jazmin (Strane) at halftime and basically told her I didn’t want to lose. We had to work hard and play together; and really step up as leaders.”
The Cougars are currently eighth in the SJS power ratings, while Sierra is 14th. The win likely assures the Cougars a home game in the Division-III opening round, while Sierra will have to wait until the final brackets are announced Sunday.
