Girls’ Varsity Basketball scores victory in State Regional
On Thursday, Feb.29, the Newbury Park Girls’ Varsity Basketball faced West Ranch High School in the second state playoff game of the season. The Panthers ultimately emerged victorious, scoring 52 points to West Ranch’s 42.
In the first quarter, the Panthers jumped straight into the heat, with Dana Cruz, junior, making two shots, including one behind the three point line, within the first 90 seconds of the game. Cruz explained that she practiced heavily to attain this level of skill, shooting up to 100 free throws per day. Cruz, who has been playing basketball since the fifth grade, realized that in spite of how much she practiced, she was still surprised by the results of the game. “It’s really exciting,” Cruz said. “I honestly did not expect to go this far.” Cruz also believes that the victory is owed in large part to the team’s improvement.“We didn’t really start to get better until this year. We’ve grown as a team, and it has been really fun,” Cruz said.
At the opening of the second quarter, however, West Banks was able to briefly hold a lead over Newbury Park. This was owed in large part to making four free throws in the closing minute of the first quarter. Later in the game, due to a series of shots and assists largely by Skylar Komatsu and Kimiko Carmer, juniors, and Greta Heath, sophomore. Komatsu alone made six shots, with Carmer and Heath each making four. In the closing minutes of the game, Heath was able to make a longshot goal from beyond the three point line, solidifying the final score at 52–42.
Carmer reflected e on the results of the game, echoing some of Cruz’s thoughts. “Going from last year to this year, it’s amazing,” Carmer said. “Our team was really hyped up for this game.” Carmer, who has been playing Basketball for six years, also spends much of her spare time practicing. “We practice every weekday. On my own, I focus on ball handling.”
Although many on the team did not start the season expecting to win or even reach this point, their hard work has paid off. The girls were able to play well together as a team and ultimately not only win, but win by a sizable margin.
