Prep roundup: No. 1 Piedmont girls continue to roll even with star player injured
Girls basketball
Despite playing without Trinity Zamora for the fourth straight game, Piedmont has continued to roll. The Bay Area News Group’s No. 1-ranked girls team crushed San Leandro 70-28 on Wednesday, improving to 20-0 this season.
Since losing the San Diego State-bound Zamora to a knee injury on Jan. 18, the Highlanders are 4-0 and have won those contests by an average of 29 points. That includes a 66-51 victory over eighth-ranked Acalanes on Saturday.
Eva Levingston led the charge against San Leandro (13-7, 2-4 WACC Foothill Division). The senior had a triple-double with 15 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists.
“She has come into her own, that’s for sure,” Piedmont coach Bryan Gardere said.
The colleges have come calling. Gardere said he spoke to a couple of schools about Levingston before Wednesday’s game against San Leandro. Nevada and Cal State Fullerton are among the colleges showing interest in the senior.
Levingston received plenty of help from her teammates as Piedmont won for the sixth time without defeat in the WACC Foothill. Natalia Martinez had 21 points, five rebounds and five steals. Maddie Hill contributed 14 points and four assists.
Gardere said he expects Zamora to return before the season ends, possibly as early as next week. The Highlanders are off until Tuesday, when they will play at Castro Valley.
No. 2 Archbishop Mitty 64, Presentation 15
Elle Hanson scored 22 points and Maya Hernandez added 11 points as the Monarchs (17-2, 5-0 WCAL) upped their winning streak to 10 in a row. Mitty has won each of its last two games by 49 points. The Monarchs led 21-0 at the end of the first quarter and were ahead 35-6 at the half. Things will get a little tougher next Wednesday when Mitty visits Sacred Heart Cathedral in San Francisco. Presentation fell to 7-11 for the season and 0-5 in league play.
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No. 3 Sacred Heart Cathedral 54, St. Ignatius 36
Sacred Heart Cathedral (16-2, 4-1 WCAL) went on a 12-2 run in the second half after St. Ignatius (9-9, 2-3) closed to 35-31 in the girls basketball version of the Bruce-Mahoney rivalry. St. Ignatius came into the game Wednesday having won five in a row between these two teams. SHC still owns a 35-17 edge in this rivalry. The Bruce-Mahoney series for this school year is tied 2-2. The series continues on March 25 when the schools meet in baseball at Oracle Park.
No. 5 Oakland Tech 66, Fremont 5
Oakland Tech improved to 16-5 while winning by at least 50 points for the fifth time in this Oakland Athletic League mismatch. It was 31-0 after the first quarter and 46-4 at the half as Tech pushed its record to 4-0 in league play. Erin Sellers scored 12 points for the winners and Nia Hunter had 10. Fremont slipped to 1-14 overall and 1-3 in league play.
No. 17 California 51, Amador Valley 30
The Grizzlies unleashed their sophomores on Amador Valley. Sofie Addiego had 13 points, seven rebounds and three steals, and Trinity Chu also scored 13 points. A third tenth-grader, Lauren Yee, had four assists. The game was close for a half, as California went to the locker room clinging to a 19-17 lead. But the Grizzlies (16-6, 5-2 EBAL) outscored Amador Valley 20-8 in the third quarter and continued to add to their lead in the final period. The Dons are struggling. They are 8-15 overall, 0-6 in league play and have lost 10 of their last 11.
No. 19 Moreau Catholic 71, Newark Memorial 36
Madison Thomas had a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds in the Mariners’ easy win. Moreau Catholic now stands at 12-8 overall and 7-0 in the Mission Valley Athletic League. Newark Memorial (11-9, 3-4) had two players score in double figures. Tali Fa’i led all scorers with 15 points and Jaydin Armas contributed 12.
Boys basketball
No. 11 Moreau Catholic 87, Newark Memorial 41
The Mariners (13-5, 7-0) remained unbeaten in Mission Valley Athletic League play, as the team’s leading scorer, 6-foot-7 sophomore wing Kellen Hampton, knocked down 22 points, his scoring average for the season thus far. Jesse Ybarra had 12 points, but more importantly, was credited with 10 steals. LeBrie Goudy-Lee and Andrew Placido had 10 apiece for Moreau Catholic. Newark Memorial continued to struggle, falling to 6-14 overall and 0-8 in league play. The loss on Wednesday was the seventh in a row for Newark Memorial.
No. 13 Oakland 75, McClymonds 28
Montana-bound guard Money Williams was money against McClymonds, scoring 26 first-half points and 34 overall in the one-sided win. Oakland (17-6, 4-1 OAL) led 53-17 at intermission. Williams scored 12 points in the first quarter and 14 in the second. He added eight more in the third period. He came into the contest averaging 14.9 points per game. Shaun Jackson added nine points for the winners. McClymonds slipped to 7-11, 2-3.
No. 15 Alameda 57, St. Joseph Notre Dame 49
For the third time in the past six games, St. Joseph Notre Dame carried a lead into the fourth quarter and couldn’t it. The Pilots couldn’t hold a 42-39 edge against Alameda Wednesday night. In fairness to SJND, all three games have been close. Before playing Alameda, the Pilots blew a two-point edge over Berkeley and squandered a six-point lead against San Leandro. Alameda improved to 17-3 overall and 5-1 in the WACC. St Joseph Notre Dame is 5-13, 0-6.
No. 20 Priory 74, Crystal Springs Uplands 31
The Panthers put three players into double figures while dispatching of Crystal Springs Uplands in a West Bay Athletic League contest. Clint Smith was the scoring leader with 21 points. Nes Emeneke had 14 points and five rebounds, and Ryder Bush was good for 11 more points. Rostand Olama Abanda led the Panthers’ defense with five steals. Priory is 16-2 overall and 3-1 in its league, tied for second with The King’s Academy and a game behind Sacred Heart Prep. Crystal Springs Uplands is 7-9, 0-4.
Sacred Heart Prep 85, Half Moon Bay 61
The Gators (11-4) won their seventh in a row and snapped Half Moon Bay’s (10-7) seven-game win streak in a non-league matchup at Sacred Heart Prep. Led by 15 points apiece from JP Kerrigan and LJ Quattlebaum, Sacred Heart Prep was never in danger of losing, racing to a 51-26 lead at halftime. The Gators had five players in double figures. TJ O’Brien had 14 points, Sam Norris chipped in 13 and Drew Wagner added 10. Quattlebaum’s 15 points were twice his season’s scoring average of 7.5 points per game. Half Moon Bay got 16 points from 6-foot-8 junior forward Jaeden Hutchins and 10 from Gio Garduno-Martin.
Leigh 52, Branham 51
Caleb Asante hit the game-winning basket with 2.6 seconds remaining to give Leigh (11-6, 5-0 BVAL Mt. Hamilton) a hard-earned victory. Zach Norcia was the leading scorer for the Longhorns with 23 points. Miles Karandikan dropped in 11 points. Branham has a sparkling 15-4 overall record, but it is 2-3 in league play.
Piedmont 61, San Leandro 44
AJ Harris scored 35 points and Brit Burden added 17 to lead Piedmont to a victory at home over San Leandro in WACC Foothill Division play. Piedmont led 24-8 after the first quarter and 33-20 at halftime on its way to improving to 14-6, 4-2. The Highlanders are one game behind first-place Alameda. San Leandro is 6-13, 3-3.