The Avalon High girls basketball team had a wild ride last week, that culminated with a CIF-SS playoff berth and a possible scenario that could end with the Lancers sharing a league title. The ride began with a 49-32 win over Newport Christian that snapped a six-game losing streak for the Lancers.
Newport was a team that the Lancers probably should have beaten, based on records and statistics. The Seahawks put up a fight in the second half but the Lancers eventually pulled away for a 49-32 victory. Senior guard Xemina Moreno led the Lancers with 13 points and six assists. The win improved the Lancers Academy League record to 3-2 and got them back in the win column just in time.
The Lancers next traveled to Western Christian in Upland, on Friday, a long drive after the boat ride overtown. In their first meeting, the Lancers had beaten Fighting Lancers, 41-39, on a last second shot. In this meeting, the Lancers trailed by 13 in the fourth quarter before storming back for a 48-42 win.
Senior guard Elizabeth Hiniker hit three consecutive three-pointers down the stretch, first to tie the game and then two more to seal the victory. Almost as important, the Lancers seemed to hit their stride at just the right time.
“We showed our mental toughness for the first time,” Head Coach David Hart said.
The Lancers returned home to face the Webb Schools, which was undefeated in league play and had beaten the Lancers, 44-22, in their first meeting. But this was not the same Lancer team and they handed Webb its first loss in league play, 42-32. The win clinched a playoff berth for Avalon.
“We took all our lessons of patience, execution, boxing out, and mental toughness and put it on full display,” Hart said.
The Lancers came into this week in third place at 5-2 in Academy League play. They had a non-league game on Wednesday and will close out the season with a league game against San Gabriel Academy on Monday at home. A win over San Gabriel would give the Lancers second place and a loss by Webb on Wednesday could create a three-way tie for the league title.
The Lancers are slotted for the Division 4AA playoffs when CIF-SS playoffs begin the week of Feb. 6.
