Playoff appearances mark great season for varsity teams
The winter basketball campaign came to a close for Cloverdale teams in their respective North Coast Section Division 5 playoff tournaments this week, signaling the end of an outstanding season.
The league co-champion Lady Eagles (20-7) entered the NCS tourney as the #5 seed, opening up on Feb. 21 with a home rout over #12 Athenian. The win set up a Feb. 24 clash at #4 seeded archrival Clear Lake, falling to the Cardinals, 65-53.
It was all Cloverdale in the girls playoff opener against Athenian, racing to a 32-16 cushion at the half en route to an eventual 58-21 romp.
“It was a nice first-round game,” CHS coach Rick Berry said. “Everyone got playing time and it gave the girls their 20th win.”
Sophomore Tehya Bird was nearly unstoppable, pouring in a team-high 24 points while adding eight rebounds and three steals. Other top scorers included Camryn Figueroa (12 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals), Kayli Persons (9 points, 9 assists, 1 rebound, 3 steals), Heather Sterling (4 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist), Cassendra Bassett (2 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 1 block), Maci Hernandez (1 point, 7 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals), Alyssa Moffett (2 points), Faith Holloman (2 points, 1 rebound), Kaylee King (2 points, 2 rebounds, 1 steal), Morgan Sceales (2 points, 1 rebound) and Shaye Stewart (3 rebounds, 1 assist).
The season ended three nights later at Clear Lake, with the Eagle’s hopes sabotaged by one bad quarter in a season-ending loss. Cloverdale held a 14-12 lead after one, but were swamped 26-10 in the fateful second period to trail 38-24 at the half. The Lady Eagles fought an uphill battle in the final two quarters, cutting the deficit to six in the fourth before falling 65-53.
Figueroa wrapped up a sensational senior season with 26 points, five rebounds, one assist and two steals. Also in the scoring column were Bird (15 points, 7 rebounds), Persons (7 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals), King (3 points, 4 rebounds), Sterling (2 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal) and Stewart (5 rebounds.
Boys fall in playoff opener
The varsity boys (18-8) were the #8 seed in NCS Division 5, suffering a first-round knock-out against #9 seeded visiting Head Royce on Feb. 21 in a playoff double-header.
Things started well enough for Cloverdale, playing the Jayhawks on even terms to forge a 14-all tie in the first quarter. Up by four at the half, the visitors gained separations with a 17-10 third-quarter run and never let up en route to a 62-47 Head Royce win.
Top point producers for the Eagles were Josh Lemley (11 points, 3 rebounds), Jordan Persons (10 points, 4 boards, 2 assists, 2 steals, 3 blocks), Ross Sceales (8 points, 6 rebounds, 2 steals, 3 blocks), Christian Chavez (7 points, 1 rebound, 4 assists), Eli Arreola (5 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists), Carlos Rojas (3 points), Drew Edens (2 points, 2 rebounds) and Alex Segobiano (1 point).
