It wasn’t until after the third quarter of the championship game
in the Mustang Classic that Kari Williams could exhale last
year.
Gilroy – It wasn’t until after the third quarter of the championship game in the Mustang Classic that Kari Williams could exhale last year.
The former Gilroy High girls’ basketball coach had a successful four-year run but for a while last year it looked like she would never coach a Mustang Classic champion. And then came a 20-2 third quarter that wiped out Notre Dame-San Jose’s 10-point halftime lead and GHS was on its way to its first title in six years.
The Mustangs have plenty of new faces this year as they prepare to defend their title at Bob Hagen Memorial Gymnasium. If they are successful, they may have to get past the Regents in the second round. Vanessa Wilkins, who had a double-double in the final and was an all-tournament selection, is back as is Dana Schoeneman. But Gilroy is a different team that relies more on defense and pressure.
“I expect the games to be close,” coach James Willkins said. “I feel good about where we are defensively going into the tournament. We know we can’t afford to get off to a slow start (like last year’s game against Notre Dame). A fast start is important.”
The Mustangs got off to a fast start Tuesday when they dominated Live Oak 48-18.
GHS opens with North Monterey County at 8pm today in the finale of a quadruple-header. Notre Dame-San Jose is in the 6:30pm game against Watsonville.
While the varsity tournament is happening in the main gymnasium, the junior varsity tourney will be in the auxiliary gym. The same teams will be involved and the starting times are the same, but the matchups are different. The Gilroy JVs host Watsonville at 5pm.
