GHS Girls basketball Cruises to 68-35 Victory in Championship
Game
Gilroy – By the time the Alisal Trojans decided to guard Gilroy sharpshooter Kristen Campos, it was too late.
In the first quarter of the Pacific Grove Breaker Classic championship Saturday, Alisal sat in a sagging 2-3 zone defense trying to double and triple team post Jessica Groppe. So Campos started firing from beyond the arc.
“I think she hit three (three-pointers) in a row,” said Gilroy head coach Kari Williams. “They still wouldn’t come out and guard her.”
Eight minutes and five Campos three-pointers later, Gilroy held a 30-12 first quarter lead that it rode to a 68-35 win for the Pacific Grove Breaker Classic title. It was the second tournament trophy won by the 7-0 Mustangs this season.
Campos and forward Jessica Groppe (7 FG’s), who was named the Tournament MVP, finished with 17 points. Later in the game, forward Katherine Hussey also started to heat up from downtown. She sank four three-pointers and finished with a team-high 18 points.
Vanessa Wilkins added six points while Marissa Nowakowski and Russhelle Preeshl each contributed four.
The JV and varsity teams kick off their last tournament before the holidays, the Burlingame Invite, on Wednesday. The varsity plays Kennedy High at 4:45pm while the JV, which is undefeated at 4-0, plays Pinewood at 3:15pm.
Gilroy’s offense couldn’t have been more effective in the first quarter against its future TCAL rival.
“It was a dream quarter,” Williams said. “It was one of those games that was surreal.”
With All-Tournament players Campos and Hussey on hot streaks from the outside, Alisal was forced to adjust defensively, which opened up Gilroy’s inside game. In the post, Groppe delivered, even when under double team pressure.
At the half, Gilroy led 38-21. Going into the fourth quarter, the ‘Stangs increased that to 56-29.
The Mustang defense also put up some impressive stats. The first quarter was the only quarter in which Alisal scored in double figures.
“They ran a couple plays on us where the high post screened for the guard. Once we talked about how to defend that, it stopped,” Williams said.
Breaker Classic Championship Game
1 2 3 4
Gilroy 30 8 18 12 -68
Alisal 12 9 8 6 -35
Freshmen Team takes Third at Aptos Tourney
After a slow first half, the Gilroy freshmen team beat Notre Dame 36-26 in the third place game of the Aptos Tourney.
Kristy Pineda’s aggressive play earned her a team-high eight points. Rebekah Komar added seven points and Laura Spellman had four.
