The Falcons are clicking so far in their preseason schedule, with a record of  4-1 as of Dec. 9. They have won against Leigh 54-36 on Nov. 26; King’s Academy 51-41 on Dec. 3; Carlmont 45-34 on Dec. 5 and Oceana 51-22 on Dec. 9. They lost to California High 74-45 on Dec. 4.

“Our chemistry has gotten a lot better,” junior guard Kaitlyn Yu said. “Last year we got a lot of individual shooting, but this year we pass the ball a lot more; we usually go down to about 10 seconds. Last year, it was basically just one person shooting.”

In the De Anza Division, the girls are most worried about Lynbrook, who obtained two recruited twins this year from Wilcox. Most other teams are rebuilding. 

“I think we can do really well,” Yu said. “Our players are healthy, and Lynbrook is gonna be our main rival; everyone else lost players to graduating seniors.”

Especially under the leadership of star senior captain Anika Prasad, who recently committed to Carnegie Mellon University and their D3 team, the girls hope to win CCS, but ultimately, to just do their best. 

In addition to Prasad, the team has gained valuable additions in junior forward Anaik Jeanjaquet, point guard Athena Mahajani and sophomore forward Naomi Malik. 

Malik played on the JV team last year. Although varsity is much more fast-paced and requires athletes to dedicate a lot more time, Malik finds it a valuable experience.

“All the upperclassman are nice,” Malik said. “Adjusting with the team was easy.”

Jeanjaquet is a transfer student from Switzerland. She entered the team playing a consistent number of minutes, even starting on occasion.

“She’s a really good power forward,” Yu said. “She rebounds well, is a good defender and can shoot and drive.” Yu said she is working on reducing her turnovers.

With the girls’ strong start, the girls hope to hang a CCS championship banner on the walls of the Large Gym.