Girls’ basketball wins Santiago tournament

Junior guard Trishika Shetty slices through the defense.

The girls’ basketball team took first place at the Dec. 26-29 Santiago Garden Grove Tournament in Los Angeles. The Falcons beat Santiago High School, Corona High School and Firebaugh High School to place first. The JV team also did well, placing second.

Not only were they successful in the tournament, the team grew much closer over the course of the four-day road trip.

“The whole trip was really good for team bonding,” coach Mike Davey said. “I know the girls pretty well, but they know each other better as friends, and an experience like that is one that you remember for a lifetime. It’s also important for building the team.”

Senior point guard Kimberly Chou agreed.

“The team not only had fun, but also improved on the basketball court. It was a great experience and brought the team closer together,” she said.

The bonding must be working because the team finished 11-0 in the preseason.

“We are really pleased with our preseason,” Davey said. “Those games are important because they count toward CCS; in fact, we have already qualified for CCS.”

However, the team still has many hurdles to overcome in order to compete in CCS.

“We will be trying our best this season, so I hope we will earn some respect from the teams,” sophomore forward Puck DeRoos said. “But I know that we are in the highest league, and it will be tough.”

Being in the De Anza league with three of the 10 top-ranked high school teams in Division 1 of CCS is a challenge, but sophomore center Mikayla Davis is not discouraged.

“We’re hoping to be the underdog and gain the other teams’ respect,” she said.

The Falcons lost against Wilcox, Los Gatos and Palo Alto,  but won their Jan. 11 game against Milpitas with a score of 48-29.

“I’m really happy that we won. We really needed it to help lift our spirits and to drive us to work harder next time,” DeRoos said. “I was really proud that everyone worked really hard. We had a good night.”
The team has remained positive.

“We’re focusing on how well we can play rather than if we’re winning or losing, and focusing on getting better,” Davey said.

Junior shooting guard Dharini Ramaswamy has several goals for herself and the team for the upcoming season.

“I want to win all of our home games, I want to take a charge and get more rebounds per games, and I need to score more,” she said.

Chou is also optimistic, hoping to become an anchor point for the team.

“My personal goal as a point guard is to be able to be able to lead the offense and create opportunities for my teammates,” Chou said.

The team has an away game against Los Gatos High School on Jan. 25.