The girls basketball players started their CCS journey against the Lincoln High School Lions on Feb. 25, determined to prove that they were better than a 9–15 record, which placed them in the Division II CCS tournament. Their intensity certainly showed on the court. The Lady Dons played suffocating defense right from the start, clogging up the opponent’s passing lanes, poking balls loose, and diving for every loose ball. Although the Lady Dons had a hard time scoring in the first quarter, their tight defense helped them shut out Lincoln in the first quarter with a score of 4–0.
Lincoln staged a bit of a run in the second quarter as a couple of three-pointers began to fall. However, sophomore Maya Collins responded with seven points in the second quarter alone. The Dons ended the half up 14–9.
Aragon came out of halftime with the same intensity and energy from the beginning of the game. Freshman Jen Horita intercepted a pass and immediately took the ball up the court for an easy layup. Collins continued her hot shooting, draining a three from the left corner. The Lions struggled with the Lady Dons’ defense, turning the ball repeatedly. The Lady Dons capitalized on these mistakes, creating multiple fast break opportunities, leading to a 9–0 run to finish the third quarter.
Junior Tiffany Chen caught on fire in the fourth quarter. Chen knocked down a corner three, then converted three free throws and drained her third three-pointer of the game within a span of four minutes. Freshman center Janet Jones did all she could for the Lions, grabbing offensive rebounds and putting them back up for second-chance points, but it was a little too late. A fastbreak layup by senior Alyssa Mangaoang pushed the score to 44–23 and the Lady Dons ended up winning 45–29. They will continue their CCS run on Feb. 27 against Pioneer High School at 7 p.m.
