Boys basketball
OAKLAND – Couraji West might have been nine inches shorter than 6-foot-9 Fremont-Oakland center Tyreese West, but the Oakland High guard wasn’t bothered.
The senior battled in the post, fronting and denying his much taller foe both good position and the ball in the fourth quarter of a pivotal Oakland Athletic League game.
In the process, West exemplified the grit that powered the Wildcats to a come-from-behind 61-55 victory in East Oakland on Wednesday night.
“I love it,” West, who also scored four points, said. “I’ve been short my whole life, but I’ve been playing big since I was little. So that matchup with the big, I love that.”
Oakland rallied from a 26-12 first-quarter, with Fremont scorching the net to the tune of five 3-point makes in the first eight minutes. Fremont remained ahead throughout the second quarter too, going into the halftime break up 37-30.
Once they got into the locker room, the Wildcats took their coach’s message to heart.
“I asked them at halftime, ‘Are y’all gonna quit, or are y’all gonna fight and get back in it? Because these are guys aren’t going to stop being physical, and if you don’t match their intensity, we’re going to lose,’” Oakland coach Orlando Watkins said.
It was an untried lineup that fueled the comeback, one that Watkins said had not played together at any point in the season until Wednesday night.
That five – West, Da’sean Armstrong, Eric Jackson, Dominique Trotter and Khaleed Odumuyiwa – played lockdown defense in the fourth quarter while Armstrong scored six points on three incredible layups in the final five minutes of the game.
“Da’sean is a great player, and he can get whatever shot he wants,” West said.
After the unheralded five got Oakland the lead, starting 6-foot-5 forward Romyn Waugh re-entered the game with renewed energy and got two putback layups late to pad the lead.
Armstrong led all scorers with 21 points, while Trotter had 11 points and Waugh had 10 points for Oakland (18-6, 6-1). Deyonte Spears had 12 points and Zaire Albert had 14 points for Fremont (15-11, 4-4)
With the victory, Oakland remained in contention for a share of the league title. The Wildcats have an entire week to prepare for its last league game against rival Oakland Tech.
Even though the Bulldogs have beaten Oakland five consecutive times, and an OAL title is on the line, the Wildcats aren’t sweating the stakes.
“We’re going to treat it like any other game, and I want to win it just as much as any other game,” West said. “But it would be nice to beat them.
— Joseph Dycus
Independence 82, Lincoln 59
Indy (14-6, 7-0 BVAL) continued its winning ways, remaining unblemished in league play with a home blowout of Lincoln (11-10, 2-5). The Sixers have won 10 games in a row overall and have not lost since Dec. 27. They are three games away from completing an unbeaten league slate and have won all but one league game by double digits – the lone exception a 65-58 win at Lincoln on Jan. 17.
— Christian Babcock
Leland 50, Prospect 45
Leland (13-8, 4-3 BVAL) managed a five-point win over Prospect (11-10, 2-5) in Saratoga. The Chargers did it by committee – their co-leading scorers were Mattia Nucci and Gurkaran Khehra, each with 11 points. Lucas Hirotsuka led Prospect with 16 points, followed by Deshawn Augmon’s 13.
— Christian Babcock
San Mateo 55, Aragon 50
San Mateo (17-4, 9-0 PAL) remained unbeaten in league play with a close win over Aragon (11-9, 5-4) on the road. Zidane Auzerang led San Mateo with 20 points, supported by Cameron Palma’s 12. Jasper Caffo led Aragon with 21 points.
— Christian Babcock
Westmont 59, Pioneer 56
Westmont (16-5, 7-2 BVAL) used its home-court advantage to eke out a win over visiting Pioneer (10-10, 2-6) in Campbell on Wednesday night. Pioneer led 18-15 after a quarter and 28-24 at the half, but Westmont made up ground in the second half. The game was tied 39-39 after the third quarter, and the Warriors took the fourth 20-17 to clinch the victory.
— Christian Babcock
Girls basketball
No. 4 San Ramon Valley 52, St. Mary’s-Stockton 39
In a rematch of last season’s NorCal Open Division playoff opener, the Wolves got revenge on visiting St. Mary’s in a gritty defensive battle. Ella Gunderson led the way with 22 points while in foul trouble, and Alyssa Rudd had 16 points and 11 rebounds. Carly Stern had seven points, seven rebounds and locked down the paint with five blocks. San Ramon Valley improved to 22-3 and will play at rival Monte Vista on Friday.
— Joseph Dycus
No. 8 Piedmont 50, No. 10 Bishop O’Dowd 47
In a battle between the top teams in the West Alameda County Conference Foothill Division, visiting Piedmont drew level in the standings when it outlasted O’Dowd. Freshman post Andrea Martin had five points, 10 rebounds and six blocks, while Briana Webb had a team-high 15 points. Savannah Dennig did a little bit of everything for Piedmont, scoring eight points and grabbing 10 rebounds, and freshman point guard Jenelle Solis had 12 points and three assists. Jayla Stokes led O’Dowd with 12 points, and Emilyn Haw scored 11 points. Piedmont improved to 18-4, 5-1 while the Dragons dropped to 13-7, 5-1.
— Joseph Dycus
No. 16 Salesian 80, Richmond 14
The Pride routed across-the-street opponent Richmond on senior night, with Vanessa Parilla leading all scorers with 20 points. Janiya Sawyer scored 11 points and nabbed seven steals, while Jamia Sawyer scored 12 points and had nine steals. Perla Hernandez led Richmond with six points. Salesian improved to 16-8, while Richmond remained winless at 0-17. The teams play in different divisions of the Tri-County Athletic League.
— Joseph Dycus
Burlingame 53, El Camino 32
Slow and steady won the race for Burlingame (14-5, 9-0 PAL) on Wednesday night. The Panthers scored at least 11 points in each period and shut down El Camino (11-10, 6-3) down the stretch, holding the Colts to five points in the fourth quarter. Nine players got on the score sheet for Burlingame, co-led by Haleh Ansari and Hailey Miller with 10 points apiece. Isabella Fernandez led El Camino with 14 points, followed by Keilani Der with 11.
— Christian Babcock
Hillsdale 69, Mills 49
Hillsdale (19-3, 8-2 PAL) used a big second half to pull away from Mills (12-10, 6-4) on Wednesday in San Mateo. Hillsdale trailed 28-27 at the break but turned on the jets in the third quarter, outscoring Mills 26-9 to seize control. Hillsdale had a balanced scoring effort, led by Kiara Nitao with 21 points. Lexi Carson (14) and Lila Corkish (12) also reached double figures. Kelly Ho led Mills with 18 points, trailed by Sofia Kwan with 12.
— Christian Babcock
Girls soccer
No. 1 Archbishop Mitty 3, Valley Christian 0
Mitty (13-0-3, 5-0-2 WCAL) continued its unbeaten start to the season with a shutout win over VC (9-4-4, 1-4-2) at home in San Jose. Zuri Brandt scored the Monarchs’ first goal, assisted by Jimena Portillo, in the sixth minute. Murphy Walsh netted a brace for Mitty, scoring in the 22nd minute (assist from Jasmine Wheeler) and the 29th minute (assist from Shelby Hopwood). Goalkeeper Layla Tucakovic had three saves to keep VC off the score sheet.
— Christian Babcock
No. 2 St. Francis 3, Sacred Heart Cathedral 1
St. Francis (13-1-1, 6-1 WCAL) continues to nip at Mitty’s heels in a tight WCAL race. The Lancers received goals from Mehr Khera, Miliani Makasini and Kamryn Rosa in the win. SHC dropped to 8-3-5 (2-2-3 WCAL).
— Christian Babcock
No. 6 Bishop O’Dowd 5, Alameda 0
O’Dowd (13-0-2, 7-0 WACC) picked up another shutout win in league play after making the short trip to Alameda (6-9-1, 4-4). The Dragons scored four times in the first half and added an insurance goal in the second. They have won 10 matches in a row overall and shut out six of their seven league opponents.
— Christian Babcock
Boys soccer
No. 1 Bellarmine 0, No. 7 Serra 0
Serra goalkeeper Dominic Kamienski was a star as the Padres became the first team all season to hold the Bay Area News Group’s top-ranked team scoreless in a match. Serra coach Mike Keller said Justin Hollister was also a standout for the San Mateo school in Wednesday’s West Catholic Athletic League match. Bellarmine is 13-1-2, 9-0-1 and Serra is 10-4-2 and 6-3-1.
— Joseph Dycus
No. 5 Mountain View 3, Homestead 0
Akshay Chugh,Niko Dekovic and Aidan Wong each got a goal past the keeper as No. 5 Mountain View cruised past Homestead in SCVAL play and remained on top of the league standings at 11-1-3, 7-1-1. Mountain View coach Jim McGuirk said that center backs Patrick McGuirk and Bryaden Graham were stellar in the back, helping keeper Parker Lunn get his 12th shutout of the year.
— Joseph Dycus
Crystal Springs Uplands 0, Sacred Heart Prep 0
In a battle of West Bay Athletic League powerhouses, a scoreless draw was the result for the freshman, JV and varsity matches. SHP coach Bret Simon told the Bay Area News Group that goalkeeper Kieran Armstrong and central defenders James Pyle and Gio Cortez were standouts in a defensively-dominated match. SHP’s record went to 9-2-5, 6-1-3 while Crystal Springs became 11-2-3, 6-1-3.
— Joseph Dycus
