By Steve Breazeale
It was moving week for the prep sports teams at Dana Hills, as many faced tough second round matchups in the CIF-SS Championships. A few moved on while others were ousted from the competition. Here is a breakdown of the week’s action as well as a look ahead. Make sure to follow us on Twitter @SouthOCsports for live playoff game updates, news and more.
Dolphins Defense Locked In
The Dana Hills boys basketball team has locked down their first two opponents in CIF-SS Division 1A play. In two games they have held both opponents to under 40 points and are coming off a 52-38 February 19 road win over Troy in the second round.
In the game against Troy the Dolphins held the Warriors leading scorer, senior Ben Stiver, who is averaging 16.6 points per game this season, to just nine points. They also held senior Johnny Bayeh (14.6 ppg), the team’s second leading scorer, to eight points.
As a team, Troy shot just 33 percent from the field while the Dolphins offense was fueled by senior guard Hayden Fredrick, who dropped a game-high 17 points en route to a 14-point victory. Dana Hills senior guard Cory Blau was also a key player on offense as he poured in 16 points.
With the win the Dolphins advance to the quarterfinals and will host West Ranch on February 22 at 7 p.m.
West Ranch came into the tournament as the No. 3 overall seed in Division 1A. The team is filled with big bodies and their front court, on paper, seems formidable.
The Dolphins starting center, senior Ian Wright, will have to go toe to toe with West Ranch’s own 6-foot-7-inch senior big man Ako Kaluna. Dana Hills junior forward James Taylor (6-foot-7-inch) should also be a factor in this “battle of the bigs”. Taylor is coming off a nice first round game against Glendale on February 15 where he scored 14 points and grabbed eight rebounds.
Girls Basketball Roller Coaster Season Ends in Second Round
The girls basketball team at Dana Hills had an up and down season, filled with winning streaks and losing skids, injuries and success. After losing seven of their first nine games played, the Dolphins were able to rally themselves when it mattered, going 6-2 in league play to capture a share of the Sea View League title.
Their first round 42-35 victory over No. 16 seeded Long Beach Poly on February 16 launched the unranked Dolphins into a second round matchup against No. 1 seeded Bishop Amat on February 20. The Dolphins lost 66-28, bringing their season to an end.
The Dolphins will no doubt use this season as a stepping stone for the coming years, as a solid group of underclassmen look to return next year.
Freshman Maddy Bloom was effective all season, averaging 10.9 points per game. Sophomore guard Serena Saba also made a name for herself, getting a considerable amount of playing time while averaging 7.9 points and four rebounds per game. Saba also led the team with 12 points in the loss to Bishop Amat.
Senior Katie Underwood helped carry the Dolphins in league play, highlighted by her season-high 21-point outburst in a 54-44 Dolphins win over Trabuco Hills on February 2.
Four Wrestlers Headed to Masters
Four Dolphins wrestlers have earned the right to represent the school this weekend at the CIF Masters Meet from February 22 through February 23 at Temecula Valley.
Austin Grimsley finished fifth in the 145-pound division at the CIF-SS Individual Meet, Trevor Tribolet finished third in the 170-pound division, Blaine Wagstaff finished fourth in the 182-pound division and Ryan Minoofar finished third in the 195-pound division. All four wrestlers will compete at the Masters Meet.
Dolphins Lose in the Quarterfinals
After blowing out Schurr 14-2 in the first round of the CIF-SS Division 2 Championships, the Dana Hills girls water polo team found themselves in a tough second round match against Long Beach Wilson on February 14.
At the end of regulation the two teams were tied up at seven goals apiece and at the end of triple overtime the Dolphins emerged with a 9-8 victory. Molly Wilbur led the way with five goals and eight steals. Dolphins goalie Gabby Zimmerman tallied 13 saves.
The Dolphins went on to face Santiago-Corona in the quarterfinals on February 16 and were defeated 18-9 by the home team. Madison Baba had a four-goal effort in the loss.
The team reached the quarterfinals in the first year under the direction of head coach Chad Beeler.
Girls Soccer Loses in Penalty Kicks
After handling visiting University in a 2-0 win in the first round of the CIF-SS Division 1 Championships, the Dana Hills girls soccer team lost in penalty kicks to Rancho Cucamonga in the second round on February 19.
Senior Sydnie Zuccolotto scored the lone goal for the Dolphins in regulation, which came in the second half.
Rancho Cucamonga also scored in the second and both teams failed to find the back of the net in the two overtime periods. The game went to penalty kicks, where the Dolphins were bested 4-3.
The Dolphins first round matchup against University on February 14 saw Sydney Chiodini and Hannah Ris score for Dana Hills. For a full recap of the Dolphins first round win over University visit www.danapointtimes.com
Boys Soccer Ousted in First Round
The Dana Hills boys soccer team lost to Harvard-Westlake 3-0 in the first round of the CIF-SS Division 1 Championships. The unseeded Dolphins finished second in the Sea View League, which earned them a berth in the playoffs.
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