Downey’s postseason ends early, but future looks promising
DOWNEY – The Downey High School girls’ basketball team saw their season come to an end last Saturday night at Downey against Cathedral Catholic of San Diego, 50-48, in the second round of the 2018 C.I.F. Division 2 State Championships.
The Lady Vikings finished their season with an overall record of 26-7 and a S.G.V.L. record of 8-2. Downey finished their season as C.I.F. Division 2A Finalists and in second place in S.G.V.L. play behind league champion Lynwood.
The Lady Vikings were defeated by Glendora at Azusa Pacific University, 47-35, on March 2 in the C.I.F. Division 2A championship game but qualified for the C.I.F. Division 2 State Girls Basketball Championships with their string of wins in postseason play.
Downey defeated Westview of San Diego at Westview, 59-51, in the first round of state championship play on 3/7 to advance to the second round. In that game, the Lady Vikings trailed 19-16 at the end of the first quarter and 29-27 at halftime.
Downey outscored Westview 11-7 in the third quarter and led 40-38 as the quarter came to an end. The Lady Vikings outscored Westview 19-13 in the fourth and final quarter and came away with the hard-fought 59-51 win.
The Lady Vikings were then eliminated last Saturday night at Downey against Cathedral Catholic. In the Downey/Cathedral Catholic game, the Lady Vikings trailed at the end of the first quarter 12-8. Downey rallied back in the second quarter and took a 21-16 lead into the locker room at halftime. The Lady Vikings were outscored 20-8 in the third quarter and trailed 36-29 as the quarter came to an end.
Downey outscored Cathedral Catholic 19-14 in the fourth quarter but fell short, 50-48.
Coach Harris, his staff and players are all disappointed with how their last game ended. However, many of this year’s players are underclassmen and will be back next year to make a deeper run.
This was an excellent season for the Lady Vikings and they should feel proud of how well they played and how hard they competed.
WARREN GIRLS BASKETBALL: The Warren High School girls’ basketball team saw their season come to an end last Wednesday night against Legacy High School of South Gate at Warren, 74-73, in overtime in the first round of the C.I.F. Division 3 State Girls Basketball Championships.
The Lady Bears finished their season with an overall record of 20-11 and a S.G.V.L. record of 6-4. Warren defeated Cabrillo, 47-42, in overtime at Colony High School in Ontario on March 3 to claim the C.I.F. Division 3AA title and qualify for the state tournament.
In the Warren/Legacy game, Legacy jumped out to a 31-21 lead as the first quarter ended. Warren outscored Legacy 8-7 in the second quarter but still trailed 38-29 going into the locker room at halftime.
The third quarter was action packed as Warren outscored Legacy 26-25 but still trailed by eight points going into the fourth quarter. The Lady Bears tied the score in the fourth quarter and forced overtime.
The two teams battled back and forth in overtime. Warren took the lead at 73-71 with 3.7 seconds left and Legacy needed to go the length of the court to score. That is exactly what Legacy’s Arianna Harper did. Harper drove the length of the floor, drew the foul and made the free throw to give the Lady Tigers the 74-73 lead with .3 to play.
Harper’s final three points gave her 35 points for the game and helped seal the win for Legacy. The Bears inbounded the pass but that was all they could do as the clock expired and Legacy claimed the hard fought, 74-73 overtime win.
WARREN BASEBALL: The Warren High School baseball team currently has an overall record of 6-1 and will begin San Gabriel Valley League play when they host Lynwood at Warren on April 10.
Warren swept Hoover, 13-0 and 11-1, on 2/27 in a doubleheader at Warren. The Bears defeated Magnolia, 18-5, on 3/1, defeated Rancho Alamitos, 12-0, on 3/3 and were defeated by Santa Ana at Warren, 7-6, in nine innings on 3/5.
Warren defeated Estancia at Estancia, 13-2, on 3/7 and defeated Savanna at Warren, 10-2, on 3/9. The Bears were scheduled to play El Rancho on Tuesday afternoon but the game was postponed due to the rain. The two teams played on Wednesday (score unavailable at press time).
Warren finished last season with an overall record of 19-10 and a S.G.V.L. record of 8-2. The Bears were eliminated last season in the first round of the C.I.F. Division 3 playoffs by Peninsula at Peninsula 6-2 after winning their wild card game against Long Beach Poly 3-2.
WARREN SOFTBALL: The Warren High School softball team currently has an overall record of 4-2 and will begin San Gabriel Valley League play when they host Lynwood on April 10.
The Bears have played three games in the Savannah Tournament. Warren defeated San Clemente, 2-1, on 2/24, were defeated by Woodbridge, 4-3, on 2/24 and defeated Fullerton, 4-0, on 3/9.
Warren finished last season with an overall record of 21-9 and a S.G.V.L. record of 8-2. The Bears were eliminated in the second round of the C.I.F. Division 2 playoffs by Santa Margarita at Santa Margarita 8-0. Warren was scheduled to play Millikan on Tuesday but no result or information was made available.
Coach Starksen, her staff and players are all looking forward to the start of league play.
DOWNEY BASEBALL: The Downey High School baseball team currently has an overall record of 1-7 and will begin San Gabriel Valley League play when they host Paramount on April 10.
The Vikings are currently 0-3 in the Downey Tournament (Feb. 24-26 and March 12-14) and were 1-5 in the Loara Tournament (March 1-9). The Vikings were defeated by La Mirada, 6-2, on 2/24, were defeated by Cantwell-Sacred Heart, 3-0, on 2/26, were defeated by Edison, 4-0, on 3/1 and were defeated by Cypress, 8-1, on 3/3.
Downey was defeated by Canyon, 3-0, on 3/6, was defeated by Ocean View, 2-1, on 3/8, defeated Anaheim, 6-0, on 3/9 and was defeated by Pacifica, 7-1, on Monday. The Vikings hosted Long Beach Poly at Downey on Wednesday in their fourth and final game of the Downey Tournament (score unavailable at press time).
DOWNEY SOFTBALL: The Downey High School softball team currently has an overall record of 7-4 and will begin San Gabriel Valley League play when they host Paramount on April 10.
The Lady Vikings defeated St. Paul, 6-4, on 2/24, defeated Walnut, 17-2, on 2/24, defeated Sunny Hills, 8-1, on 3/1 and swept Lakewood at Lakewood in a doubleheader, 9-5 and 6-3, on 3/6.
Downey competed in the Tournament of Champions in Bullhead City, Arizona, March 8-10. The Lady Vikings finished that tournament with a record of 2-3.
Downey was defeated by Pacifica, 6-2, on 3/8, was defeated by Cienega of Vail, Arizona, 2-0, on 3/9, defeated Flagstaff, Arizona, 11-0, on 3/9, was defeated by Coronado of Henderson, Nevada, 4-3, on 3/10 and defeated River Valley of Arizona, 3-0, on 3/10.
Downey was defeated by La Habra at La Habra on Tuesday, 7-6. Coach Garcia, his staff and players are all looking forward to the start of league play.