The full-court press has been an effective tool that has led to a lot of easy points for the El Capitan High girls basketball team this season. After seeing the Gauchos press earlier this season, Woodcreek was better prepared on Thursday night. 

 

The No. 5 seeded Timberwolves were able to attack the press for easy baskets as they avenged their early season loss to No. 4 El Capitan with a 74-40 victory in the second round of the Sac-Joaquin Section Division II playoffs at the Stable Center. 

 

Woodcreek (24-6) flipped the script from a 63-44 loss to the Gauchos on Dec. 15. “I think we’re both different teams the second time around,” said El Capitan coach Adam Her, whose team had a 17-game winning streak snapped. “We both gained a lot of experience throughout the season. They definitely prepped well for us. I give them kudos. They did a hell of a job tonight.”

 

The Gauchos took an 11-9 lead into the second quarter and then the Timberwolves seized control with a 14-0 run. Aerial Thomas and Chloe Preuss knocked down 3-pointers during the run and 6-foot-2 freshman center Katelyn Hull did a great job on the defensive end snatching rebounds and blocking shots as she floated around the paint, ready to help out if an El Capitan player had beaten their primary defender.

 

The Gauchos press was mostly ineffective against the Timberwolves which kept El Capitan from producing any extended scoring runs or allowing its defense to spark the offense. “It’s tough,” Her said. “Those are a lot of what I call easy buckets when we can score off our press. It’s tough to get buckets in the half-court setting. When you don’t get those easy points it makes it way tougher to score.”

 

Woodcreek didn’t allow the Gauchos to get back in the game in the second half as the Timberwolves continued to hit key shots any time El Capitan threatened. Senior Avnoor Bains led the Gauchos with 14 points and sophomore Alexis Valenzuela added with points. Senior Jordynn Middleton pulled down 10 rebounds.

 

The loss was tough to take, but it was still a very successful season for El Capitan, which finished with a program best 26-3 record and won back-to-back Central California Conference championships. “Im very proud of the girls,” Her said. “They have the best record in school history. They put in a lot of hard work this season. Unfortunately at the end of the day, we didn’t go as far as we wanted to, we were looking for a deeper push. But I’m so proud of them and I want to make sure they get all the credit. They’ve worked hard for this season. I’m just sad it had to end this way.”

 

It was the final game for a special senior class that included Bains, Middleton, Mady Dietz, Leylonni Atkins, Keira Mendoza and Molly Skinner. It’s a senior class that helped set the foundation for the success of the program. 

 

“They’ll be missed,” Her said. “I was blessed to start with my seniors when they were at the JV level and move up with them and now as a head coach at the varsity level. I’m going to miss them a lot. I hope they know as they go off to play their other sports or graduate, I will always be here to support them. They have left just as much an impact on me as I hope I’ve left on them.”

Shawn Jansen is the MUHSD Program Manager Digital Media. He can be reached at Sjansen@muhsd.org.