Carlmont’s JV girls basketball team was defeated by Menlo-Atherton with a final score of 49-40 on Jan. 19.
Within the first few minutes of the game, the Bears were on the attack, breaking down the walls of the Scots’ defense.
“Our biggest thing to work on is beating a press defense. Sometimes it’s really easy to get flustered, and it’s kind of scary. So I think being able to deal in high-pressure situations can convert to a bucket,” Coach Evelyn Ziba Gordi said.
Although the Scots were defeated, there has been significant growth this season from all of the players, especially in areas such as making shots that they weren’t previously able to make, according to Ziba Gordi.
“I was determined going into the game because we beat them before, so we had a good chance of winning. I just think we needed to be a little more focused,” said Dhatri Vennela, a sophomore at Carlmont.
The teams were evenly matched throughout most of the game, with the score at the end of the first quarter at 10-8 and at halftime 23-16.
“Our team did pretty well on driving to the basket and making shots and then creating contact with the other players so that they drew a foul,” said Kyra Lu, a junior at Carlmont.
Throughout the game, Lu made key plays as a point guard, getting various steals during the Bears’ attacks.
At the end of the third quarter, the Scots were down 32-29, and the crowd’s nervous energy was almost tangible going into the fourth quarter. Regardless of the Bears being in the lead, the Scots continued to play their hardest.
Fouls remained consistent throughout the game, with Menlo-Atherton at five fouls during the second half and Carlmont at six.
“We were really aggressive and we battled to the end. I think we were really close and we could have won, so we should stick to our fundamentals,” Vennela said.
Even with a disappointing loss with the final score being 49-40, the Scots remain hopeful for what the rest of the season has to bring.
“We’ve been doing pretty good this season, we just have a few losses but they are all things that we could learn from,” Lu said.
