The Carlmont girls varsity basketball team kicked off its season with a 47-37 loss to Notre Dame in a preseason sportsmanship game at home on Nov. 20. Despite the final score and mixed feelings on how the game went, the Scots maintain a positive outlook for the upcoming season and look forward to improving.
The Scots started the game strong and were in near reach of the Notre Dame Tigers, ending the first quarter three points down. The Tigers, however, began to pick up speed in the second quarter, and their momentum carried them through the rest of the game.
“It’s really a mindset thing. We all have the skill to achieve our goals. We just have to put our minds to boxing people out and not letting people get rebounds,” said senior Emerson Barajas.
As the first game of the season, it gave the Scots a sense of the coming year, along with some goals they hope to achieve, including qualifying for the Central Coast Section (CCS) Championships and strengthening team bonds.
“Some of our goals for the season are working better together, making sure we have the fundamentals down, creating a team bond with each other, and just making sure that we are cohesive every time,” said assistant coach Sheryanne Tagilala.
The team aims to achieve this by addressing their weaknesses in every practice and identifying areas for improvement daily.
“We played Notre Dame last year, and we lost by a lot more, but it’s always kind of the same thing. It’s always rough in the beginning,” Barajas said.
The first quarter began with a mandatory code of conduct speech presented by Carlmont captain Sky Yee, outlining the intent behind the sportsmanship game, and ended with a 9-6 Tiger lead. It was filled with constant flurry shots, including a successful beyond-the-arc shot from junior Amber Lee, as well as a free throw.
Beginning the second quarter, the Tigers hit their stride, leaving the Scots to fall behind by a score of 24-12. Midway through the quarter, Carlmont head coach Richard Stephens called a timeout to regroup the team, hoping to slow the pace of play.
Though the Scots did not score any points from the field for the remaining time in the second quarter, they had multiple opportunities for free throws, where Lee and sophomore Mia Masukawa both scored.
“It went kind of how we thought it would go, kind of rough, we didn’t really know our plays,” Barajas said.
Coming out of halftime, the Tigers continued to increase their lead, ending the third quarter 38-19.
Entering the final quarter, the Scots were eager to shrink the deficit and finish strong. The final minutes were filled with excitement, with numerous two and 3-point shots, and a last minute layup from senior Tia Helmy after an assist from junior Addison Glover. The game ended 47-37 in favor of the Tigers.
“Considering it was our first game, I definitely think it went pretty well, but we definitely have a lot to improve on in the future,” said freshman Sophia Kan.
The Scots believe an area they can significantly improve on is their ability to work together, which will develop as the season progresses and connections strengthen between players.
“It’s just the first game, so our expectations weren’t as high. We wanted to see how we do on the court and also be comfortable playing with each other since we have some new members,” Tagilala said.
Despite the loss, the Scots took pride in their efforts and are ready for a good season ahead.
“I felt we did pretty good, even though we lost. Most of us didn’t care about the score, and we were more focused on the experience,” Tagilala said.
