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Sports

Laguna Beach's Girls Basketball Season Ends in Loss to St. Anthony's

Breakers simply outmanned in falliing to the second-seeded and defending champion Warriors, 64-28, in the first round of the CIF Southern Section Division 4A playoffs.

Sophomore Kendall Cooper scored 16 points, grabbed nine rebounds, blocked six shots and came up with four steals to lead St. Anthony to an 64-28 victory over outmanned Laguna Beach in a CIF Southern Section Division 4A playoff opener Thursday night at St. Anthony High.

While the Santa Cruz League runner-up Saints (15-9), the defending Division 4A champions, probably were going to win this game no matter what the Breakers (12-10) did, the lift they got from their second team was a positive they can take into the second round, where they will face Mountain Valley League runner-up Banning Saturday night.

"It's great for us when the second team plays well like they did tonight," Coach James Anderson said. "There is a great camaraderie between the first string and the second string. If they play well, it not only helps us on the scoreboard, it helps our morale."

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St. Anthony's second unit outscored the Breakers, 7-2, to end the first quarter and give the Saints a 14-8 lead. They ended the second quarter in similar fashion, outscoring the Breakers, 12-0, to put St. Anthony ahead, 35-10, at halftime.

Senior guard Lauren Siaumau led the second string with nine points, all coming on three consecutive three-point baskets. Junior guard Raquel Johnson had seven points, four coming during the second-quarter surge.

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The Saints blitzed the Breakers, 10-0, in the first 30 seconds of the second quarter on a basket off a steal by Jourdan Cooper, a three-point play by sister Kendall Cooper off yet another steal and then a steal and layup by Natalie Williams that made it 35-10.  

But the Saints weren't done. Stephanie Williams followed with a three-point shot, giving St. Anthony a 13-0 surge just 58 seconds into the quarter.

By the time the Breakers scored five minutes into the quarter, St. Anthony's had scored the first 21 points of the second quarter. Going back to the end of the first quarter, which St. Anthony's second unit ended with a 5-0 run, the Saints outscored the Breakers, 26-0, for a 35-10 lead.  

"The first group realized they didn't play that well in the first quarter and were out to prove something," Anderson said. "It was quite a run."  

The Saints had a season-high 25 steals while forcing 35 turnovers.

Senior guard Emily Writer scored a game-high 18 points for Laguna Beach, the third-place team in the Orange Coast League. 

The reality of the loss and final game of Writer’s high school career were too much for her to bear as she left the court in tears, embracing fellow senior center Sam Garner.

“They are a really good team,” Breakers coach Jon Hendrickson said of St. Anthony's. “But I’m really proud of these girls because they never ever gave up. That’s been their trademark all season.”

Garner scored the other 10 points for Laguna Beach as Hendrickson took the chance to get players in the game that haven’t had a chance all season.

“The most positive thing about this game,” Hendrickson said, “was that all the girls who have worked so hard all season got a chance to play. The look of determination on players who haven’t gotten time is what I am going to remember most about this game.” 

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