Coyotes take third at Cuyamaca
By Nathan Ahle, The Daily Independent
The Cerro Coso Coyotes women's basketball team took third place at the
Cuyamaca Tournament in San Diego Friday and Saturday.
The Coyotes nearly grabbed a major upset in their tournament opener
Friday night, falling to L.A. City College in overtime by a score of
66-62. Cerro Coso trailed 32-26 at halftime but battled back, taking the
lead with 10 minutes to play. L.A. City fought back in the final two
minutes of regulation time, tying the game. Cerro Coso had a chance to
win on the final possession of the second half, but Tasheena Nelson's
15-foot jump shot fell just short.
Coyotes Head Coach Tom Heck said that the team's "triangle and two"
defensive scheme frustrated L.A. City.
"Our kids played as well as they possibly could," said Heck. "It was a
great game; our kids showed big hearts tonight, we just ran out of gas
in the overtime and (L.A. City's) Desiree Johnson made some shots with
two of us on her."
Fernanda Yazzie, who was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player,
led Cerro Coso with 22 points, followed by Candace Poleystewa with 18.
L.A. City was the eventual tournament winner.
The Coyotes defeated the host team from Cuyamaca College Saturday,
beating Cuyamaca for the second time this season, winning by a score of
62-52.
Cerro Coso opened up an 11-point lead in the second half, but Cuyamaca
cut its deficit to one point with 2:36 to go. Cerro Coso was able to
clamp down in the closing minutes, going on a 10-2 run to seal the
victory.
"This was a good win because Cuyamaca got two solid players back this
week from injuries," Heck said. "We also played both game without center
Cetra Banks."
Poleyestewa led Cerro Coso in scoring against Cuyamaca with 16 points,
with Yazzie adding 15, Nelson 14, andStephanie Hart eight.
Coach Heck was also pleased with Nelson's solid defensive play in the
tournament, especially against L.A. City.
The Lady Coyotes' record now stands at 3-5, and the team will host Rio
Hondo Thursday night at the Raymond A. McCue Activity Center at 5 p.m.
December 14, 2004
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The Daily Independent.
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