GIRLS’ BASKETBALL ROUNDUP : Tsuji’s Three-Point Flurry Gives Rancho Alamitos the Bolsa Grande Title

GARDEN GROVE —  Trabuco Hills High School knew all about Rancho Alamitos guard Shellie Tsuji and her ability to hit three-point shots.

They had seen her hit three Tuesday in the Vaqueros’ victory over Rim of the World in the semifinals of the Bolsa Grande Lady Matador Holiday Basketball Tournament.

So, for the first three quarters in Friday night’s championship game, Trabuco Hills paid special attention the 5-foot, 3-inch Tsuji, holding her to just two points. But then, midway through the fourth quarter, Trabuco Hills backed off. That’s when Tsuji hit four three-point baskets, including three straight, to give Rancho Alamitos control of the game and a 72-54 victory.

“They were coming up in my face and they were blocking my shot,” Tsuji said. “Then in the fourth quarter they started backing off because I was bricking ‘em so bad.”

The Vaqueros (5-1) led, 44-42, at the end of the third quarter but outscored Trabuco Hills, 28-12, in the fourth quarter.

Tsuji was the game’s leading scorer with 16 points, 14 of them in the fourth quarter. Jenny Newsome, who missed almost eight minutes of the first half with foul trouble, added 15 for the Vaqueros and was the tournament’s most valuable player. Melinda Lira scored 11 points including three key three-point shots to keep Trabuco Hills at bay.

“Shellie Tsuji had a rough night (early) but she came through when we needed her,” Vaquero Coach Bob Becker said. “I think she was about 0-15 before she hit.

“The threes helped,” added Becker, who also praised his team’s hustle. “The last four minutes we really got down and worked hard.”

Trabuco Hills missed 14 of 23 free throws.

“I think we got a little harum-scarum and gave up a lot of shots the last four minutes,” said Trabuco Hills Coach Paul Beidler. “They got hot from outside and kind of put us away.”

DeDe Sampson led Trabuco Hills with 14 points. Joelle Castro had 13 and Shelly Callhoun 11.

In other Bolsa Grande Tournament games:

Rim of the World 59, Laguna Hills 47--Tonya Stevens scored 15 points and Andrea Nelson added 14 but it was not enough as Laguna Hills lost its bid to take third place. Sophomore guard Nancy Angulo led Rim of the World with 21 points.

Capistrano Valley 39, Estancia 32--Alicia Farr scored 12 points and Peggy Rivas added 11 to lead Capistrano Valley to the consolation championship. Melody Earle led Estancia with 12 points.

La Quinta 93, Magnolia 34--Senior forward Amy Jalewalia had 44 points and six rebounds and eight steals to lead host La Quinta in a first round game. La Quinta is now 4-1.

In the La Quinta Tournament:

Savanna 49, Santiago 26--Carrie Frederick had 25 points, eight assists and eight rebounds to lead Savanna (6-3) in a first round game. Savanna will play Esperanza at 6 p.m. today in the championship semifinals.

Esperanza 56, Orange 53--After leading 35-23 at halftime, Esperanza (7-2) held off a Orange rally in a first round game. Michele Fujioka scored 12 points and Jennifer Harney had 11, but Harney fouled out with six minutes remaining in the game and Esperanza’s Andrea Warmus fouled out with four minutes left. The Panthers outscored the Aztecs 14-6 in the fourth quarter and 30-21 in the second half. Nicole Champion scored 21 points, including 12 in the third quarter for Orange.

In the Cypress Tournament:

Valencia 57, Millikan 44--Hollie Keeton had 21 points to lead Valencia in a second round consolation game. Heather Kidd had 12 points and Candy Andersen had 10 points for Valencia (2-4).

Marina 67, Cerritos 52--Melisa Sortino scored 30 points, making four three-point shots, and had six assists to lead Marina (10-0) in the quarterfinals of the tournament. Marina took a 10-0 lead in the first quarter. Amy Hughlett scored 16 points for Cerritos.

Ocean View 60, Mission Viejo 39--In the championship quarterfinal, Tracy Wolfe had 24 points and 11 rebounds to lead Ocean View (8-0). Jennifer Rohrig had 22 for Mission Viejo (6-3).

In the Santa Barbara Tournament of Champions:

Brea-Olinda 56, Healdsburg (Sonoma County) 33--In a championship quarterfinal, Brea-Olinda had surprisingly easy success as it took a 30-7 halftime lead. Tammy Blackburn had 16 points to lead Brea-Olinda (11-0). Aimee McDaniel had had 11 points, Jody Anton had 10 and Jinelle Williams had 10 for Brea-Olinda. Healdsburg won Division III last year and was seeded sixth out of 20 teams in the tournament.

In the Chino tournament:

Fountain Valley 53, El Camino (Oceanside) 26--Julie Workman had 11 points and Jennifer Barbarohad 10 to lead Fountain Valley (5-2) in the opening round.