Jalewalia Set Scoring Mark at Right Time

WESTMINSTER —  Two weeks ago, it seemed unlikely that Amy Jalewalia of La Quinta High School would break the Orange County record for points in a game by scoring 60 in an 85-32 victory over Kennedy last Monday.

She didn’t lack the ability; she lacked the playing time.

She was benched by La Quinta Coach Kevin Kiernan for not working hard enough in practice.

And Jalewalia, The Times’ Athlete of the Week, admits that she wasn’t.

“That (the benching) was basically because I wasn’t practicing that hard. My leg was bothering me and I never really told him,” Jalewalia said. “I should have told him. I wasn’t really angry that he benched me. He didn’t tell me why at the time, I figured it out.”

Jalewalia, who will attend UCLA next season, occasionally is bothered by pain from a stress fracture of her left shin that she suffered last year.

Kiernan didn’t know about Jalewalia’s pain because “she keeps those things to herself,” but thought she was “drifting” in practice.

“I wanted her to work a little harder,” Kiernan said. “I just wanted her to focus so she played at her level and not her opponents’.

“At the end of three quarters, she had 49 points. I said, ‘Go for it,’ because I’ve always taken her out when she scores in the 50s because of blowouts. I was worried that she might not get a chance to get the record and I felt it was something she should have a chance to get before she leaves high school.”

The previous record was 59 points by Whittier Christian’s Cindy Vyskocil during the 1986-87 season.

In a similar situation last season, Jalewalia had 51 points with six minutes remaining in a game against Pacifica, and Kiernan decided to replace her.

“We were ahead 50-2 at halftime and I felt bad for Pacifica, so I took her out,” he said.

Neither Jalewalia, who had 31 points, 13 rebounds and six assists in Friday’s victory over Santiago, nor Kiernan talked or expected a shot at the record against Kennedy, especially in a game that could have kept Kennedy in the hunt for the Garden Grove League title.

“It was something that just happened. At the end of the first quarter she banked one in from half court. I said ‘Oh my God, she’s going to do it.’ ” Kiernan said.

TOP PERFORMERS

Aimee McDaniel had 23 points to lead Brea-Olinda to a 95-25 victory over Western Tuesday. She had 20 points in a 69-51 victory over Savanna Thursday and 21 points in a 69-38 victory over Mater Dei Saturday.

Sommer McLane had 31 points and 13 rebounds to lead Fullerton to a 76-50 victory over Troy Tuesday and had 30 points in a 59-41 victory over Buena Park Thursday.

El Toro’s Carrie Yoshioka had 28 points and Mission Viejo’s Jennifer Rohrig had 27 points in El Toro’s 62-53 victory over Mission Viejo Tuesday.

Valerie Ruiz and Michelle Harris of Kennedy each scored 19 points in a 57-55 victory over Los Amigos Friday.

Amy Jalewalia

La Quinta High School

* Position: Center

* Height, Weight, Class: 6-1, 135, Senior

* Last Week: Jalewalia set a county record with 60 points in an 85-32 victory over Kennedy. She had 31 points, 13 rebounds and six steals in a 73-17 victory over Santiago.

* Season: Jalewalia leads the county with a 33.4-point average. She also averages 11.4 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 4.8 steals.