Pickup-Style Game Gives San Clemente an Upset

Miracle on Avenida Pico . . .

A beat-up, injured, rebuilding San Clemente girls’ basketball team that had won only half its 10 games, scored a 61-51 victory over fourth-ranked--and previously unbeaten--Marina last week.

“I was shocked; I couldn’t believe it,” San Clemente Coach Mary Mulligan said the day after the sport’s biggest upset of the season. “It was one of those fluke things. Everything we put up went in. Every girl on my team was unconscious.”

The really strange part of San Clemente’s 10-point victory is that the Tritons trailed, 12-0, in the first quarter against the Vikings, who possess one of the county’s best front-court trios.

But get this: San Clemente led by 20 points with four minutes left, meaning it had outscored Marina by 32 points during about a 22-minute stretch.

“We didn’t run any offense; I told the girls at halftime, just drive it and kick it out, and try to get as many shots as you can,” Mulligan said. “Do anything you can to keep moving and take the first good shot you can get. . . . We were playing pickup basketball.”

The Tritons made 15 of 20 free throws in the fourth quarter when Marina tried to close the gap.

Mulligan said this was one of the biggest victories in her nine-year coaching career.

It came after three players were injured--including San Clemente’s top post player, Kate Turnbull--and another had quit to concentrate on volleyball.

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Short shots from the Santa Barbara Tournament of Champions: Brea Olinda’s girls’ basketball team scored only three second-quarter points in Saturday’s championship loss to Woodbridge, losing a 65-game winning streak in the process, 51-33; during one stretch, the Ladycats went 6 minutes 53 seconds without a field goal. Brea also made only one field goal over the game’s final 5:48.

Woodbridge Coach Eric Bangs broke a three-year drought by getting called for a technical foul in Wednesday’s 70-41 victory over L.A. Washington Prep. Said Bangs: “I wish I had earned it.”

Fountain Valley’s Nicole Strange suffered a mild concussion in a 57-50 loss to Clovis West.

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Orange County will be well represented in a series of exhibition baseball games in Australia in the Queensland Tournament in Brisbane today through Friday.

Former Pacifica and Santiago Coach Myron Pines, and former Garden Grove Coach Dan Drake, will coach the squad.

Among the players making the trip are Brad Cresse (Los Alamitos) C; Kevin Feterik (Los Alamitos), OF; David Watters (Servite) 2B; Ryan Brown (Servite) SS; Rick Chessman (Servite) P; Larry Coots (Marina) C/utility; Bryan Kaylor (Esperanza) 1B; Jimmy Pickel (Esperanza) P; Brian Snapp (Esperanza) P; Justin Parker (Santa Margarita) SS/2B; Dean Schumacher (Santa Margarita) 3B; Ryan Dinley (Cypress) P; Josh Ennulat (Cypress) SS/P; Robert Peele (Cypress) P/utility; Philip Seibel (Cypress) P/OF; Jeff Barndollar (Pacifica) P/OF; Kevin Duck (Woodbridge) 1B; Shane Gandy (Canyon) 2B/SS; Greg Pines (Garden Grove) C; David Pines (Garden Grove) utility; Justin Dunning (University) P; Ryan Puckett (Sunny Hills) P.