Girls basketball tipped off their 2023-2024 with games starting in Nov. The team continually works hard day in and day out, always striving to the best of their abilities.
This season, the team is led by Interim Head Coach Duenas and the Assistant Coaches Matt Miller and Adesh Garg. Credit is due to the girls and the coach because they put in as much effort off as they do on the court.
The captains this season are Sage Khatemi, Laura Richards, and Amy Pine; who help to lead and guide the team towards success.
On Saturday mornings before preseason, the girls did conditioning in order to build up their stamina for the court.
Junior Olivia Carbajal was generous enough to respond to an interview question regarding what the typical practice looks like for the Wolverines.
“We usually start off with some shooting just to warm up our shots. Then we would start some drills and go over plays. Throughout the practice we would also talk about our upcoming games and the teams we are going against and trying to figure out their defense and how we can break it.”
She then added, “At the end we end up scrimmaging and then following up with conditioning, of course.”
To start off the season, the girls took to home court against Beckman High School. Unfortunately, the Wolverines fell up short with a loss, 33-73.
Before a game, the Wolverines play “Love is an Open Door” as their pregame song in hopes of lifting spirits in preparation for the game.
Following the Beckman game, the Wolverines had a tournament in which they played Calvary Chapel, Los Alamitos, PCOC, and Northwood, ending all in losses.
The girls have also struggled to find their stride in Dec., losing games played against Orange Lutheran, and in a San Diego Tournament against Chaparral, Rancho Buena Vista, and Mira Mesa.
The Wolverines won their first game in the last game of the tournament and of the year against San Dieguito Academy.
With the fun starting on the court, the Wolverines also got to spend time with one another off of the court.
Carbajal also stated, “We stayed in a hotel for the tournament for a couple of days, and during that time period we did an escape room as well as eat out and go shopping together.”
The team bonding that can occur within sports at Aliso Niguel is unlike any other school and can be lifelong memories for the student-athletes to remember.
The Wolverines are off to a blistering start to the new year, recording wins against Santiago and University before league play began.
During league play, the Wolverines lost their first two games to San Clemente and San Juan Hills. However, the team bounced back and put up a big win against Tesoro.
Not only is the team winning games, but they are putting their name into the Aliso record books as well. Reilly Hefty, a Junior Center, broke the school record twice, recording ten blocks in a previous game and then twelve blocks against Tesoro, earning herself a triple-double with a stat line of 23 points, 12 rebounds, and 12 blocks.
Hefty had her say about the team chemistry recently. “In my opinion, our team spirit has improved greatly as we played more and more together as a team. Everybody has a vital role on the team, and we all support each other through games, practices, and even things that go beyond basketball. We can rely on others for help whenever we need it, which is a really positive aspect of playing and something I value a lot for the team.”
The Wolverines are looking to extend their good form in hopes of making the CIF playoffs.
