Taking the home court for a pair of non-league contests just before the holidays, Escalon’s varsity Lady Cougars put away both opponents. With the wins over Johansen and Galt, they improved to 9-1 for the preseason campaign so far.

They hosted Johansen on Monday, Dec. 21 and built up a slim 21-19 halftime lead before taking control in the third and ending with a 37-27 victory.

Johansen had the upper hand in the first quarter, leading 8-4, but the Lady Cougars regrouped and outscored the visitors 17-11 in the second. They kept up the pressure in the third quarter, outscoring their opponent 10-4 to lead it 31-23 headed into the final frame. The low scoring quarter saw Escalon edge out Johansen 6-4 over the final eight minutes for the win.

Sarah Leal had 13 points on the night. Shelby McCune and Jenelle Anderson each had nine points and 14 rebounds, with McCune going 3-for-4 from the free throw line.

Back at it the next day, Escalon welcomed Galt into town and easily outdistanced the visitors, 53-20. On the strength of a huge opening quarter, outscoring Galt 22-9, Escalon kept the pressure on and had a 13-1 scoring advantage in the second period to lead 35-10 at the half. Third quarter action saw a 14-3 edge for Escalon, while Galt outscored the host team 7-4 in the final frame, but it was an easy win for the Lady Cougars.

Justine Lawrence led the way with 11 points and Leal was in double figures with 10. Two players added seven points apiece, with McCune putting in seven points and pulling down seven boards. Freshman Sylvia Guevara made her presence felt, scoring seven points and pulling down eight rebounds.

Action this week for the varsity girls was due at the West Coast Jamboree, with a trio of games slated Monday, Tuesday (after The Times went to press) and Wednesday, Dec. 30 to close out the calendar year on the road.

JUNIOR VARSITY

Matching the wins of their older counterparts this past week, the JV girls also won both games they played on the home court.

“The games this week went very well,” agreed JV coach Kacey Cheary. “We went into Christmas with two wins.”

Against Johansen on Dec. 21 it was a 33-22 victory for Escalon. Haylie Corriea was the leading scorer with 12 points and Daisy Camacho put in seven.

“On Tuesday we beat Galt 40-11,” Cheary said. “Emily McPherrin had 12 and Madison Kindberg had seven.”

The girls will have a break from games this week, next suiting up for a Tuesday, Jan. 5 contest on the road at Summerville, with tip off set for 6 p.m.