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Lady Warriors win basketball league title, seeded #1 playoffs

Joe Naiman

Village News Reporter

Fallbrook High School’s girls basketball team repeated the Valley League championship the Warriors won last season, and the team was given the first seed in the CIF Division II playoffs.

For the second consecutive year, Fallbrook was undefeated against Valley League opposition. The 10-0 league record was part of a 20-6 overall season mark, and the Warriors won their final 15 regular-season games.

“It was tougher this season than it was last year for sure,” Fallbrook coach Trae Harrison said of the Warriors’ second consecutive league championship.

Mount Carmel, Ramona, and Valley Center all had 6-4 league records during 2020-21 to share second place in the final standings. The 2021-22 Mount Carmel team lost only to Fallbrook in league play to give the Sundevils an 8-2 Valley League record and sole possession of second in the league standings.

“Mount Carmel is really tough, but the girls took it through and they played hard,” Harrison said. “This year they definitely earned it.”

Fallbrook’s two 2021-22 wins over Mount Carmel were by a combined total of 15 points. “As a coach you always want perfection even though you know you’re not going to get it, but I am pleased with the way it turned out,” Harrison said.

In the first game against Mount Carmel, the Warriors overcame a 12-point deficit with 3:42 remaining in the fourth quarter. “We fought back in the fourth quarter,” Harrison said. “It showed that championship pedigree we’re building.”

Harrison noted that during 2020-21, his players sometimes conceded defeat when trailing. “This season so far when we’re down for some reason we were together. We play together, and we play as a unit,” Harrison said. “We’re an actual team. You have to beat all of us.”

During 2020-21, Naiya Kurnik averaged 18.8 points in the Warriors’ 10 league games. Elley Ahrend averaged 10.5 points and Juliana Blas averaged 10.3 points.

After the Warriors won their first three league games of the 2021-22 season, they hosted Poway in a Jan. 24 nonleague game. The Titans held leads of 11-8 after one period and 23-22 at halftime. An 18-11 scoring advantage in the third period gave Fallbrook a 30-34 lead going into the final quarter. Fallbrook was able to hold off the Titans in the final eight minutes of play for a 51-49 victory. Brooke Quintana led the Warriors with 14 points, Ahrend scored nine points, and Kurnik and Claire Nordeen had eight points apiece. Kurnik led the team with 11 rebounds and with five assists while Ahrend and Nordeen pulled down nine rebounds apiece and Quintana dished out three assists. Quintana had three steals and Kurnik recorded two steals. Harley Benitez led the team with two blocked shots.

Fallbrook returned to league competition Jan. 26 with a 74-19 home win over Escondido. The Warriors had leads of 15-7 at the end of the first period, 50-11 when the halftime buzzer sounded, and 69-17 entering the final quarter. Kurnik scored 42 points against the Cougars while Nordeen provided 13 points and Ahrend added nine points. Kurnik pulled down 11 rebounds, Nordeen grabbed 10 rebounds, Benitez had eight rebounds, and Ahrend came down seven times with a rebound. Ahrend had five assists and Blas contributed four assists. Nordeen led the Warriors with five steals. Benitez had Fallbrook’s only block of the game while Kurnik had eight deflections and Nordeen deflected five Escondido passes.

A Jan. 28 trip to San Pasqual included a 61-17 Warriors’ triumph. The Fallbrook quarter leads were 18-3 after the first eight minutes, 35-7 at halftime and 51-15 when the third period ended.

The second game between Fallbrook and Mount Carmel was played Feb. 2 in Rancho Penasquitos. The Warriors leveraged a 20-10 lead after one quarter into a 60-52 victory. Nordeen led the team with 17 points, Ahrend provided 14 points, and Kurnik had 11 points. Kurnik, Ahrend, and Nordeen each had 11 rebounds. Kurnik recorded seven steals.

Ramona was third in the league standings with a 6-4 record. Fallbrook’s Feb. 4 game in Ramona was won by a 63-30 margin. The Warriors had a 24-9 scoring advantage in the final period to secure the game. Quintana had 15 points, Blas sank 14 points worth of shots, and Kurnik, Nordeen, and Liz Villagran had eight points apiece while Ahrend provided seven points. Nordeen grabbed nine rebounds with Kurnik and Ahrend pulling down five apiece. Kurnik led the team with nine assists. Ahrend had eight steals and Kurnik added six steals.

San Pasqual actually held a 16-12 lead after the first quarter of the Feb. 7 game in Fallbrook, but the Warriors were ahead by a 27-24 margin at halftime and won the 48-37 contest. That was the first of four games Fallbrook played during the final week of the regular season.

A 63-21 triumph Feb. 9 at Escondido clinched Fallbrook’s league championship. The Warriors outscored the Cougars by a 29-2 margin in the second half. Nordeen scored 17 points, Ahrend and Quintana each scored 10 points, and Kurnik provided eight points. Nordeen had six rebounds and Kurnik grabbed five. Kurnik and Nordeen each had five steals while Kurnik and Ahrend had three assists apiece. Benitez and Payton Calloway each recorded a block for Fallbrook.

St. Joseph Academy traveled to Fallbrook for a Feb. 10 nonleague game. The Crusaders held leads of 14-10 after one period, 20-18 at halftime and 28-27 after three quarters. Fallbrook outscored St. Joseph by a 23-9 margin in the fourth quarter for a 50-37 victory.

Fallbrook’s regular season concluded Feb. 11 at Valley Center where a 55-25 score finalized the Warriors’ perfect league record. A 9-7 lead after the first quarter became a 21-12 halftime cushion. The Warriors held a 32-17 advantage entering the fourth quarter in which they outscored the Jaguars by a 22-8 margin.

Harrison and his team set three goals for the 2021-22 season. “The first was to win league. The second was to go undefeated,” Harrison said.

The Warriors fulfilled those first two goals. “The third is to get the banner,” Harrison said.

That means the CIF Division II championship banner. The Feb. 12 CIF playoff selection and seeding meeting gave the Warriors the top seed in the Division II playoffs.

“It’s encouraging. Being the No. 1 seed is very encouraging. We get home court advantage,” Harrison said. “All of that is in play for us right now.”

Being the top team on paper doesn’t guarantee the top position after the CIF playoffs. “Got to play those three games to get to the championship,” Harrison said.

Fallbrook will host either St. Joseph or Olympian tomorrow. Mount Carmel is seeded fourth so, if the Warriors and Sundevils both win their quarterfinal matchups, they will face each other in the Division II semifinals Feb. 23.

“The ultimate goal is to meet whoever is from the other side of the bracket and actually bring it home this year,” Harrison said.

The CIF championship match will be Feb. 25 at San Marcos High School. If Fallbrook wins in the quarterfinals, the Feb. 23 game will also be at home, at 7 p.m.. “We’re looking forward to having Fallbrook fans fill the gym,” Harrison said.

 

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