Justin-Siena uses run to start second quarter, three double-digit scorers to beat Pinole Valley in playoff opener
By Kyle Foster
Twitter/X: @NapaKyle @NapaSportsNews
In the playoffs, you have to always put forth your best effort. When you’re playing teams you’re not as familiar with, it’s never going to be easy.
In Saturday night’s CIF North Coast Section Division 2 quarterfinal, this is what No. 1 seed Justin-Siena did as they beat No. 9 Pinole Valley, 58-36, in a game played at the Daniel J. Clark Gym.
The Braves (26-2) were able to do this by taking control of the game at the start of the second quarter when they went on a 7-0 run to gain a 22-12 lead. They were able to do this by going back to the top-notch defense that they had all season long.
“We came in knowing we were gonna have to defend really well against a really good team,” Justin-Siena head coach Andy Bettencourt explained. “I told their coach after the game they are not a nine seed. That is a really good team. We feel like, if we play the defense we’re capable of for four quarters that we can we can eventually pull away.”
That defensive effort helped Justin-Siena gain a nice 30-18 lead at the break as well. Justin-Siena put the game away with a 6-0 run in the fourth quarter to go up 48-30 as well.
Maybe another thing that helped the Braves was the fact that they had a trio of scorers in double figures for the game.
Leading them all was Lauren Keller who was back in action after being out sick in last week’s league championship game. She finished with a game-leading 19 points and 2 rebounds. The junior scored 15 points in the first half.
“Really proud of Lauren,” Bettencourt explained. “I think anyone that knows her knows how sick she had to be to not play in that game last Saturday, and it took her a while to bounce back. But the last three days of practice, she’s been really good and really on it. And when she plays like that, we’re just pretty tough to beat. She was phenomenal tonight.”
After that, Dylan Zapolski finished with 16 points and 4 rebounds. Zapolski found her groove in the second half, scoring 12 points out of the break. She also made 1 of 2 free throws.
“I think in the first half I noticed that they were kind of playing me closely,” Zapolski said of what led to a big second half. “In the first half, I realized that it was creating a lot of great openings for my teammates. So I was telling them to drive my way. In the second half, Lauren and Jordan had an amazing first half, so I think once they started collapsing on them, it kind of opened it up for me too. I kind of liked the matchups that I was getting, and coach was calling great plays, and so I just kind of found it in the second half, which was great my teammates were getting me the ball, which all credit to them.”
Zapolski scored 12 points from right around the bucket in the game. After being known more as a shooter last season, she has taken what’s been there this season.
“Going into this season, me and Jordan, Washington, we lifted before the season,” Zapolski explained. “And our focus was getting stronger, and especially for me because, as you mentioned last year, I didn’t really take it to the rim a lot. I was more hesitant to, you know, go body to body with someone.”
Finishing with a double-double in the game was Jordan Washington. The senior center scored 15 points, grabbed 14 rebounds, and blocked 3 shots in the game. Washington scored 8 points in the first half and made 1 of 2 free throws.
Others scoring in the game for the Braves were Naveena Jackson (4 points, 4 rebounds), Sophia Dominici (2 points, 1 rebound), and Lydia Heil (2 points).
With the win, Justin-Siena advances to the semifinals on Wednesday at 7 pm when they’ll host No. 4 seed Moreau Catholic of Hayward. Moreau Catholic beat McKinleyville 34-27 on Saturday night. It will be a rematch of the Christmas Classic third-place game on December 21st where Justin-Siena won 51-41. You can view the updated bracket here.
“Anytime you have a rematch, both teams are going to know each other,” Bettencourt pointed out. “Obviously, it was a really good game here back in December, so we know they’re coming. Look, if you’re in the semifinals of Division 2 in the competitive equity area, you’re a really good basketball team. So we know we’re really good, and we know they’re really good.”
