GIRLS’ BASKETBALL ROUNDUP : Ocean View Capitalizes on Westminster Turnovers

The Ocean View Seahawks came into the Westminster High gym Thursday night and moved one step closer to the first Golden West League girls’ basketball title with a 53-39 victory over the Lions.

The Seahawks (13-7, 5-0) had 21 steals and forced 26 turnovers as they led the entire game, taking a 31-22 lead by halftime.

Westminster (12-8, 4-1) tried to force the ball inside early to post players Amber Farroux and Kristin Schult without success; the Lions turned over the ball on their first four possessions and faced a 6-0 deficit. Things didn’t improve much, as the Seahawks intercepted more than a dozen passes and deflected or broke up numerous others.

As usual, sophomore Jennifer Tuiolosega was the key player for the Seahawks, scoring a game-high 21 points and adding seven steals. Junior Becky Fraser had 15 points, nine rebounds and six steals. Schult led the Lions with 16 points and nine rebounds.

“We did a good job with their pressure,” Ocean View Coach Ollie Martin said. “We pride ourselves on defense, and the defense held up, but we also played a smart offensive game.”

Depth was a concern for Ocean View going in, because the Seahawks’ usual seven-player rotation was reduced to six because freshman Heather Hill is injured. Hill suffered a concussion Tuesday night against Tustin and is expected to be out two weeks. However, depth never was a factor as Westminster never got closer then eight after the half.

“They played good defense and we just didn’t adjust,” Westminster Coach Dick Katz said. “We were just in a fog and we didn’t read things very well.”