POTTER VALLEY >> Christmas is just around the corner in Lake County although it was more like the Fourth of July for seniors Natalie Karlsson of Upper Lake and Alma Perez of Kelseyville on Saturday during a pair of girls basketball tournaments separated by 251 miles.
Karlsson scored a season-best 36 points in a 73-47 victory over Anderson Valley in the third-place game of the Potter Valley Tournament while Perez poured in a season-high 35 points in a 87-52 win over host Stevenson High School in the third round of the Stevenson Tournament at Pebble Beach.
In other tournament action Saturday, Lower Lake beat St. Helena 63-33 to claim third place in the Sutter Home Invitational at St. Helena, Clear Lake defeated Maria Carrillo 35-29 in the consolation championship game of the Redwood Empire Invitational, and Berwick of southeastern Australia beat Middletown 51-46 in the seventh-place game of the Antioch Tournament.
Upper Lake 73, Anderson Valley 47
Karlsson scored all of her points in the first three quarters against Anderson Valley.
“She took a hard fall at the end of the first quarter and landed squarely on her hip,” Upper Lake coach Mike Smith said. “She started limping in the second quarter although she was still effective out there. It started to wear on her.”
Upper Lake had a 37-26 lead at the half. When the Cougars went off for 29 points in the third quarter –16 of them by Karlsson – to open up a commanding 66-33 advantage, Smith said there was no reason to keep his star guard on the floor by that point given the lopsided score and her sore hip.
“It was another all-around solid game by Natalie,” Smith said.
Karlsson had plenty of help along the way. Kayla Nevarez added 10 points, Liliana Roman-Ibey added nine, and Nastasia Cullen had six, all on 3-pointers.
Upper Lake’s defense was anchored by Kejhana Taylor, who was named to the All-Tournament team along with Karlsson.
“She had one of the best blocks I’ve ever seen,” Smith said. “It was one of the most athletic plays I’ve seen in girls basketball.”
Taylor also had four points.
The Cougars were home Monday to play Esparto in non-league action and they are home tonight to take on Willits.
K’ville 87, Stevenson 52
At Pebble Beach, Perez scored 35 points despite not making a single 3-pointer in the Knights’ win over Stevenson, which capped a 2-1 tournament for the Knights (6-1). Their only loss came to Division V powerhouse Woodside Priory in the second round.
“She was locked on with her mid-range jump shot,” Kelseyville coach Jim Hale said. “And she was 13-for-16 from the free-throw line, which I really like. She was attacking the rim and getting to the line.”
Kelseyville took control of the game with a 23-12 first quarter and continued to add to its lead right up through the final buzzer.
Haleigh Meyer added 16 points in the victory and Kelseyville’s bench, most notably Brisa Villa, Grace Davidson and Tymeka Green, came up big time and time again.
Villa finished with 10 points, Davidson added six points and 10 rebounds, and Green also had six points.
“The bench was playing really well,” Hale said. “It’s nice to have that depth when you have a player or two struggling.”
The Knights return to action Thursday against Quincy at 3:30 p.m. in the opening round of the Orland Tournament.
Lower Lake 63, St. Helena 33
At St. Helena, Jolean Scarborough scored a team-high 17 points and Aleia Milano added 16 as the Lower Lake Trojans beat the St. Helena Saints to claim third place in the Sutter Home Invitational.
Ten different Lower Lake players scored in the game as the Trojans squared their season record at 3-3.
Lower Lake hosts Ukiah tonight and travels to Sebastopol on Wednesday to play Analy.
Clear Lake 35, Maria Carrillo 29
At Healdsburg, the Clear Lake Cardinals used a 14-5 third quarter to build a 12-point lead as they beat Maria Carrillo in the consolation championship game of the Redwood Empire Invitational.
Camille Donald and Kortnie Reynolds scored 11 points apiece to lead Clear Lake (4-3). Kiana Richardson was named to the All-Tournament team.
Berwick 51, Middletown 46
At Antioch, Berwick beat Middletown in the seventh-place game of the Diamond Division at the Antioch Tournament. The Berwick team is from southeastern Australia.
Middletown (0-4), still looking for its first win of the season, missed five of six free throws down the stretch.
“We’re just making enough mistakes to keep us from winning games,” Middletown coach Anthony Bazzano said of his mostly young squad.
All-Tournament selection Abby Aden led the way with 15 points and Makenzi Smith added 14 in the hard-fought game. Middletown trailed 28-27 at halftime and 38-33 entering the fourth quarter.
“Abby Aden dominated the whole weekend down there,” Bazzano said. “She’s doing it all for us right now.”
Middletown is home tonight to play Fairfield in a non-league game. The Mustangs turn around and hit the road Wednesday to play Casa Grande in Petaluma.
JV basketball
K’ville 44, Clear Lake 39
At Healdsburg, Kelseyville defeated Clear Lake 44-39 in the championship game of the Clear Lake Tournament led by 13 points from Grace Duty and nine from Allison Bryant. Duty and Paige Bour anchored the Kelseyville defense.
The Knights beat Lower Lake 46-32 in the semifinals earlier Saturday. Bryant had 14 points, Kat Brown added 10 and Duty had nine.
