LAKE COUNTY — Closing out a perfect first half in North Central League II play were the Upper Lake Cougars, 59-31 winners over Credo High School of Rohnert Park in varsity girls basketball action nearly a year ago today in Upper Lake.
Until the COVID-19-delayed 2020-21 sports season starts, the Lake County Record-Bee will take a look back at the local sports happenings of a year ago and the teams and athletes who were making the headlines.
Varsity girls basketball
The lopsided win over Credo gave the Cougars a 4-0 mark in the NCL II standings and a 16-3 record overall, putting them well on their way to the school’s first league title in girls basketball since the 2003-04 campaign.
“I have not allowed myself to think about that,” Smith said when asked to assess the Cougars’ chances of winning their first league title in 16 years.
Added Smith of his team’s first half, “We’ve had a statement game against each of these teams (St. Vincent, Roseland University Prep, Sonoma Academy and Credo). Now we have to follow it up (in the second half).”
Though Upper Lake’s offense struggled at times in the first quarter against Credo, there was nothing wrong with a Cougars defense that held the Gryphon to just 15 points in the first three quarters.
“Our defense just played amazing tonight,” Smith said. “That defense was just swarming. We were all over the court.”
Upper Lake’s offense surged to life during a 18-2 second quarter, pushing the Cougars in front 24-9 by halftime. The game became a full-fledged rout in the third quarter as Upper Lake pushed its lead to 45-15.
Pretty much everyone was involved in the win, according to Smith, something reflected in Upper Lake’s ultra-balanced scoring. Heaven’Lee Loans Arrow led the way with 15 points, Zoey Petrie finished with 12, Karlee Zimmerschied and Alana Sanchez each had 10, and Madison Noble came off the bench to add nine points and 15 rebounds, just missing a double-double. Meanwhile point guard Maddy Young was running the offense and the defense to near perfection, according to Smith, who said the addition of Petrie, who missed most of the preseason after transferring from Clear Lake High School following the 2019 fall sports season, has given the Cougars much more flexibility.
While both Young and Petrie are natural point guards, Petrie’s ability to score in double figures any given game has freed up Young to do what she does best, handle the ball as the Cougars’ floor general and anchor the Cougars’ stingy defense.
“Adding Zoey to the mix has taken a lot of pressure off Maddy,” Smith said. “Her 12-14 points a game is huge for us. Maddy can just concentrate on distributing the ball and running the offense, and she can make a lot of things happen.”
