Elk Grove High School
Lady Herd Basketball
Elk Grove, California
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Elk Grove High School
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In the News
2011-2012
Published: Tuesday, January 24, 2012 3:14 PM PST One sport enough for Gray in college By John Hull - Citizen Sports Writer She may be the leading scorer right now in the Delta Valley Conference, but don't mistaken Carlee Gray for a college basketball prospect. She has already signed a NCAA National Letter-of-intent to play softball at George Washington University in the nation's capital. But, has the Colonials' basketball coach been asking Carlee if she wouldn't mind playing two sports next season? "No, the basketball coach has not been calling," she laughed. "Softball is more my thing." Gray is an impressive infielder along with being one of the DVC's top basketball players. She batted .300 a year ago as the Lady Herd went 28-6 and were the runner-up in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division I playoffs. Yet, the 6-foot post player would be a nice recruit for any basketball program. This season she's scoring at a 17.8 points-per-game clip and has shown toughness underneath with almost eight rebounds a game. Gray is clearly the primary - and maybe only - scoring option. In fact, most opponents will try to deny her the ball and force the other Elk Grove players to shoot. If Gray does get the ball, defenders are quick to double team. "When she's the only one on our team that's averaging double-figures, I knew (this would happen)," Elk Grove head coach Amanda Buck said. "We've put in a couple plays for it. If she's open we try to get the ball to her." Last Friday, Gray went to the free throw line 15 times, quite a big number for any single basketball player. Gray says she's now expecting the "hack-a-Shaq" defensive scheme by the opponents. In the Herd's 20 games, she's been at the free throw line 173 times. "It's difficult," Gray said. "It's hard to score when you're double-teamed. It puts more pressure on my teammates, so I guess we have to do a better job at executing when that happens." When the rest of the Elk Grove players do shoot well, they are capable of competing with most teams. Against Franklin, they made only two of 15 shots in the first half and got too far behind to catch up. Elk Grove trailed by 23 points in the third quarter, 42-19, because of more poor shooting and not being able to get the ball to Gray. They lost the game, 52-29. Gray is spending extra time at the free throw line during practice, knowing that's where she'll likely score most of her points. "I know teams are going to spend lots of time pressuring me really hard, so I'm going to drive really hard towards the basket, throw up a shot and look for a foul," she said. "I do look to finish, but if I'm fouled, well, I just need to do a better job with my free throws." She is making 62 percent of her free throws this season. "I just hope it gets better," she acknowledged. One positive Gray is taking away from her senior basketball year is that the team has won more games already this season than all of last year, when Elk Grove had only five victories. "We have a much better team that plays together a lot better," she said. "We get along really well." Elk Grove Citizen Published: Thursday, January 5, 2012 11:44 AM PST DVC girls: League race wide open By John Hull - Citizen Sports Writer For most of its eight years, Monterey Trail High School has been the Rodney Dangerfield of the Elk Grove District high schools. Always wanting to earn respect, some of that has begun to flow in the Mustangs' direction in recent years partly due to success in its football, volleyball and, this past year, in track and field. Basketball has had its struggles, but this season's Lady Mustang team looks to have earned enough respect thanks to some early-eason wins to be selected as the team to beat this year in the Delta Valley Conference. First-year coach Louie Corpuz has got the Mustangs to play at a level the school hasn't seen in its rather brief history. But, it does help that the rest of the DVC may not have the quality of squads to which it had become accustomed. Elk Grove and Laguna Creek, teams coming off five- and six-win seasons, respectively, are improved, but usual stalwarts Franklin and Davis have struggled early on. Grant will have it struggles, too. Thus, this season Monterey Trail could very well hoist that school's first-ever basketball conference championship banner in the Mustang gym in February. Monterey Trail Head coach: Louie Corpuz (1st season) 2010-11 record: 11-16 overall, 5-5 league Corpuz has one of the conference's top players in 5-10 senior Sunmayyah Wiggins. She's averaged 14.9 points and 12.1 rebounds a game during the Mustangs' 11-3 start this year. Joining her is two excellent guards, junior Qiana Levy (11.9 points per game) and sophomore Jasmine Redmon (7.4 points game) Franklin Head coach: Kay Parsons (7th season) 2010-11 record: 10-15 overall, 2-9 league Like most of the other DVC teams, the Lady Wildcats have started this season a little inconsistent. They've looked good in a couple games, but then have suffered big losses to Pleasant Grove (57-27) and to Florin (58-21). Kay Parsons, now the dean of the DVC girls' coaches, has a few good players like 5-5 senior Sandy Perez (10.3 points, 6.6 rebounds per game), 5-11 junior Madison Wheeler (7.8 points, 5.7 rebounds) and 5-9 junior Lindsey Bedford (6.1 points, 4.3 rebounds). With a good start, Franklin could finish much higher in the pack than last season. Elk Grove
2010-11 record: 5-20 overall, 2-8 league Amanda Buck wasn't supposed to coach at all this season. After giving birth to her second child this past summer, she was going to spend more time at home. However, her replacement, Beecher Sykes, was transferred out of town by his company and so Buck stepped back in the coaching seat. Already the Lady Herd has responded by winning more games in December (seven) than they did all of last season. It does help that Buck has last year's leading scorer Carlee Gray back this year. Gray is averaging 18.3 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. Alongside of Gray is 5-9 senior Amy Schuman. Sophomore guard Tierra Leisure has also been impressive. She is averaging more than three steals a game. It's been four years since Elk Grove has made the postseason. It likely won't happen again this season. Laguna Creek Head coach: Bridgett Singleton (1st season) 2010-11 record: 6-20 overall, 0-10 league Bridgett Singleton is another first-year DVC coach experiencing some early success. The Lady Cardinals went winless in league last season, but that should change this winter. Singleton has one of the conference's top players in six-foot junior Ehis Ogbebor. She's averaging more rebounds (ten) than points (nine) but also plays excellent defense. There are also some encouraging signs that Laguna Creek will have better days ahead. Two freshmen, 5-9 forward Nikki Douglas and 5-4 guard Arianna Alvarez, are both starters. Alvarez is a good three-point shooter and is averaging 12.3 points per game to lead Laguna Creek. Davis Head coach: Dennis Foster (2nd season) 2010-11 record: 21-7 overall, 10-0 league It had to be a real rollercoaster emotionally for the Blue Devils in 2010-2011. Early in the season head coach Jeff Christian threw sisters (and top players) Malika and Khaliya Wilkins off the team but that backfired and, after much backlash, the school administration let Christian go. He was replaced by Dennis Foster, the Wilkins sisters were re-instated and Davis proceeded to win the conference championship. That turnaround tale ended in the first round of the playoffs when Pleasant Grove defeated the Blue Devils, 65-51. The Wilkins girls graduated, but Foster is back and the Blue Devils have struggled a bit in non-conference games. Davis is led this year by 5-7 senior Tiffany Ho and 5-8 junior Ashleigh Vandenbrink. Grant Head coach: David Kendrick (6th season) 2010-11 record: 14-10 overall, 5-5 league Grant is a big question mark. But, this year the Pacers are looking very solid with a 10-5 record thus far in the preseason. Coach David Kendrick will rely on returners Chiquita Brown (5-4, Sr.) and Jasmine Moore (5-3, Sr.). Elk Grove Citizen Published: Thursday, December 29, 2011 11:51 AM PST Girls Basketball: Top 10 players to watch This might be the first time since Joey Rollings switched from the girls coach to the boys at Sheldon High School that the Elk Grove area has a legitimate Sac-Joaquin Section contender, excluding Bradshaw Christian. Pleasant Grove entered the 2011-12 season as a favorite in the Delta River League and Division I. Although they went 0-6 combined against Oak Ridge and St. Francis last season, they return the trio of Marissa Wimbley, Dejza James and Avonna Lee. Florin and Valley should qualify for the postseason, though both are unlikely to seriously push Sacramento High in the Metro Conference. No league might be as wide open as the Delta Valley Conference. None of the six teams appear to have deep postseason plans, and only two might even qualify. Bradshaw is once again the top small school in the Section. The four-time defending champions boasts one of the Section's top players, Ashlee Jones, and is favored to five-peat. Below is a list of the top 10 players to watch from the Elk Grove area for the 2011-12 season. Marissa Wimbley, Pleasant Grove For Pleasant Grove to contend for a DRL and Division I Section title this season, Wimbley must be the go-to scorer and demand the ball late in games. She has a knack for hitting clutch shots, and can do so either from the perimeter or by driving to the basket. Wimbley was the main reason Pleasant Grove stayed close with Sac High earlier this month, scoring a team-high 16 points and answering most of Sac High's scoring runs with a basket of her own. She leads the DRL in scoring at 15.2 points per game. Daijah Joe-Smith, Florin Her per-game totals are mind-boggling: 23.7 points and 14.3 rebounds. And she has been posting double-doubles since her freshman season. She averaged 10.1 points and 13.1 rebounds in her first varsity season and 14.3 points and 13.7 rebounds as a sophomore. Now a junior, Joe-Smith scored 20 or more points in seven of her first nine games, including a season-high 32 points against Woodcreek. She produced double-doubles in all but one of those first nine games, and scored 28 points and grabbed 22 rebounds against Bethel. About the only place she struggles is at the free-throw line, where she is a 51 percent shooter. Carlee Gray, Elk Grove Elk Grove averages just 48.4 points per game, 18 of those come from one player. Gray has led the team in scoring in each game this season, and she is the only one to average more than six points per game for Elk Grove. Gray, who signed a scholarship to play softball at George Washington University next season, leads the team in scoring, rebounds and made three-pointers. She is tied for second in steals and alone in third for assists. Brianna Burgos, Sheldon Hampered by a knee injury, it has been a slow start for the senior guard. Playing in her fourth varsity season, Burgos is widely viewed as one of the top shooters in Northern California. She led Sheldon in scoring at 22.4 points per game last season. When healthy, she is as prolific as any scorer in the Section. Her father, Albert, is in his first season as the varsity head coach. Ashlee Jones, Bradshaw Christian Jones, who generated interest from the University of Tennessee as a freshman, is the only returning starter on this year's team. The junior guard, a smooth shooting left-hander, is averaging 16.7 points per game. She also leads the team in assists, blocks and rebounds per game and is tied for second in steals. Kedina Monroe, Sheldon In Burgos' absence, Monroe has evolved into the team's primary offensive option and a reliable scorer. She is the only Sheldon player averaging double figures (13.3 points) and also leads the team in rebounds at 6.6 per game. Dejza James, Pleasant Grove Considered a Division I college prospect, James hasn't appeared as polished with her game in the first month of the season. She is arguably the team's best overall player, providing scoring from the outside and inside and also a capable defender. Her outside shot has been off so far, but she is still averaging 10.3 points and 8.7 rebounds per game. James averaged 11.5 points and 8.4 rebounds last season. Deja Conger, Florin The other half of the Deja-Daijah combo at Florin, Conger averages 14.3 points per game. She has made 25 of the team's 32 three-pointers this season. Conger reached her scoring average in all but two games through the first three weeks. Similar to Joe-Smith, she is also a junior and in her third varsity season. Avonna Lee, Pleasant Grove Sharp-shooting Lee has increased her scoring average from 11.1 points last season to 14.5 in 2011-12. She has made nearly half of her three-point attempts (12-of-25). Lee made 4-of-5 three pointers and scored a season high in points with a game-high 23 points against Brookside Christian. Shenetra Robinson, Valley Robinson is in her fourth season on the varsity team, and she has averaged double figures in each of the past three. She led Valley with 16.5 points per game last season. Through the first eight games in 2011, Robinson is averaging a career-best 17.6 points. Only once this season did she fail to score double digits. She scored a season-high 28 points against Dixon and, in her most recent game, made five three-pointers en route to 25 points. Robinson is one of three Valley players averaging double figures. Other players to watch: Alyna Kanae, Sheldon; Kynnidi Ricardo, Dalayana Sampton, Florin; Summayyah Wiggins, Qiana Levy, Monterey Trail; Sandy Perez, Franklin; Arianna Alvarez, Laguna Creek; Erika Bean, Briana Barnes, Bradshaw Christian; Amy Schuman, Elk Grove; Carmen Garcia, Cynthia Do, Valley.
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