Injured, struggling and looking for a solution. the Santa Monica High girls basketball team found a successful recipe Friday night. January 23.
Coach Marty Verdugo introduced a small lineup that pressured Culver City from the outset and set up a resounding 64-34 win.
The Culver guards couldn’t get past Jennie Harding, Thea Lemberger, and Kristina Johnson. Savanna Ersline, one of Culver’s best players, was held scoreless by Harding.
And so, Samohi ended a three-game losing streak and moved into third place in the Ocean League with a 2-2 record, its playoff hopes still alive. The Vikings’ overall record is 14-4.
In its previous three games Samohi had lost to Inglewood, Bellarmine-Jefferson and Beverly Hills, the latter by a 53-50 score on January 21.
“After the Beverly game I decided to try something different,” said Verdugo. “Keep the pressure on and increase the tempo.
“We’ll go back to our bigger players, but this gave us a lift.”
One of the bigger players, Ellesse Brandis, is expected to return soon from a concussion but Sabrina Norton (broken wrist) and Lilly Feder (back injury) remain unavailable.
Inglewood leads the league with a 4-0 record.
