Page 8 February 25, 2016 EL SEGUNDO HERALD Teams Advance in CIF Playoffs Story and Photos by Gregg McMullin The CIF Southern Section playoffs are in full swing. El Segundo is well represented having girl’s water polo, boys and girls’ soccer and boys and girls’ basketball teams all advancing. With the first two rounds in the books the girls’ basketball team is playing in the quarter-finals, both soccer teams have advanced to the second round while the water polo and boy’s basketball team have been eliminated. Endo Leads Girl’s Basketball Team For the second consecutive year the Lady Eagle have advanced to the CIF-SS Division 4AA quarter-finals. They defeated Nipomo (near San Luis Obispo) 64-51 in the first round and Covina 48-33 in the second round. The Nipomo Titans, the third place team from the Los Padres League, played spotty defense to start and the Eagles took an 8-0 lead. Nipomo make a grasp and trailed 8-6 before the defense took over. Ani Finau had a steal and an uncontested basket and then Hannah Nonoguchi intercepted a pass and fed Paige Endo for an easy layup. The Eagles showed more poise, vigor and sense of attitude and it showed in the second quarter. Nonoguchi’s three pointer gave the Eagles their largest lead of the night of 19 points and a 35-16 advantage. In the third quarter the Titans made it interesting when Kiesa Romero connected on three 3-pointers and Vanessa Davis hit a 12 footer to cut the Eagles lead to 37-30. That served as a reminder to what was at stake. The Eagles then went on an 11-0 run and led 48-30 before Nipomo scored the last six points of the third quarter. The Eagles held off the Titans in the fourth quarter and went on to the win. Endo ended with 27 points while Quinn Adams had 17 points and ten defensive rebounds. The Eagles played perhaps their best overall game of the season against Covina, the second place team from the Valle Vista League. The Eagles blocked out, took better shot selections, passed and generated open shots while committing a season low four turnovers. Trailing early on Adams and Nonoguchi both bombed in consecutive three-pointers. The Colts had a slight advantage at the end of the first period but upped their lead by seven points before Endo scored three consecutive baskets and the Eagles trailed at 18-17 at the half. Covina extended their lead to 23-18 before the Eagles went to work on both offense and defense. Finau rebounded a ball and quickly led Endo on a fast break bucket. Then Endo sank a free throw shortly after another stop by the defense and the Eagles took their first lead since leading 9-8 in the first quarter. El Segundo went on a scoring spree, including a three-point buzzer beater by Endo, to lift the Eagles to a 34-28 lead. It was clear El Segundo’s game approach rattled Covina. a team with 22 wins on the season. The Eagles caused turnovers and held their guests to few second chance shots. The STARS & STRIPES A M E R I C A N M A D E C L O T H I N G S T O R E COME CHECK US OUT! GREAT CLOTHING INCLUDING DENIM, HATS, BAGS, SHOES AND MORE 1107 Van Ness Ave.Torrance, CA 90501 • 310.320-3207 See Eagles, page 13 LEE 101 USA, WOOLRICH, SAVE KHAKI, MINNETONKA MOCCASIN, PENNY, JAN SPORT, DULUTH, REYN SPOONER, TRETORN, BALL, BURTON, STANCE, RAINBOW SANDALS, FILSON, TEVA, NEW YORK HAT, PADDY WAX, RICHER & POORER, SCHOTT USA, STRATHTAY Open Mondays through Saturdays Noon to 6pm How Rams Can Make a Splash in L.A. By Adam Serrao The offseason is finally here for every team in the National Football League. While the Denver Broncos have gone home as champions of the league, celebrating at every turn they take, other teams are trying to figure how to get better so that they, too, can one day hoist the Lombardi Trophy high above their heads. While the Rams haven’t won a championship since 1999, owner Stan Kroenke and company may feel like they have hit the jackpot after being awarded a move to the land of dreams; Los Angeles. While the dust is settled on all of that decision making and it is clear that the Rams will be in Los Angeles to play the 2016 season, it now becomes pertinent for the team to decide on how they will spend their money to rise to a championship level of greatness. So, who are the St. Louis Rams? And further, what do they need to become an even better football team? It goes without saying that almost every member on the Rams team has to be thrilled about the move to come to Los Angeles. Sure, packing your bags and moving the kids to a different part of the country can always be stressful, but there’s a tendency to make just a little more haste when it’s to come to a place like L.A. Things won’t simply fall into place once the team arrives, though. The Rams have a lot of offseason question marks to think about and address. Some of that work has already been done when it was announced last Friday that the team had released defensive end Chris Long, linebacker James Laurinaitis, and tight end Jared Cook. All three players played major roles on the team last season, but the moves save the West Coast-bound Rams a combined $24.375 million in cap space for the upcoming 2016 season. “This is the time of year when all NFL teams are faced with difficult decisions regarding their veteran players,” Rams head coach Jeff Fisher said of the moves. “Chris and James are the epitome of what it means to be a pro in this league and it’s been an honor to coach them both.” So now that room on the roster has been created, where do the Rams turn next? Well the team certainly has a great need at quarterback. The combination of Nick Foles and Case Keenum certainly did them no favors last season. The rumor is that the team will go after Robert Griffin III in free agency. Griffin is going to want to start, so the Rams would be a perfect fit, at least as far as Griffin is concerned. People quickly forget, however, about the ex-Washington quarterbacks inability to stay healthy, about the concerns with his character in the locker room, and about his failure to be anything near a capable starting quarterback during his final years in Washington. Maybe that was a product of the head coach at the time, Mike Shanahan, but there’s no denying the fact that Griffin, himself, would be a highrisk (and possibly high-reward) play for the Rams to make this offseason. If not Griffin, then who? The team seems to be high on Sean Mannion, who they drafted with the 98th overall pick (3rd round) in the 2015 draft. Hearing the name Mannion certainly doesn’t strike confidence into the hearts of Rams fans across the country, but the quarterback out of Oregon State has only played a total of seven snaps, all in week 12 of last season, and is still largely unproven at the professional level. He might be worth a flier, especially with Todd Gurley and the team’s elite offensive line in place. That being said, don’t be surprised to see Keenum back under center with Mannion as the team’s No. 2 as they attempt to work magic in the draft once again. Now that Cook is gone, the Rams need someone to step in and make a difference at tight end. Lance Kendricks and Justice Cunningham are on the roster, but going out and signing a free agent like Ladarius Green might be more splashy. Rather than going out to get people, the Rams also need to re-sign their players. Namely, cornerbacks Janoris Jenkins and Trumaine Johnson, defensive ends Eugene Sims and William Hayes, and finally safeties Mark Barron and Rodney McLeod. It also couldn’t hurt to use the draft to take in more wide receivers to put around Kenny Britt and Tavon Austin. Britt is what everyone thought he would be and while Austin is certainly explosive, a deep-threat could do a lot to bolster his game and the Rams passing attack in general. The players on this L.A. Rams roster, as it currently stands, may seem a bit foreign to everyone outside of the St. Louis area, where the team, of course, formerly played. Now that they are here in sunny California, however, it may be smart to get a bit more comfortable with the names on the back of the jerseys. It won’t be long before the players march on to the Coliseum field to play their first season in their new home. Los Angeles finally has football back and with just a few tweaks to the roster, the Rams could be looking to bring a championship back to the city for the first time since 1983. • Grant Bemis gets clear before scoring the Eagle’s first goal in the first round of the CIF playoffs.
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