TORRANCE TRIBUNE January 4, 2018 Page 3
Up and Adam
Lady Warriors, Saxons Look to
Lead Way in Girls Basketball
By Adam Serrao
A new year brings with it new hope for girls
basketball teams around the city of Torrance.
Among those basketball teams expected to
do especially well this season are the West
High Warriors and the North High Saxons.
Both teams have not only been longstanding
rivals, but also finished neck-and-neck atop
the Pioneer League standings last season. With
each expected to do equally well this season,
not only should other teams in the Pioneer
League beware--but fans of the Lady Warriors
and the Lady Saxons alike should get ready
for a great show this year.
After finishing the year with an overall record
of 16-10, the Lady Warriors’ one loss in Pioneer
League play (9-1) happened to come in a 47-46
loss at the hands of the Lady Saxons. Even
still, head coach Riki Murakami expected a bit
better of her ballclub. After making it to last
year’s postseason, West was eliminated in the
first round of the CIF Southern Section Division
1AA playoffs after taking a 61-46 loss at the
hands of the Valencia Vikings. This year, the
Lady Warriors are back and are already looking
to be performing on a much higher level,
to the expectations of Murakami.
So far in the young 2017-18 season, the
Lady Warriors have impressed by winning
10 of their first 12 games of the year dating
back to last week, which included a five-game
winning streak to open the season. Four of
those five victories just so happened to come
in the St. Mary’s Tip-Off Classic as West
High fans watched their team take home the
tournament title. Those same fans can expect
similar dominating play from a team that is
retaining the services of stars Haley Jones and
Katie Timmerman from last year’s roster. Jones
and Timmerman will be joined by the return
of team captain Lani Lum and the expected
emergence of freshman Anaya James to form
a lineup that will undoubtedly be battling to
take home the Pioneer League crown and make
a deep run into the CIF playoffs this year.
A team that will be right there with West
High in the race for a Pioneer League crown
all season long is North. The Lady Saxons
finished right in line with the Lady Warriors one
year ago and even had a better overall record
at 19-8 (9-1 in league play). Much like West
High, however, North was also eliminated in the
first round of the playoffs, taking a 68-59 loss
to the Vista Murrieta Broncos to the dismay of
head coach Lauren Kamiyama and fans alike.
Despite the loss of key seniors from last
year’s club like forward Daylene Taualii and
guards Kellie Ogata and Brittany McPherson,
the Lady Saxons are already back, recharged
and looking to make an impact on this year’s
schedule. Names you can expect to see lighting
up the box score this season include returning
seniors Madison Shigeta, Jane Ezeani, Kayla
Tashima and more. The Lady Saxons have gotten
out to a somewhat uneven start to begin the
year and have posted a 5-5 record dating back
to last week. Expect to see North catch fire
down the stretch of the season and become a
force to be reckoned with once Pioneer League
play gets its start.
South High
The South High Spartans have seemingly been
in the shadow of their counterparts from North
and West over the last couple of seasons, but
will be looking to take the next step forward
this season. A 13-13 record with a 5-5 mark
in league play was perfectly average for head
coach Bobby Imamura and landed his team in
third place in the Pioneer League standings.
The Lady Spartans later went on to make the
playoffs, but lost in the first round to the Bishop
Montgomery Knights by a final score of 69-52.
As an extremely young team this season,
South High sports a roster with only three
seniors who will look to lead the way on offense
against their rivals. So far those seniors,
who include Kelly Hussey, Hannah Mason, and
Sally Kasashima, have assisted in leading the
team to a 7-6 overall record dating back to last
week, while helping in key victories against
teams like El Segundo and their rivals from
Torrance High, just to name a few.
Torrance High
The Lady Tartars finished last season with
a 12-12 overall record, but found certain challenges
when up against their rivals from the
Pioneer League. A 2-7 record against divisional
opponents landed the team a fifth place finish.
Even still, Torrance was the only team from
the Pioneer League able to make it out of the
first round of the playoffs. Head coach Rick
Momohara and company beat the Rio Mesa
Spartans in the Division 2A playoffs only to
later lose to the Righetti Warriors in Round 2.
The Lady Tartars will attempt to take their
talent a step further this season, despite losing
the services of senior captains Kacie Yonemoto,
Kylie Okamoto and Jordan Sakasegawa.
Seniors Jasmine Moore, Patricia Sanchez
and Jami Chung return to the team and have
already led Torrance to a 6-5 record through
the first 11 games. The Lady Tartars show
promise this season, but will have to prove it
once league play gets started almost midway
through January.
– Aserrao6@yahoo.com •
Calendar of Events
Deadline for Calendar items is the prior
Thursday by noon. Calendar items are $1 per
word. Email listings to marketing@heraldpublications.
com. We take Visa and MasterCard.
THURSDAY, JAN. 4
• Environmental Quality Commission , 7:00
PM. – 9:00 PM., Commission Meeting
Room, 3031 Torrance Blvd.
FRIDAY, JAN. 5
• CITY HALL CLOSED – All Day
• Studio Cabaret: Urban Renewal Project
(Torrance Cultural Arts Foundation),
7:30 PM., Tickets: $33, George Nakano
Theatre, 3330 Civic Center Drive, Call:
310-781-7171.
SATURDAY, JAN. 6
• Torrance Certified Farmers’ Market at
Wilson Park, 8:00 AM. – 1:00 PM., 2200
Crenshaw Blvd., Between Carson St. &
Sepulveda, Call: 310-781-7520.
• Studio Cabaret: Urban Renewal Project
(Torrance Cultural Arts Foundation),
7:30 PM., Tickets: $33, George Nakano
Theatre, 3330 Civic Center Drive, Call:
310-781-7171.
SUNDAY, JAN. 7
• Katy Geissert Civic Center Library –
OPEN
TUESDAY, JAN. 9
• Torrance Certified Farmers’ Market at
Wilson Park, 8:00 AM. – 1:00 PM., 2200
Crenshaw Blvd., Between Carson St. &
Sepulveda, Call: 310-781-7520.
• City Council Meeting, 7:00 PM. – 9:00
PM., City Hall, 3031 Torrance Blvd.
WEDNESDAY, JAN. 10
• West Torrance High School Dance Concert,
7:00 PM. – 9:30 PM., James Armstrong
Theatre, 3330 Civic Center Drive
• Craft Delight, 12:00 PM. – 2:00 PM., free,
Henderson Library, 4805 Emerald Street,
Call: 310-371-2075.
THURSDAY, JAN. 11
• Biography and Memoirs Book Discussion
Group, 10:30 AM. – 11:30 AM., Katy
Geissert Civic Center Library, 3301 Torrance
Blvd., Call: 310-618-5959.
• West Torrance High School Dance Concert,
7:00 PM. – 9:30 PM., James Armstrong
Theatre, 3330 Civic Center Drive •
Police Briefs
What a Christmas Season for Nemo!
Death Investigation After
Incident at Crate & Barrel
On Monday, January 1, at approximately
2:30 p.m., Torrance Police officers responded
to Crate & Barrel located at 21710 Hawthorne
Boulevard regarding a disruptive subject holding
a knife and throwing items in the parking lot.
Upon arrival, the subject refused to comply with
the officers’ commands and subsequently fled
on foot. Officers initiated a foot pursuit and
ultimately tackled the subject to the ground.
The subject continued fighting with officers
and attempted to remove one of the officer’s
duty Weapon. Officers used a taser and then
restrained both the arms and legs of the subject
in order to detain the subject. A check of the
area revealed narcotic paraphernalia and a knife.
Once detained, Officers noticed the subject
had difficulty breathing. Medical personnel
were requested to respond to the scene.
The subject was later transported to a local
hospital. Approximately 45 minutes later, the
Police Department was advised the subject
had passed away. The identity of the subject
is pending confirmation by investigators, as
well as notification to the next of kin.
This incident is being investigated under
the command and direction of Captain Martin
Vukotic of the Special Operations Bureau
with the assistance of the Los Angeles
County District Attorney’s Office. Anyone
with additional information related to this
case is encouraged to contact the Torrance
Police Department Detective Division at
(310) 618-5570.
– Source: Torrance PD •
Torrance Police Department K9 member
Nemo sure did enjoy the recent Christmas
holiday. Who could blame him? Look at all
the cool gifts he received from Santa. That
should give him extra incentive to continue
his fine work helping officers capture perpetrators
and keep the community safe in 2018.
– Photo Courtesy of Torrance PD • Legal Marijuana Dos and Don’ts
By Rob McCarthy
A century of marijuana criminal law goes
up in smoke in a few days, leaving in its
place a patchwork of dos and don’ts for South
Bay residents and their employers to follow.
On January 1, marijuana became legal for
recreational adult use. Adults must be 21 and
older to buy, carry and use marijuana. They
can’t smoke it in a public place though.
It has been a crime since 1913 to possess or
grow marijuana in California. That changes,
too when adults can grow six marijuana
plants in their homes or outdoors as long as
the plants are out of plain sight. The strong
odor from mature marijuana plants attracts
attention, and authorities want to deter minors
from getting their hands on easy weed.
The Dos
Let’s start here. Adults over 21 can grow
their own marijuana or buy it from a statelicensed
retailer. All licenses must be issued
by the Bureau of Cannabis Control.
Adults can give away marijuana, but cannot
sell or barter with it. The adult-use law also
doesn’t mean the end of medical marijuana.
State-sponsored medicinal pot retailers will
be open for business in early 2018.
Young adults, 18 to 21, can buy medicinal
marijuana with a recommendation from a physician
or a county-issued identification card.
The cannabis control bureau had issued
approximately 150 temporary licenses statewide
as of December 27. Unlike Colorado
that was ready with retail stores on the law’s
first day, California’s rollout is much slower.
The state released the rules for retailers and
laboratories in November, including a requirement
that applicants for licenses comply
with local rules.
See Legal Marijuana, page 7