Winning by 58 points a game, Pinewood stands tall in a league short on quality
By Pete Borello, Town Crier Staff Writer
 R. Alan Hwang/special to the Town Crier Pinewood’s Daniela Roark blocks a shot in last Friday’s game against St. Lawrence. The Panthers went on to win 69-11. |
The Pinewood School girls basketball team is tearing through the Private Schools Athletic League like a paper shredder through unsolicited credit card applications.
The Panthers are 7-0 in PSAL play and well on their way to a 10th consecutive league title.
None of the games have been close; Pinewood has outscored its PSAL opponents by a combined 553-144 (average margin per victory: 58.4 points). The Panthers’ most lopsided win came Jan. 28, 99-6 over Fremont Christian. Pinewood was 15 of 27 on treys.
While the Panthers (16-5 overall) have been accused of running up the score, they will tell you that’s not their intent. Pinewood has only eight players, so there’s no way to pull all the starters in a rout. And no matter who’s on the floor, coach Doc Scheppler expects his players to give their all - all the time.
“We always want to play with maximum effort and try to get better as a team to uphold the tradition of Pinewood basketball,” the team’s 10th-year coach said.
Senior point guard Daniela Roark also defends the blowouts.
“When people say that we shouldn’t score as much it’s like they are saying we shouldn’t play hard or put in effort,” she said.
Roark, headed to Fordam University on scholarship, tops the team in scoring (15 points a game) and assists (six). She led the Panthers with 19 points last Saturday in a 62-57 non-league win over Marin Catholic. Junior forward Liz Altmaier added 17.
Scheppler typically schedules strong non-league teams such as Marin (13-8) late in the season to prepare for the playoffs.
Pinewood has claimed seven Central Coast Section crowns in a row and reached the Northern California semifinals last season after getting to the NorCal finals the previous three years.
This year, Scheppler believes his squad can reach the pinnacle.
“If we play well, we can win state,” he said of his Division V team. “We don’t have to play our best, but it would be nice.”
Scheppler is encouraged by the Panthers’ balanced scoring and infusion of new talent.
Ally Geppert, a 6-foot-1 center, has been a force in the post, while the coach said fellow freshman Grace Beck, “will be a special player” at guard. Transfers Hannah Lippe (Los Altos High) and Tika Koshiyama-Diaz (Independence) have contributed at guard and forward, respectively. Returners Sami Fields-Polisso and Altmaier average nearly 10 points her game.
Pinewood plays at The King’s Academy at 7 p.m., Friday.
