Spartans' effort shows up in knee bruises

By Pete Borello, Town Crier Staff Writer

Town Crier file photos Angelica Williams is Mountain View High’s top scorer.

When players on the Mountain View High girls basketball team have the blues, it’s a good thing.

The Spartans proudly display the bruises on their knees to show their coach - and each other - that they’ve been diving on the floor for loose balls.

“One of the highlights for them is how blue their knees are,” coach Judy Auclair said. “They all compare knee colors after games, and the next day after practice they say, ‘Look, coach - look at these knees.’”

The Spartans’ hustle has gone a long way in helping them to an 8-2 record, according to Auclair, Their fast start has exceeded even the coach’s expectations.

“I didn’t anticipate it,” said Auclair, whose team visits Cupertino at 7 p.m. Thursday. “Everybody’s jelling together and coming along pretty well.”

Mountain View graduated seven players last spring and is relying heavily on underclassmen this season. Starting point guard Laura Brigham is the only senior logging significant minutes.

“She’s played very well,” Auclair said of the converted small forward. “She’s done an excellent job as a leader.”

Brigham is the team’s second-leading scorer, behind junior Angelica Williams. A rugged post player affectionately nicknamed “Tractor,” Williams tallied a team-high 16 points in a 58-45 win at Scotts Valley Dec. 12.

“She didn’t do that well in the two games before, but she came alive in that one,” Auclair said of Williams, who missed most of last season with a knee injury.

The Spartans have also received solid play from forwards Natalie Warmbrodt and Aly Greenberg, both juniors, and freshman center Sarah Hess.

Warmbrodt, called up to varsity for the playoffs last season, has made a smooth transition from post player to small forward. She leads the team in blue knees, according to Auclair, and is proving to be a capable ball-handler.

“She’s a dynamo,” the coach said. “She’s ‘Little Miss Everything.’”

The 5-foot-8 Greenberg has been spending much of her time in the post, often getting the best of players taller than she is.

“She’s picking it up,” Auclair said. “She’s rebounding well, even though she’s short to play in the post. It’s all determination.”

Hess has the height - she’s the tallest player on the squad at 6-1 - and is showing the progress Auclair was hoping for. The freshman scored a season-best eight points against Scotts Valley.

“She’s coming along,” Auclair said of Hess. “She’s having to learn a lot, but she’s getting there. I think she’s going to turn into a college player.”

Like several other Spartans, Hess is scoring most of her points near the basket. Mountain View doesn’t depend on 3-pointers like many high school teams, “but we have 3-point shooters,” said Auclair, who ranked Brigham and junior Lauren Wada as the team’s best long-range threats.

The coach’s biggest concern is taking care of the ball - especially against the press.

“Turnovers are killing us. It’s bad passing and poor decisions,” Auclair said. “If we clean that up, we’ll be very competitive with people.”

Auclair put together a more competitive non-league schedule than usual to brace the Spartans for what’s ahead. Mountain View has been bumped up to the De Anza Division of the SCVAL after placing second in the El Camino Division a year ago. League play begins the first week of January.

Auclair also has her girls scrimmage Mountain View’s frosh-soph boys a few days a week to prepare them for the speed and aggressiveness they will encounter in the upper division.

“We’re getting bumped around and beat up a little bit, but we’re not crying about it,” Auclair said. “The girls enjoy it.”

The Spartans seem to welcome any chance to go blue in the knees.

In other girls basketball action last week:

• St. Francis sunk to 3-4 with a 53-49 non-league loss to Soquel. The Lancers were outscored 11-5 in the final quarter of the Dec. 13 home game. Kelsey Houlihan scored 17 points and Aly Geppert 11 for St. Francis.

• Pinewood opened its tournament, the Pinewood Classic, by beating San Mateo 69-53 Dec. 13. Sami Field-Polisso tallied a game-high 21 points for the Panthers (6-1) and Helena Borland added 14.