Division III Girls : Brea-Olinda vs. Healdsburg, 2:15 p.m.

RECORDS--Brea-Olinda (31-2), Healdsburg (31-3)

BREA-OLINDA--The Ladycats are seeking their second consecutive State title and the third in the past four years. Brea beat Hayward Moreau, 54-46, in the Division II championship game last March and San Francisco Mercy, 70-46, in Division III in 1989. The Ladycats also reached the Division III final in 1990, but lost to Auburn Placer, 54-43. Brea Coach Mark Trakh, who enters the game with a 324-40 career record, said Healdsburg is very similar to that Placer squad. “They are very good and very well-coached,” said Trakh, who scouted the Greyhounds in their Northern California Regional victory, 52-51, over Westmont at UC Davis Saturday night. Earlier that day, Brea had defeated Rancho Alamitos to win the Southern California Regional Division III title. “They remind me a lot of the Placer team we lost to two years ago. I don’t think we are any more talented than they are.” Trakh said the Ladycats will have to execute their standard strategy well to defeat Healdsburg. “We have to play solid man-to-man defense, good half-court offense and run whenever we have a chance,” Trakh said. Brea is led by forward Jody Anton (15.7 points), point guard Nicole Erickson (13.0 points) and forward Sarah Beckley, who scored a game-high 20 points against Rancho Alamitos.

HEALDSBURG--Coach Harry Tappin and his Greyhounds are making their second consecutive appearance in the State finals, both in the same division. Last year, Healdsburg lost to Palos Verdes, 58-42, in the championship game. Palos Verdes is now Peninsula and playing in Division I, but Healdsburg has to contend with another powerhouse in Brea-Olinda. “I’ve seen Brea play a couple of times. They are a very good basketball team. Let’s see how we can stand up against that type of team,” said Tappin, who has a 221-30 record in eight seasons with the team. The Greyhounds won the Sonoma County League for the 12th consecutive season and have won 88 league games in a row. Tappin said the Greyhounds feature a balanced attack, led by 5-foot-8 junior guard Mariah Volk, who averages 15.5 points. “We have a good outside shooting team. Everybody gets into the act,” Tappin said. “We like to run if we can, and we like to press. We run a motion offense. Our big kids are fairly quick. I think we match up (with Brea) pretty evenly on size.” Healdsburg has two six-footers in the starting lineup (post players Ashley MacKean and Cindy Latson) and a 5-11 forward in Carrie Dormire. The other forward, Leanne Loofbourrow, is 5-10.

KEY TO THE GAME--Defense and tempo control. Both teams can shoot, and neither will present a problem with its full-court press because there are good ballhandlers on both sides. It will come down to which team plays better defense and which forces the other to play its tempo.

CONSENSUS--Brea returns home with another trophy.

Starting Lineups

BREA-OLINDA

P Name Ht. Avg. F Jody Anton 6-0 15.7 F Sarah Beckley 5-10 10.8 C Colleen Hudson 6-1 11.4 G Katie Bauer 5-10 8.4 G Nicole Erickson 5-6 13.0

Coach: Mark Trakh

HEALDSBURG

P Name Ht. Avg. F Carrie Dormire 5-11 13.0 F Leanne Loofbourrow 5-10 9.0 C Ashley MacKean 6-0 9.0 C Cindy Latson 6-0 9.0 G Mariah Volk 5-8 15.5

Coach: Harry Tappin