WARRIORS FINISH STRONG IN PLAYOFFS Lady Warriors Soccer and Basketball advance to the CIF finals, Men's basketball puts up strong showing against #1 seed Washington Union, the eventual CIF Division III champion

Posted 03-07-05

HEART AND GRIT - Katie Avila (#23) was named as Tehachapi's Applebee's player of the game for the Lady Warriors, scoring 18 points in the title game.  Megan Terle (#55), seen at the far right, played a masterful game as well, leading the team with a double-double, 19 points and 10 rebounds.

Women's Basketball (Mar 5, 2005) CIF CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Yosemite 56, #3 Tehachapi 52

They were that close....up by nine in the closing minutes of the game, Yosemite made one last strong run with their perimeter shooting to pull ahead of the Lady Warriors basketball 23-7 (10-0 SSL) team 51-50 in the Division III CIF Championship.  It was the Badger's first lead in the second half.

Megan Terle would put the ladies back in the positive with a lay-up in the paint to go up 52-51, but the final five points would be scored by the Badgers, giving them their second-consecutive CIF championship.

Heartbreaking for sure, but not without it's positives.

First and foremost, no one except Lady Warriors basketball thought that Tehachapi could hang with one of the valley's best teams.  In fact, when Tehachapi was up 34-24 at halftime, many in the stands were scratching their heads to who this Tehachapi team was.

"Who's that Katie Avila girl?  She's only a sophomore?"

"Is Terle getting recruited?  Have any schools shown any interest in her playing at the next level?"

Yep, just some of the talk coming through the waves of chatter in the girls strong play against the Lady Badgers....but there is nothing to baulk at when it comes to a CIF Division III runner up trophy.

It was a piece of hardware that was the culmination of an outstanding season for the Lady Warriors, which should continue once the CIF State playoff bracket is announced in the coming days.  Log on to Maxpreps to get the latest on the Lady Warriors CIF state opponent....

Lady Warriors Sami Janzen (#22), Jana Smith (#21), and Patty Rodriguez (#20) put a perimeter around Yosemite's Emily Richie (#30) in the third quarter of the CIF championship.

UNDEFEATED LEAGUE: The Warriors knocked off Golden Valley back on Feb-18 to clinch a 10-0 SSL record, their first undefeated run since 1997.  Above, Vincent Saavedra (#20), Tim Meyerson (#11), and Justin Dock (#35) swarm to the ball in the 72-53 win.

If it wasn't for Washington on the men's side, and Yosemite on the women's side, it's possible that Tehachapi could be celebrating two CIF championships in basketball this season.

But just like the Lady Warriors having a nemesis in Yosemite, the Tehachapi Men's team has one of their own.

The Warriors 21-4 (10-0 SSL) were ousted by the same opponent that took them out of the playoffs in 2004; the Washington Union Panthers, this time by 19 points, 83-64.

Tehachapi played the Panthers tough early however, ending the first quarter up 20-19, and only losing by one point going into the locker room at halftime.

The Panthers came out of the gate firing in the third period however, outscoring Tehachapi 25-10 to take the lead for good and a CIF Final beth.

It was Tehachapi's second consecutive semi-final appearance in Division III.

For the season, it was Tehachapi's first undefeated SSL season since 1997, when Nick O'Neill and David Powell led the Warriors to an undefeated league run.

For complete statistical results on the Warriors this season, please log onto Maxpreps.

Women's Soccer (Feb 24, 2005) CIF CHAMPIONSHIP

#1 Lemoore 1, #3 Tehachapi 0

For Tehachapi soccer, the season ended on a good note in the second half of play against Lemoore, with the Warriors out-playing the Tigers in the latter stage of the game but not being able to find the back of the net in a 1-0 loss.

Despite the loss in the championship, it was a strong run for the Lady Warriors, finishing the year 23-5-5 (9-0-1 SSL), their first ever league title and third CIF Final's berth in just over a decade in existence.

Congratulations to Coach Tom Franchere and the the rest of the Lady Warriors on great year!

MOUNTAIN EXPLOSION: The Lady Warriors had a dominating run in the playoffs, outscoring Arvin 6-1,  El Diamante (above) 7-1, and Yosemite 4-0 before falling in the title game against Lemoore, 1-0.

	Be sure to check out how each of Tehachapi's three playoff teams got to their respective final games by following the links below: DIVISION III MEN'S BASKETBALL BRACKET DIVISION III WOMEN'S BASKETBALL BRACKET DIVISION III WOMEN'S SOCCER BRACKET Making the playoffs in itself is a special undertaking, but for all three teams to perform so well is an added bonus.  If you come into contact with any of the players or coaches from these teams, please join me in expressing your gratitude for each of them representing Tehachapi so well! And again, all basketball data, including final stats, regional playoff, and state playoff results can be found by going to Maxpreps.
	What's a weekly warrior without any football info, right?  Where here is some...the Warriors will again be hosting the Golden State Wing-T camp this year, with a time block slated for June 17-19 (Fri-Sun) at the Benz football fields in Tehachapi.  Teams that are expected to attend will be announced in the coming days, but you can probably expect Madera, Granite Hills, Napomo, and possibly East to come to Mountain country as in previous years.  Spring ball is also expected to kick into high-gear in May...please contact Coach Denman, Ruggles, or Snyder (Varsity Football), Coach Grimes or Costa (Junior Varsity Football), Coach Coach Olofson, Schkade, or Wiggins (Freshman Football) if your a player interested in coming out for the 2005 season....it's never too early!!
	There will be more Weekly Warrior articles to come infrequently throughout the off-sesaon, be sure to tune in to get the latest new, highlights, and commentary!  Thanks to all of you for logging in and supporting Tehachapi High School Warrior athletics!

Questions?  Concerns?  Corrections?  Praises?  Send Tom Shea an email, he'd like to hear from you.