Bearcats off to strong start

This year, San Mateo has completed the rise through the ranks as the Bearcats find themselves in the Bay Division for the 2025-26 campaign.

Westmoor had a similar trajectory a couple years ago. The Rams captured the 2023-2024 Ocean Division and moving to the Bay last season, where they went winless.

The two teams basically swapped spots for 2025-26, with the Bearcats moving into the Bay and Westmoor dropping to the Ocean. San Mateo, however, seems better equipped to deal with the rigors of the PAL’s toughest division as the Bearcats drilled Westmoor 54-26 in San Mateo Tuesday night.

“Right now, we’re trying to build,” said San Mateo’s third-year junior shooting guard Bella Fong. “[Head coach Paul Carion] wants to be good by January (and the start of Bay play).”

Fong has been a rising star since her freshman season and she is off to a strong start to her junior year, going for 20 in a season-opening, 58-46 win over Sacred Heart Prep and going off for 23 in a 57-40 win over Summit Prep.

She was held under 20 by Westmoor, but that had more to do with the score than her performance as she still finished with a game-high 17 points. But it wasn’t just her scoring that helped San Mateo (3-0), she also added six rebounds, including three on the offensive end. Fong also had five steals, two assists and a block, as well.

While Fong said she has been working on her 3-point shot and is looking to get her teammates involved, she said the biggest change to her game has come in the locker room.

“I’m trying to be more a leader,” Fong said.

Which is what Carion wants to see out her.

“It’s all mindset. The skill set has always been there, but she always deferred (in the past),” Carion said. “We told her if we want to get to where we want to go, she has to score.

“She understands it’s her time.”

The good news for Fong and the Bearcats is she doesn’t have to do it alone. She gets to play with two of the best post players in the PAL in Violet MacAvoy and Kaitlyn Schuh, who missed Tuesday’s night game with an injured wrist.

But MacAvoy was her usual dominant self in the post, finishing with 14 points, seven rebound and a pair of blocks.

But the biggest change just might be the overall growth of a team that returns nine of 10 players from last year’s team that advanced to the Central Coast Section Division II bracket.

“Everybody has gotten better,” Carion.

All of which was on display against Westmoor (1-2) Tuesday night. The Rams got off to a quick start as Kiana Chavez and Jhacelyn Capistrano hit back-to-back buckets to start the game.

Those two accounted the bulk of the Rams’ scoring. Chavez finished with 12 points and Capistrano added nine. Jada Monroy added a pair of buckets and the only other Ram to score was an Athena Torres free throw.

“Chavez had 18 on us last year, so we focused on not letting her get open looks (Tuesday night),” Carion said.

A Chavez conversion of an inbound pass on the baseline gave the Rams a 6-2 lead — but San Mateo responded by scoring 14 of the 16 points. MacAvoy was nearly unstoppable as she scored 10 points in the period to help give San Mateo a 14-7 lead after one quarter.

In the second period, the Bearcats turned up the heat, employing a full-court press that had the Rams scrambling. It was a part of San Mateo’s game that was missing for the first part of last season, but they unleashed it toward the end and have continued to give teams fits to start the 2025-26 season.

“It brought energy (last year),” Fong said of the press. “We like to push the pace a little bit.”

Westmoor scored the first bucket of the second period when Monroy hit a walk-in jumper to close the deficit to 14-9, but San Mateo responded with a 17-2 run, led by seven points from Fong, as the Bearcats opened up a 33-11 lead at the break.

A Capistrano basket to start the third quarter for the Rams was, again, followed by a Bearcats’ run as they scored the next seven points for a 40-13 lead. When Arianna Cardenas scored off an inbound pass, the Bearcats led 42-14 after three quarters of play.

But Westmoor didn’t stop working, as the Rams outscored San Mateo 12-10 over the final eight minutes.

Despite the daunting task of playing in the Bay Division, Fong believes her team is up to the task of competing and is looking forward to the postseason.

“Last year, we went to the semifinals (of the Division II bracket),” Fong said. “Definitely want to go farther (this year).”