Scots making most of "second season"

"[The girls] are really excited," said Carlmont coach Dave Low. "They really believe in themselves. Someone has to lose and I don't see why it has to be us. What we have to do is be solid in our play and show poise through momentum swings."

It's hard to believe that this was a team that went through the non-league portion of its schedule with a 10-1 record only to finish PAL play in sixth place with a 6-8 mark. But looks can be deceiving. Six of those losses came against Aragon, Burlingame, Mills and Sequoia — all teams that finished above the Scots in the PAL. All four made the CCS playoffs and Aragon and Mills are in the Division II and Division III finals, respectively.

"Look at the teams that were ahead of us — Burlingame, Aragon, Mills, Sequoia. We had to play a perfect game to beat those teams, to be in a position to win," Low said. "The PAL is awfully strong … There were quality teams and quality games this year and I think that's why the PAL South has gone so deep in CCS this year.

"One thing I told the girls, as much as you don't want to lose games, those losses were quality losses. That really helped us prepare for this post-season run."

Despite the tough league schedule, Low believed he had the talent to be successful this season.

"At the beginning of practices, what I saw was more depth. What I saw were more girls [who] had basketball backgrounds. They really liked to play basketball," Low said. "We had more depth and more talent. I really thought we could be good but I was also fully aware of what our competition was in league and preseason."

Carlmont (19-9) started its run to the finals with a 54-37 win over No. 8 Alisal, sending the Scots into the quarterfinals against top-seeded Aptos. Carlmont upset Aptos 47-43 and then beat No. 4 San Benito 41-39 in the semifinals. Not bad for a team that lost its last three league games.

"We figured CCS was a whole new season and a chance for us to do well," said junior guard Jennica Janssen. "We knew we had a good chance."

Low figured there was no reason for the Scots not to play well. Facing No. 8 Alisal in the first round meant that the teams were basically even and after scouting Aptos, figured his team had a chance there as well.

"Watching Aptos play, they were beatable. It wasn't like they were a Mitty or Sacred Heart Cathedral. We just played our game," Low said. "That's what we've been doing this CCS. We played three teams we matched up very well with."

The Scots are led by Janssen and senior post player Finau Tovo. While those two have been the one-two punch for Carlmont this season, the rest of the team has stepped up in the playoffs.

"We feed off each other," Tovo said. "We trust each other on and off the court."

Low said although his team is young grade-wise - six players on the team are sophomores — experience-wise they're much older with a full season under their belts. As an example, sophomore Teagan Lazzarotti came off the bench against Aptos and scored 10 points in the second half, eight in the third quarter and two crucial free throws in the fourth.

"The one thing I've been stressing all year long, as much as we depend on [Janssen and Tovo], we're not going to win two against five. Everyone has to step up," Low said. "It's not a two-man team. I think it really paid off. Other people are looking to shoot the ball, attack the basket. That's only going to make [Janssen and Tovo] even better."

Although they're happy to be in the CCS finals and earn a berth into the Northern California tournament for the first time in the school's history, they're not satisfied with just being there.

"We're greedy. We have the candy and now we want the ice cream," Tovo said. "[A championship] is right there. We want to take it."

Said Janssen: "It's going to come down to who wants it more."

Division II finals

3 p.m. today at

San Jose State Event Center

No. 2 Aragon (26-4) vs.

No. 1 Mitty (25-5)

The Dons are in the CCS finals for the third time in four years and will face the Monarchs for the second-straight year.

The Dons, which lost 49-47 last year, had a chance to tie or win the game but missed a series of shots in the final seconds. They've been led in this year's tournament by guard Laura Zasly, who has averaged 14.6 points in three playoff games. Center Kristie Hala'ufia is scoring 11.6 points per contest.

The Monarchs, which won the West Catholic Athletic League championship this season, are going for their third-straight title, their 12th in 13 years and 18th in 21 seasons.

Division III finals

5:30 p.m. tonight at

Foothill College

No. 3 Mills (28-2) vs.

No. 1 St. Ignatius (19-9)

The Vikings are making their first appearance in the finals since winning the title in 1985.

Mills beat No. 6 Seaside 75-60 in the quarterfinals Saturday before rallying for a 78-70 win over No. 2 Soquel Wednesday night.

The Wildcats are in their first final since winning it all in 2002. They were in the finals every year from 1996 to 2002, winning three title during that span.