THE BAD: Men's Hoops ... THE GOOD: Women's Softball

The men's basketball team of Mt. SAC is slowly losing ground.

THE PROBLEM?
At this point, the Mounties are losing ground (9-15, 1-5) and are falling deeper in the pit. The continuous problem of turnovers and careless passing is causing opponents to fast break against the defense and force the Mounties to give up many offensive rebounding.

THE ANSWER?
Aiona Key. If there is any sense of positive outcome, it is him. His jumping ability, quickness and ability to easily move to the key and lay it up for two is becoming a regular thing and opponents require double coverage to disrupt Key's play.

The strategy of the Mountie offense must change. Much of the offensive setup in getting the open shot has continuously been disrupted by hard defense and/or careless turnovers. Mounties coach Criss Freeman has emphasized and worked very hard in getting the team to pass efficiently and to move.

So far, the flow is very raw and while several players like Keyshawn Ross, Versia Hodges and Key are showing spurts of interest, the inconsistent drive to a perfect play has not appeared for the Mounties offense.

Defensively, the Mounties are doing ok. By missing a number of low-post players to provide defense it has not been easy for Freeman to get what he needs to make this lineup flawless. Instead, he has to play the hand that's dealt to him.

Key is the one bright spot that's at all shown some light of hope for the team. His physical ability and body control is more fluid than last year's state-leading player Rishawn Norwood--only Norwood has the more consistent high-percentage shot.

Key is raising interest to many who have watched him in the past few games. What's mystifying is why he is not inserted in the starting rotation yet?

The key is Key.

He must be sought after as the first option to the team to show any signs of getting over the hump of a .500 overall record. The 1-5 record in the conference has the Mounties at the bottom and with no immediate improvement, they may just remain there.

Without the Key, there is no open door for the Mounties to go through.

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MOUNTIES' SOFTBALL TOO OVERWHELMING





Last week, Mounties outfielder Kadie Baldwin was batting at a stunning .775. Against the last two teams, she has gone hitless possibly due to a problematic shoulder soreness. During her game versus Long Beach City, Baldwin went 0-for-3 but twin sister Randie has gone 3-for-3 including a double included with a Shelair Rowell's solo home run before Francesca 'Frenchy' Gonzales blasted one in left center.

As of late, Gonzales has been on a hitting spree. As more at-bats come, Gonzales is starting to get back to her old self last year when she had 20+ home runs and a hoard of runs batted in.

Pitcher Mandy Pongs has continued her pitching dominance overtaking opponents in the count, striking out batters and rely/trust on her Mountie defense to control the opponent's offensive spurt.

Other batters like Liz Javier, Lucia Rodriguez and Heather Ortiz have provided extra runs and production with runs scored and runs batted in. Their first conference win against Long Beach is only the beginning of what this fully stacked lineup will show as their 10-0 record not only astounds but amazes many.

The Mountie dominance led by head coach Kelly Ford is becoming a traditional pattern. The recruiting has become a very successful feat for the coaching staff and the loose yet educational provision that the girls receive makes it look as if the season is not just a serious conquest to another state championship but more like a fun journey to a destination too familiar and possible.



As the conference resumes, we will know more at how good these girls are.

How good will these girls be compared to as opposed to the teams from previous years.

Stay tuned.