Costa Mesa rallies past Ocean View, extends streak to five

The Costa Mesa girls’ basketball team has become a stampede that the rest of the Orange Coast League doesn’t want to see at the moment.

Junior forward Leilani Quero had 22 points to pace the Mustangs in a 50-36 win over Ocean View on Tuesday at home.

Costa Mesa (12-13, 5-2 in the Orange Coast League) ran its winning streak to five games, a stretch that has seen the Mustangs beat all of their competitors in the league. The streak began with a narrow 57-54 win over Westminster (6-16, 2-4) to cap the first half of league play, and it also featured a 36-32 win over league-leading Laguna Hills (20-4, 6-1).

Junior guard Myah Martinez provided eight points, two assists and two steals, and sophomore forward Aaliyah Terry had seven points and eight rebounds, as Costa Mesa earned a split of its home-and-home set with Ocean View (10-16, 3-3).

“This league is very open,” Costa Mesa coach Zedric McKee said. “A lot of good teams there, from Laguna Hills all the way down to Garden Grove. … I would say our girls are really hungry. They want the win. It’s been years since we’ve gone to a playoff, so everybody this year, they want to make a difference.”

Junior guard Emi Kamikihara had six points and seven rebounds, and junior wing Yanelly Martinez chipped in with six points and five rebounds.

Costa Mesa did not have a senior in the starting lineup, but center Ariana Mendoza produced 10 rebounds and two assists off the bench on the Mustangs’ senior night.

“Ari has been popping off ever since the second half of our league,” McKee said. “She’s been averaging those eight-to-10 rebounds. I’m really happy for her, especially [with her] not starting today, but she understood where we’re going in life and where we’re trying to go in this program, so she’s like, ‘OK, cool. I’m going to come off the bench and finish business.’”

Outside of a three-pointer from the top of the key by Ocean View leading scorer Angelina Bado on the opening possession, the offenses had an ice-cold start. The Seahawks held a 7-6 lead after the first quarter.

Ocean View took its largest lead at 24-17 midway through the third quarter on back-to-back baskets by Dayana Quinonez, the assists going to Bado and Guadalupe Fuentes.

Quero had six points and Myah Martinez added five points over the final four minutes of the third quarter, and Costa Mesa drew even with Ocean View, 28-28, entering the fourth quarter. Costa Mesa then outscored Ocean View, 22-8, over the final period.

“Obviously, you want to achieve CIF, like all of it,” Quero said. “You want to take it all home, but I think it’s important to take one game at a time, so we’re focused on our next game, and then after that, we’ll see what comes and then focus on that.”

Bado scored 21 points to go with nine rebounds, four assists and three steals. Natalia Candelario contributed four points, seven rebounds and two steals. Lizeth Ayona had two points and eight rebounds, but she was largely sidelined in the second half after picking up four fouls before halftime.

Ocean View would have controlled its own destiny toward a share of the league championship with a win, as the Seahawks close the season at Laguna Hills on Monday, Feb. 3.

“We wanted to compete for the league championship, and I think we could have,” Ocean View coach Ryan Hasegawa said. “I think this group, when playing together and trusting each other, I think we have all the ability to compete, so I just think we fell short tonight.”

Orange Coast League

Costa Mesa 50, Ocean View 36

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Ocean View 7 - 13 - 8 - 8 — 36

Costa Mesa 6 - 11 - 11 - 22 — 50

OV — Bado 21, Candelario 4, Quinonez 4, Guerrero 3, Ayona 2, G. Fuentes 2.

3-pt. goals — Bado 1, Guerrero 1.

Fouled out — Ayona.

Technicals — None.

CM — Quero 22, M. Martinez 8, Terry 7, Kamikihara 6, Y. Martinez 6, Mendoza 1.

3-pt. goals — M. Martinez 1, Terry 1.

Fouled out — None.

Technicals — None.