Girls basketball: Amborn powers Archie Williams to dominant win

Despite a rough start to the season, the Archie Williams High girls basketball team is starting to look like a serious contender after a dominating performance in its first MCAL win.

Stellar sophomore Carly Amborn racked up a game-high 23 points to lead the host Peregrine Falcons past San Rafael 66-28 Friday. She rained down four 3-pointers early as she scored 16 points by the end of the first period.

Amborn, a first-team All-MCAL selection on the tennis court in the fall, gave up a North Coast Section berth in order to join her teammates before the start of the basketball season.

“My first love is basketball,” Amborn said. “Tennis is obviously more of an individual sport, so it’s a very mental game. But I like playing tennis. It’s helped me become a better competitor all-around in both sports.”

The Bulldogs (4-5, 1-2 MCAL) knew they’d have to contend with Amborn, who also tallied five steals and seven rebounds in a solid all-around performance for the Falcons (5-4, 1-1).

“(Amborn) had a great game. We talked about containing her, but we weren’t able to do it,” San Rafael head coach Mat Dalpino said. “She’s a special player.”

Allegra Gabrielli-di Carpegna turned in 10 points, seven rebounds and two assists for the Peregrine Falcons, while Jessica Gauna added eight points, five rebounds and six steals. Gia Debok chipped in four points while proving to be a disruptive influence on defense with seven rebounds and three steals.

San Rafael senior Tenley Brovelli scored a team-high seven points, while Ellie Diaz and Sophia Everett each put up six points.

“We need everyone to contribute,” said Archie Williams head coach Zach Wahle, whose team struggled to a 1-4 start this season before rebounding to win the next four games.

The Peregrine Falcons were in control almost from the get-go, and when Amborn started shooting from beyond the arc, the energy was tangible throughout the gym.

“It was a really fun game,” Amborn said. “Our team’s come together a lot recently, like our ball movement and our defense. We’re just playing a lot more as a team.”

A lot of that has to do with Amborn.

“Everybody’s got a lot of confidence in Carly,” Wahle said. “She’s an important part of this team. Her shooting is great, she is solid in all parts of her game. But she also gives everyone else confidence in themselves.”

Archie Williams and San Rafael finished near the MCAL basement last season, as they placed seventh and eighth, respectively, in the regular season. Both teams are taking the difficult step from losing campaigns to try to climb into playoff contention this season.

“There are some really good teams in the MCAL,” Wahle said. “We want to get into the playoffs, and this was a big league win for us to show what we can do.”

The ball-hawking Peregrine Falcons shut down the Bulldogs after a 22-11 first period. San Rafael managed just 11 more points in the next two periods combined. Near the end of the game, as Archie Williams opened up a 40-point lead, the officials enacted the “mercy rule.”

“We’ve got kids who are playing hard and tough, but it’s a process,” Dalpino said. “We’ve played some good teams already, and Archie Williams played really well tonight. Competition like this will better prepare us for league play. The MCAL is tough and Archie Williams is one of the best.”