El Camino Real girls basketball routs Garfield in City playoffs

WOODLAND HILLS — El Camino Real girls basketball isn’t done yet.

The Royals defeated Garfield 45-28 on Saturday in the L.A. City Section Division I quarterfinals.

The Royals will face the winner of the Arleta-Eagle Rock game in the semifinals.

El Camino Real senior guard Lauryn Valdivia led the team with 15 points, while junior guard Neve Vargas connected for multiple 3-pointers late in the game.

“It’s never guaranteed in a playoff, so we’re always grateful to be able to continue our season,” Royals head coach Mia Moore said. “We don’t feel like we’re done yet.”

Both teams started slowly on offense. Garfield freshman guard Shayla Cortez-Santana’s layup and ECR senior guard Sophie Levy-Wright’s 3 were the only points scored in the first three minutes.

“From the beginning, we’re gonna try to contain the attack,” Garfield coach Jessica Torres said. “And we’re gonna live and die by them beating us on the 3-point line.”

The Royals went up 8-2 in the first quarter.

The Bulldogs got back with two layups. Levy-Wright stole the ball and scored a layup to make the score 10-6.

With a 10-9 score entering the second quarter, Garfield scored first before the Royals went on a 10-3 run that included four trips to the free throw line.

With less than a minute left in the half, Valdivia hit a 3-pointer to give her 10 points in the half and the Royals’ biggest lead of the game.

El Camino Real entered halftime up 23-14.

“(Valdivia) plays hard from start to finish,” Moore said. “She’s been a leader this entire year, and we’re always looking to her.”

In the third quarter, Garfield’s junior forward twins Ailine and Emaluni Patetefa scored six points to cut the deficit for the Bulldogs to 24-20.

As the momentum swung to the Bulldogs, Vargas drained a 3-pointer to push the Royals’ lead back to seven. The Bulldogs responded with a 3-pointer of their own, but Vargas made a second 3 to keep Garfield a couple of steps behind El Camino Real.

“(Vargas) didn’t feel happy with her first half,” Moore said. “So in the second half, I just reminded her that she’s needed. She does a lot defensively. She comes in the game and is able to hit big three threes in the second half to really secure the deal for us.”

The score heading into the fourth quarter was 32-27. After the Royals went to the free-throw line three times, Vargas landed another 3-pointer as her team erupted. El Camino Real had its first double-digit lead of the night at 40-28.

The Royals’ defense prevented the Bulldogs from scoring for the remainder of the period. The Royals closed out a 45-28 victory and earned a trip to the semifinals.

“We can get the win as long as we play how we’ve been playing these past two games, with energy and just playing together,” Levy-Wright said.