San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)
MOUNT MIGUEL’S GIRLS BASKETBALL TEAM MIGHT BE SMALL, BUT THEY’RE POWERFUL
Standout Zanna Hurst and well-conditioned teammates number only six players
Ask Mount Miguel’s Zanna Hurst what her favorite activity outside of basketball is, and the senior replies “baking and cooking — especially cookies.”
What kind of cookies? “Chocolate chip,” she immediately says. And her Matador teammates couldn’t argue. Chocolate chip cookies — good stuff.
Hurst, who feels right at home in the kitchen, isn’t bad in the classroom, either, as she sports a 3.8 GPA, and on the basketball court where she averages 18.8 points and 5 rebounds a game, both second on the team that posted a 6-4 record after the Southern California Prep Classic, where she was named to the All-tournament team.
That earned the Matadors the No. 6 ranking in the section.
One other thing. She’s one of the tallest players on the team, listed at a generous 5-foot-9, which coach Robbie Sandoval admits is really a little closer to 5-7. OK, one last thing — no one has to complain about playing time because only six players suit up.
Is that a problem?”
“Oh, those things fluctuate every year,” Sandoval said. “I think some of the kids in school don’t come out because they see how hard we work. You just don’t know about numbers year to year.”
Not that Hurst is concerned. “This team makes it so much fun,” said Hurst, whose father, Jimmy, returned as the boys’ head coach at Mount Miguel this season after a 17year hiatus. “It’s like I have five sisters. We all know we can’t foul out, and that hasn’t been a problem.
“The team always picks me up when I fall. We push each other, at practice and in the game, and we’re so close we can say anything, and the others know we’re just trying to make them and the team better.”
Hurst was a starter as a freshman and on what Sandoval said was one of the quietest teams he had ever coached, she was a vocal leader as a sophomore. She’s still verbal, only now she has company.
Last year she averaged 8.8 points a game, No. 5 on the team that went 19-9 and won the Grossmont Hills League.
No surprise there as Mount Miguel has owned that title, raising 22 consecutive banners.
“Zanna has shown her greatest improvement in her shot-making,” said Sandoval, whose team is an annual participant in the Open Division playoffs. “Now she’s a very consistent shooter — maybe our best shooter. That’s a result of putting a lot of work in during the spring and summer.
“Improvement like that doesn’t just happen, you have to work at it.”
Some might say being the daughter of a head basketball coach is a huge advantage, and Hurst doesn’t argue. But maybe not the way others might think.
“We talk about basketball, and he points out what he thinks I need to work on, and we go out and do it,” said Hurst. “Because he’s the coach, I can get in the gym any time I want. Sometimes he’ll have his boys working on their game while I work on mine.
“You have to respect your dad being a teacher and a coach. I’m used to being the daughter of something — teacher or coach.”
The Matadors’ core group has been together four years with Hurst melding nicely with the other three seniors, Jennifer Moreno (19.6 points a game), Ixchel Rojo (12.0) and Yaneli Rosales (9.7).
Yaneli’s sister, Helen Rosales, is a sophomore who averages 6.8 points and 3.7 rebounds a game, and Makiah Stewart is a junior who fits right in when one of the starters needs a break — each find ways to contribute.
“We play hard and there is great chemistry, better than the last two years,” Hurst said. “People might look at us and think we’re small, doubt us, but we’re all in great shape. We might not be able to press as much because of the numbers, but we play tough defense.
“Now it just seems I can grasp things so much quicker. Before it used to take a second or two but now, I just play. I watch a lot of college men’s games on TV because that’s where I can learn. It’s just fun now.”
Meanwhile, Hurst hopes it’s the Matadors who will be doing the cooking — on the basketball court — the remainder of the season.