Vikings look to build on last season

DOWNEY - The Downey High School girls' basketball team got their 2012-13 season underway last week as they hosted the Downey Classic.The Lady Vikings finished last season with an overall record of 19-10 and league record of 4-6. The Lady Vikings advanced to the C.I.F. Division 1-A semifinals before being eliminated by eventual champion Summit. This season the Lady Vikings will return to compete in C.I.F. Division 1-AA. The Lady Vikings return several key players to this year's team. Senior guard and All-C.I.F. 1-A Second Team selection Kristin Johnson is back to lead the team and will handle the ball. Juniors Tiffany Gilmore and Bukky Adefeso also return with a year's more experience and skill under their belts. Junior guard Maribel Coss and junior guard/forward Nona Carter will step up and be asked to play significant minutes and contribute as well. Downey lost several key players to graduation last year. The Lady Vikings no longer have the skill sets of graduated senior standout Rayana Villapando, who is attending Indiana Tech, Kaylan Lane, who is attending San Francisco State, Brie Hatter, who is attending Southwest College, or Anissa Segura. The Lady Vikings will begin league play on Jan. 9 against cross-town rival Warren at Downey. Coach Nate Harris maintains that Lynwood, Warren and Gahr all present challenges and are consistently very good teams. Harris is pleased with the effort of his players in practice and likes the unselfish attitude he sees.

********** Published: November 29, 2012 - Volume 11 - Issue 33