La Costa Canyon bounces Our Lady of Peace in first round of girls basketball playoffs

The shoes Ashley Fleming was asked to fill in her first stint as a varsity coach this season at La Costa Canyon High School measured about size 15 EEE. The Mavericks compiled 15 winning records the past 16 seasons. The lone exception: a .500 record.

Sprinkled in were three CIF San Diego Section championships.

“Yeah,” said Fleming, “I felt some pressure.”

There were some bumps along the way.

“At first, half the team bought in,” said Fleming. “Half were on the fence.”

The 10-player roster has now leaned hard into Fleming’s defense-first philosophy, which was on display Tuesday night at home as the fourth-seeded Mavericks defeated 13th-seeded Our Lady of Peace 66-39 in a first-round Div. 1 playoff game.

LCC (16-13) will face then winner of Fallbrook-Imperial on Friday.

OLP sank just 11 of 41 shots (26.8 percent). LCC forced 25 turnovers.

Of her team’s defensive performance, Fleming said, “I think it was great tonight. They’re starting to get it.”

LCC freshman Ali Dibenedetto, who learned Monday that she earned first team All-Coastal League honors, scored a season-high 33 points. Her previous high was 24.

“I’m so proud of my freshman,” said Fleming.

Dibenedetto did most of her damage off the dribble, attacking the basket and converting turnovers into layups. She also splashed four 3s.

Said Debenedetto. “It showed that all that hard work, the work put in after practice, it’s not going to waste.”

Senior Keira Colestock, the Coastal League’s Player of the Year, scored 13 points.

Sophomore Sam Gehler led OLP with 17 points and pulled down nine rebounds.

The loss ended a frustrating season for OLP (6-20). Senior Jillian Nowicki, who averaged 20.4 points and a team-leading 4.2 steals per game, played just 13 games because of a shoulder injury before being shut down.

Of the challenge playing without Nowicki, OLP coach Kristen Busch said, “It’s like having a chair pulled out from under you and you have to learn how to stand on your own.”

OLP played a gritty first quarter, trailing by just four, 20-16. But LCC’s stifling, full-court pressure was at its best in the second period when the Mavericks forced nine turnovers, enabling the hosts to outscore OLP 18-7.

Norcross is a freelance reporter.