Opening on the road at Spanish Springs, the Douglas junior varsity girls used a tough defense and some quick scoring to beat the Cougars 42-26.
The defense, sparked by 10 steals from Ally Freitas and four each from Helen Fillmore and Megan Michitarian, turned in several fast-break baskets.
"Our defense was really the key today," Douglas coach David Pfaffenberger said. "We were able to dictate the pace of the game and keep Spanish Springs off-balance."
After a slow start in the first quarter, Douglas go on track in the second to take a 19-11 lead at halftime. Douglas extended that lead to 29-15 in the third behind five baskets by Freitas.
Freitas led the team with 18 points. Michitarian had an outstanding game on both ends of the court, scoring nine points and Edna Meza and Jessica Gorton were strong under the basket with six and five points respectively.
"This was a great start for us and it point out what we need to work on," Pfaffenberger said.
Douglas is playing in the North Valleys Classic this weekend.
