Girls' Basketball: Freshmen win State Farm Classic Tournament in Reno

The Douglas High freshman girls' basketball team won four straight games over the weekend on its way to winning the State Farm Classic tournament in Reno.

The Tigers rode some strong play from their defense to take the title.

"Our defense is our strength, and we make other teams have to play outside their regular style of play," Douglas coach Steve Walsh said. "Offensively we do not dominate, but we work hard and score enough to get good results."

In game one against Reed, the Tigers prevailed 35-24.

Douglas was led by Brianne Burnside with 16 points and a dominating performance on the boards inside.

Also scoring for the Tigers were Alex Laing with six, Cassidy Curtis with four, Natalie Freitas with three and Jennifer Gorton, Carly McCullough, and Naomi Roberts each with two.

In game two, Douglas took a 34-28 win over an athletic Hug squad as Laing turned in a smothering defensive effort and the Tigers put together a balanced scoring effort.

McCullough scored 10 points, Gorton and Burnside each had eight, Laing had four and Freitas and Sophie Wilson each added two.

Douglas took a 23-21 win in the semifinals against Reno.

Down by three with 1:07 left, the Tigers came alive with a strong run through the end.

McCullough made two free throws, and Freitas stole Reno's inbound attempt and made a brilliant pass to Burnside for a lay-up that put the Tigers up by one.

The Huskies pushed down the court and were fouled on the next play. Reno made one of its attempts to tie the game at 21.

Douglas came back down and Burnside put the Tigers in the lead with a nice drive to the basket.

Laing foiled the Huskies' final attempt with a steal and the Tigers ran the clock out.

Burnside had 10 points, McCullough had nine, and Laing had four in the win.

The championship game matched Douglas against Manogue, a team that been averaging over 57 points per game in the tournament.

The Tiger defense came up big again, however, as Douglas pushed ahead for a 37-26 win.

Douglas allowed only three Miners to put points on the board.

The Tigers opened the game with a 9-0 run, but Manogue answered back and at the half Douglas held a slim 17-16 lead.

The Tigers opened the second half with a 15-6 run that put the Miners in a hole they could not overcome against the Tiger defense.

The Tigers again showed a balanced offensive attack led by Laing with eight points, Gorton with seven, Burnside and McCullough each with six, Freitas with five, Samantha Dressler and Wilson each with two, and Megan King finished with one.

" You can't say enough about the effort the girls put up tonight in the game," Walsh said. "They cut their opponents scoring average in half. With that type of effort, they deserve to be champions."

Gorton was named the tournament's MVP for her play on both ends of the floor and Burnside and Laing were named to the all-tournament team.

The Tigers are now 12-2 with a nine-game winning streak. They get back to league play against Damonte Ranch on Jan. 8 at 5:15pm at Douglas.