Welcome to the second issue of volume fourteen of Swish, a periodical with recaps and photos of Santa Monica Family YMCA youth basketball games, and other pertinent info such as announcements and updates from the program.
This Winter season, the Santa Monica Family YMCA had 5 divisions of youth basketball, with the Copper division having 4 teams, the Bronze and Gold divisions with 5 teams each, and the Silver and Platinum division with 6 teams each.
We are a coed league with players that are ages 5 to 15. Our emphasis is that we are a developmental league, and we want the kids to not only enjoy playing youth sports, but to benefit from the three principles of the YMCA: Youth Development, Social Responsibility, and Healthy Living.
We are partnered with the Los Angeles Lakers Youth Foundation which provides jerseys, grants, and clinics to help develop our youth. We are ever grateful for their support of our program. Many thanks to the Los Angeles Lakers Youth Foundation: Kiesha Nix and Jeanie Buss for helping us become the premier youth basketball program on the Westside.
It was a fun and exciting season in which many kids scored their first baskets, made new friends, and enjoyed being part of a team.
For the theme of this season’s team names, we were revving our engines, as all of our teams are named after classic American muscle cars that dominated the 60’s and early 70’s.
Here is a link to a fun video featuring many of the cars in our league.
THURSDAY 2/29/24
Bronze
Skylarks vs Sabres
A rare Thursday matchup of two Bronze teams. The Sabres had first half scoring from Billy Casarella, River Stanton, and Rodrigo Padron. The Skylarks got the halftime lead on a basket each from Tyson Skinner, Lior Vaisburd, William Holt, and Walker Rosenthal. The Sabres had Hugo Casarella, Otis Smith, and Aiden Yosefi get on the scoreboard in the second half. However, the Skylarks got tough defense from Frida Garcia, a basket from Ashok Dhaka, and 7 second half points from Player of the Game, Elliot Sheng, to pull away for good and win the match.
SAT 3/2/24 WEEKEND #7
Bronze
Camaros vs Venturas
The Venturas struck first with a basket from Soren Verleun, and then Teddy Millman added a bucket. The Camaros came roaring back on a basket by Jay Miller, and three first half field goals from Killian Georgaris. The second half saw the Venturas get steals from Nalina Chopra and Callie Dean, as Aidan Schneider had multiple rebounds and blocks; Ventura teammates Oliver Williams, Sora Nomoto, and Bodhi Ren Chopra each made baskets to get closer to the Camaros. However, the Camaros did most of their damage in the third quarter with Greysen Lovett making a basket, and Player of the Game, Bodhi Kothari, making three buckets. The Camaros relied on good defense in the fourth quarter, as Max Lind and Louis Liu controlled the boards, and Tyler Enayati and Mateo Barraza were guarding the perimeter to prevent the Camaros from getting to the hoop, and hold on to win the match.
Thunderbolts vs Skylarks
Defense ruled the first half, as the Thunderbolts had solid defense from Hogan Barth, Grayson Mitchell, and Jakob Sroka, while the Skylarks got steals from Lachlan Canniffe and Frida Garcia, and rebounds from Luke Sarley and Zeke Mower. More of the scoring came in the second half, as the Skylarks got buckets from Walker Rosenthal, Elliot Sheng, and Tyson Skinner, along with multiple rebounds from William Holt and Ashok Dhaka. The Thunderbolts stayed strong on defense, as Oliver Farrar and Hogan Barth made key steals, rebounds were grabbed by Jaxton Stangel and Corbin Strock, blocks were made by Olivia Wang and Rayden Toteja. The Thunderbolts had all their scoring from Oscar Farrar and Player of the Game, Kingston Smith, who was also a perfect 6 for 6 from the charity stripe, which gave their team a commanding victory.
Copper
Darts vs Cyclones
All Cyclones with the scoring in the first half as baskets were made by Penelope Johnson, Lincoln Sheng and Player of the Game, Owen Wang, and a free throw made by Rohan Henderson. The Darts got their scoring going in the second half, as baskets were made by Oliver Chiba and Max Degeorges, and a free throw made by Kiana Soltani. The Darts also had rebounds from David Sharafi and Delora Soltani, and steals from Brooks Carey and Maya Larmore, as Owen Mitchell made a couple of blocks. The Cyclones continued their scoring as Penelope Johnson made another basket, and Tucker Levitan made a fourth quarter bucket, and teammates Isabelle Ma and Ben Levy prevented the Darts from catching up, and helped their team to the victory.
Silver
Javelins vs Judges
Even-stevens for the first quarter as the Judges got points from Mason Altshule, Peter Rodrick, and Buck Jacobs, as the Javelins drew even with baskets from Liana Enayati and Decker Amos to make it tied at six apiece . The Javelins continued their scoring in the second quarter as Levi Lapierre and Logan Christenson made baskets, and Steven Brown and Todd Freeman grabbed rebounds. The Judges had a strong second half as Sean Murphy made key steals, Dylan Jackson and Dylan Read got on the scoreboard, and Player of the Game, Mason Altshule, controlled the boards and continued scoring for his team to lead them to victory.
Ramblers vs Chevelles
All the scoring for the Ramblers in this match came from Faizan Khan and Theodore Edelman. The Chevelles had first half scoring from Declan Wong, Olivia Wu, and Mateo Chan to keep the score very even at halftime. The second half saw the Chevelles Rome Ricks make the scoreboard, and solid defense from Cetine Travnikoff. The game was neck and neck, it was the defense of the Ramblers that helped to keep them close, as Natalie Vicuna and Amarveer Gupta shut down the perimeter, Tucker Gissendaner got steals, and Sadie Bellavia and Katarina Epstein had rebounds, but in the final minutes, the Chevelles Declan Wong came up with big shots to help his team get the narrow victory and earn Player of the Game honors.
Gold
Torinos vs Novas
The first quarter ended with crazy eights for each team, as the Torinos had all their scoring from Diego Gonzalez, and the Novas had their scoring from Oliver Lynn and Terry Gunderson. In the second quarter, the Novas got rebounds from Orion Mane, and steals from Zidan Jivani; the Torinos had baskets and made free throws from Ethan Chang and Faizan Khan. The second half saw the Novas put on good full court pressure to create turnovers created by Liam Broihier and Beau Zaczepinski, as Andrey Sterlyagov and Tomonori Kugawa also got onto the scoreboard. The Torinos stayed strong as rebounds were obtained by Sean Dobbs and Liam Desante, Ross Nelson made a free throw, and Player of the Game-Diego Gonzalez continued his scoring to lead their team to victory
Daytonas vs Eliminators
Defense ruled the first half, as the Daytonas got rebounds from Redeat Gebeyehu and Lucas Dogic; the Eliminators had blocks and steals from Dominic Drew, and Auden Travnikoff controlled the boards with multiple rebounds. The Eliminators had first half scoring from Brendan Still and Abdullah Jooma; The Daytonas had 6 points each from Player of the Game-Grey Ross and Siddhant Khanna.
The second half played evenly between the two teams, as the Eliminators had Olivia Ruiz feeding the ball to Chloe Scofield who had 8 points in the second half; the Daytonas had 7 points from Trajan Booker in the fourth quarter to hold onto the victory, and remain undefeated.
Platinum
Roadrunners vs Firebirds
The Firebirds dominated the first half with scoring from Landon Broihier, Dagmawi Ayele, Mia Kondratyeva, Cassius Taylor, and Sam McGowan who has his patented step back floater in the lane that I refer to as the “McGowan” that floats in nicely for the bucket. The Roadrunners regrouped at halftime, and started to battle back as Nicholas Mirich, Cam Pariser, and Joshua Edwards made field goals; and teammates Kaleab Seyum and Christian Ferew made a “3” each.
The Firebirds countered with AJ Evans and Ryan Chambers having their own “3” party as they were making their shots from beyond the arc, and Ethan Kondratyev had a “block” party as he stuffed a couple of shots. The Roadrunners still kept running and were drawing closer, as Adonyinas Yonas had 18 of his game 20 points in the second half; however, in the end, it was key steals and assists from Player of the Game, Harlan Mansfield, that helped the Firebirds to hang on to the victory.
SUN 3/3/24
Copper
Galaxies vs Super Bees
All Super Bees in the first half, as Kiera Broihier and Miles Agramonte were stealing the ball and taking it to the other side for scores, and Gavin Wong made a nice long pass to Vivienne Lapierre who put up a high shot that looked similar to the end of a paperclip as it went in for nothing but net. The Galaxies were able to get on the board in the second half, as Nathan Stafford scored 8 points, and Grayson Wells and Nicolas Leblond got rebounds. The Super Bees continued to score as Jaxon Oxendine and Gavin Wong each made a couple buckets, and Player of the Game-Kiera Broihier continued to be the master thief and scored a couple more baskets to lead her team to victory.
Sabres vs Thunderbolts
The Sabres had strong defense to help contain prominent shooters of the Thunderbolts, as Beau Bigler and Rodrigo Padron prevented the opponent from getting to the basket, and Hugo Casarella and Otis Smith each had a basket in the first quarter. In the second quarter, River Stanton and Rahm Kapgan batten down the hatches for the Sabres as they applied the defensive pressure, and Jackie Pittman made a nice assist to teammate Otis Smith for a score. The first half saw the Thunderbolts get solid defense from Oliver Farrar and Corbin Strock, assists by Rayden Toteja, and two made free throws from Kingston Smith.
In the second half, the Thunderbolts got Beau Bigler and Aiden Yousefi on the scoring column. The game plan seemed to work well for the Thunderbolts; however, they forgot to batten down one hatch, and that was Oscar Farrar. The Thunderbolts had 18 of their 20 points come from Oscar who was making 12 to 15 jumpers with regularity and skilled precision, even when guarded closely. Along with scoring points, Oscar was the rebound leader for the match, and truly put the team on his back to carry them to victory, and earning the Player of the Game honors.
Silver
Judges vs Ramblers
All rise, the Judges are on the court. Judgement was made early in this match in which Dylan Read. Peter Rodrick, and Buck Jacobs scored multiple points off of assists by Mason Altshule. The Ramblers did keep pace with baskets by Theodore Edelman and Tucker Gissendanner, along with rebounds from Sadie Bellavia and Itamar Yurman, and steals from Katarina Epstein. The second half saw the Judges get rebounds from Milena Zewdie who then gave the ball to Player of the Game-Henry Fyda who scored multiple baskets to lead their team to victory.
Superbirds vs Javelins
Four score and a first quarter ago, two teams were tied at four(To paraphrase the Gettysburg address). The Superbirds had first quarter baskets by Oakley Entsminger and Leo Yaghoubzadeh, and the Javelins got points from Lian Enayati. In the second quarter, the Javelins got Liam Lind on the scoreboard, rebounding from Todd Freeman and Knute Haglund, and steals from Marcel Jimenez and Oliver Valles. The Superbirds had a strong second quarter as Saum Safavi, Alexander Melamed, Jaxon Silverstein, and Ray Song made baskets. In the second half, the Javelins had baskets from Decker Amos and Logan Christenson, in which Levi Lapierre and Oliver Valles had created turnovers to give them the ball; the Superbirds continued to fly high as Ryder Range earned Player of the Game honors with his solid rebounding and two big baskets to give his team the victory.
Platinum
Cobras vs Mustangs
The Mustangs galloped to an early lead as Amir Enayati, Darien Jones, Aayan Lakhani, Estevan Padron, and Yisaac Tariku made deuces, and Amensisa Alemayehu had a “3’ and made free throws. The Cobras kept pace with points from Matthew Scholze, Antonio Rodriguez, and Max Baracy and then they made a push in the second half to catch the Mustangs, getting good defense from Logan Cappiccille and Austin Bernier, steals from Dwain Brown, and a couple of treys from the deep right corner by Grayson Klein, and before you knew it, the Cobras were biting on the heels of the Mustangs.
The Mustangs kept their composure, and other players stepped up their game, as Olana Alemayehu, Brandon Israels, River Zelenovic, and Ryan Nagase scored points in the final minutes, and teammate Amensisa Alemayehu took over the leadership role and not only scored big buckets, but snagged down the rebounds, and tighten up the defense to prevent the valid comeback from the Cobras, and earning Player of the Game honors, as the Mustangs went on to the victory.
Impalas vs Barracudas
The Barracudas stung early and hard as they built a huge lead in the first half on three “3”s from Dylan Kravitz, putback rebounds for points from Kai Halpert, a trey from Alden Wong, and a basket by Alden Wong. The Impalas regrouped at halftime, and won the battle of the second half as Ethan Schwartz, Christian Villegas, Josh Weill, Asher Zaczepinski, and Roderick Johnson got into the scoring column. However, the lead was too much for the Impalas to overcome, as the Barracudas added enough points from Isaac Lynn and Player of the Game-Noah Michael, along with solid rebounding from Gabriel Chibane and Andrew Woolfolk to keep the lead and get the victory.
THURS 3/7/24
Bronze
Skylarks vs Camaros
Exciting match from start to finish. Both teams were tied at the end of the first quarter, as the Camaros had a basket each from Mateo Barraza and Jay Miller, and the Skylarks had a basket each from William Holt and Elliot Sheng. The Camaros took a slight halftime lead as Bodhi Kothari made the scoring column, and the Skylarks kept pace with baskets by Walker Rosenthal and Ashok Dhaka. The third quarter belonged to the Skylarks as Tyson Skinner had all 6 of his points in the quarter. The Camaros caught up in the fourth quarter as Tyler Enayati had 4 points; however, the Skylarks were able to surge ahead for good when both Ashok Dhaka and Player of the Game-William Holt each made two buckets to give their team the narrow victory.
SAT 3/9/24 WEEKEND #8
Copper
Super Bees vs Darts
The Super Bees got all their first quarter scoring from Jaxon Oxendine who had two baskets, and the Darts got two made free throws from David Sharafi. The second quarter saw good hustle play by the Super Bees Vivienne Lapierre as she snagged a rebound and then shot a turnaround fadeaway for nothing but net. The second half saw the Darts play good defense as Brooks Carey grabbed multiple rebounds, Oliver Chiba and Delora Soltani stole the ball, and Kiana Soltani made a basket.
The Super Bees continued to score more points as Tate Avitabile made a free throw, Vivienne Lapierre made a basket, and Jaxon Oxendine had two baskets off of assists from Player of the Game-Vivienne Lapierre. The Super Bees held off the Darts with steals from Kiera Broihier and rebounds from Jake Jackson, as they remained in first place in the division.
Bronze
Venturas vs Skylarks
The Skylarks had a big first half as they got baskets from William Holt, Tyson Skinner, Ashok Dhaka, and Luke Sarley. The Venturas kept pace with baskets from Soren Verleun and Oliver Williams. In the second half, the Skylarks got Walker Rosenthal and Elliot Sheng on the scoreboard. The Venturas had Teddy Millman also make the scorecard with a couple of baskets. But the Skylarks stayed strong as Lior Vaisburd controlled the boards to give outlet passes to Player of the Game-Ashok Dhaka who
scored multiple points to give his team the victory.
Sabres vs Camaros
The Sabres had the initial lead on a free throw from Rahm Kapgan and three baskets by Otis Smith. The Camaros took the halftime lead on a bucket each by Mateo Barraza, Killian Georgaris, Bodhi Kothari, Jay Miller, and Phoenix Volken. In the second half, the Sabres got rebounds from River Stanton, and steals from Adeline Smith, as teammate Hugo Casarella added a free throw. The Camaros pulled away in the second half, as Louis Liu had a basket, Tyler Enayati controlled the boards, and Player of the Game-Jay Miller continued to score to give their team the victory.
Silver
Ramblers vs Superbirds
Close match throughout, as the teams went back and forth. The first half had the Ramblers getting baskets from Theodore Edelman, Faizan Khan, and Linus Verleun; the Superbirds had scoring from Oakley Entsminger, Alexander Melamed, and Ray Song. Both teams exchanged baskets in the second half. The Ramblers had steals created from Natalie Vicuna and Itamar Yurman, rebounds from Amarveer Gupta, and continued scoring from Theodore Edelman and Faizan Khan. The Superbirds would eventually pull ahead in the final seconds as they relied on good defense from Alison Lyons and Ryder Range, and crucial baskets from Ray Song and Player of the Game-Alexander Melamed to squeeze out the victory.
Marauders vs Javelins
Neck and neck in the first quarter as the Marauders got baskets from Krishna Aysola and Henry Mack, and the Javelin had all their points in the quarter from Decker Amos. The second quarter saw Griffin Marder get on the scoreboard for the Marauders. The Javelins played lockdown defense with Todd Freeman and Marcel Jimenez preventing penetration to the hoop, and Liam Lind grabbing rebounds. The Javelins continued the strong defense in the second half, as Leon Muenze was a top rebounder, and Steven Brown stole the ball. The Javelins were able to get second half points from Knute Haglund, Levi Lapierre, and Liana Enayati. The Marauders had a strong second half in with they used a lockdown defense in which Sebastian Joyce, Ashton Miller, and Krsna Pathak employed a full court trap, that allowed teammates Naki Shriqui and Nanda Aysola to steal the ball and give assists to Niam Pahwa and Player of the Game-Krishna Aysola who hit the only “3” in the match which was a big shot that helped his team to victory.
Gold
Eliminators vs Stingrays
The Stingrays took the early lead on the hot shooting of Ocean Yaghoubzadeh who had 7 points in the first quarter including of his three “3”s on the day. The Eliminators came back with a basket from Ibrahim Ally and 7 second quarter points from Abdullah Jooma, in which Dominic Drew assisted on all his teammates’ points in the first half. The Stingrays stung back in the second quarter with points from Conrad DiMauro and Leonardo Garcia to tie the score at halftime. In the third quarter, the Eliminators got a basket from Auden Travnikoff, and 8 points from Olivia Ruiz before she had to leave the game for a while due to hyperextending her knee. The Stingrays Nico Palomares was gracious enough to switch sides and go from being a Stingray to an Eliminator since that team did not have any subs, and played solid defense.
The Stingrays took a bite out of the lead with more “3”s from Ocean Yaghoubzadeh, a basket by Kaya Dahukey, and rebounds from Felix Carpenter. In the last half of the fourth quarter, Olivia Ruiz came back into the match, and Nico Palomares went back to being a Stingray. Olivia Ruiz made an immediate impact as she scored a crucial basket, and teammate Abdullah Jooma hit his second “3” of the day to help their team hang on to a close victory. Olivia Ruiz was Player of the Game for her gritty performance and being leading the game in steals and points as she had 15 points in the match, many of them from free throws and drives to the hoop. A very impressive performance, and she felt much better afterwards, after all, victories help you heal faster.
Novas vs Daytonas
This match was mostly Daytonas from start to finish as the leading scorers for the Daytonas were Trajan Booker and Mika Stele, and all Daytonas scored a bucket but none more impressive than Player of the Game, Levi Cogan, who had his best game of the season with three points and was the leading rebounder for his team. There were bright spots for the Novas as Zidan Jivani had a “3”, Tomonori Kugawa and Beau Zaczepinski each had baskets. Good effort by all players that participated.
Platinum
Roadrunners vs Mustangs
When you’re cold, you’re cold, when you’re hot, you’re hot. The Roadrunners got the early lead with baskets from Cam Pariser, Adoniyas Yonas, and Christian Ferew. Everybody from the Mustangs was shooting cold, except James Cook who was cooking up four straight swish dueces in the first frame to keep his team close. The next quarter saw the Mustangs Darien Jones replace his teammate with the hot barbecue as he lit up for three “3”s in the quarter. Darien wasn’t done cooking in the second half as he put the afterburners on and shot five more “3”s in the second half, only to be joined by his teammate and Player of the Game, James Cook, who baked another three “3”s in the second half as the Trey train went rolling down the track.
However, the Roadrunners hopped aboard the Trey train as Azariah Gebeyeh hit one from beyond the arc, and his teammate Kaleab Seyum had three “3”s in a row in the fourth quarter to draw their team closer. But in the end, good guard play and points by Aayan Lakhani, and solid defense by Amensisa Amemayehu was too much for the Roadrunners, as the Mustangs galloped to victory.
Impalas vs Firebirds
The Impalas showed grit and determination facing the undefeated Firebirds, as they got first half scoring from Louis Meehan-Smith, Josh Weil, and Leo Mooney. The Firebirds had a balanced attack with most of the first half scoring coming from Dagmawi Ayele and Sam McGowan. The second half saw the Impalas get different players on the scoreboard with baskets from Rowan Booher, Ethan Schwartz, and Christian Villegas.
In the end, the solid drives to the hoop for scores by Cassius Taylor, the outside shooting of AJ Evans, putback rebounds for points by Mia Kondratyeva, and the steals and rebounds by Players of the Game-Rohham and Radin Taherian kept the Firebirds undefeated and almost ensured a division title as long as they show up for the next game.
SUN 3/10/24
Copper
Galaxies vs Cyclones
This match featured many players getting their first baskets of the season. The Galaxies took an early lead on multiple buckets from Wiley Myers. The Cyclones came back to take a halftime lead with baskets from Rohan Henderson, Lincoln Sheng, and Lola Lashkari. The Galaxies Grayson Wells led his team with assists, and Owen Wang was the assist leader for the Cyclones. The Galaxies had good defense from Dylan Martin, Weaver Boden, and Simon Grossman to hold off the surging Cyclones. The Cyclones were able to get steals from Ella Sands and Ivy Huss, an assist from Tucker Levitan which led to teammates Ben Levy, Isabelle Ma, and Player of the Game-Rachel Lao getting their first baskets of the season to help their team to the victory.
Bronze
4 Camaros vs #5 Sabres
This was a play-in match to be eligible for the in-season tournament. Baskets were hard to come by in the first half as both teams played solid defense as the Camaros got rebounds from Phoenix Volken and Bennett Zibit, and the Sabres had Rahm Kapgan and Otis Smith controlling the boards. The Camaros had Mateo Barraza with two field goals in the first half to tie the score at halftime. The second half featured more scoring as the Camaros got a basket from Bodhi Kothari, a free throw from Greysen Lovett, and a “3” from Killian Georgaris. The Sabres points came from baskets by Rodrigo Padron and Player of the Game Aiden Yousefi to give their team just enough points to hold onto the victory and advance to the in-season tournament.
Silver
Chevelles vs Marauders
Marauders got on the scoreboard first with baskets by Krishna Aysola, Krishna Pathak, and Nakai Shriqui, but the Chevelles caught up and took the halftime lead on baskets by Declan Wong, Rome Ricks, Mai Ly Pariser, Nyla Smith, and Mariella Belew. The Marauders played aggressive defense in the second half as steals were created by Nanda Aysola and Sebastian Joyce, blocks by Griffin Marder, and rebounds by Ashton Miller. The Chevelles stayed strong as Rex Bulette made a basket, Cetine Travnikoff slowed down the dribblers, and Player of the Game, Mateo Chan, had 6 of his game high points in the second half to lead his team to victory.
Gold
Stingrays vs Torinos
The Stingrays built a good first half lead on a basket each from Ocean Yaghoubzadeh and Conrad DiMauro, along with 8 first half points from Leonardo Garcia. The Torinos kept pace with points from Ethan Chang and Diego Gonzalez. In the second half, the Torinos had good defense from Julia Enayati and Azumi Nomoto to help get the ball to teammates Sean Dobbs and Constantine Avramopoulos Orlandos for them to score.
The Torinos got rebounds from Liam Desante and Jack Meyer which led to outlet passes for assists as Diego Gonzalez and Spencer Nelson scored to get their team closer; however, in the second half, the stingrays got another 8 points from Leonardo Garcia, a “3” from Ocean Yaghoubzadeh, and a basket from Player of the Game-Kamden King to build a sizeable lead that was protected by the defense of Felix Carpenter and Nico Palomares to obtain the victory.
Novas vs Eliminators
The Eliminators got out running early as points were scored by Ibrahim Ally, Olivia Ruiz, Auden Travnikoff, Abdullah Jooma, and Silver division sub-Buck Jacobs. The Novas eventually got their scoring going, as Liam Broihier, Jude Lombard, Tomonori Kugawa, and Andrey Stelyagov made baskets. The Novas got steals from Oliver Lynn, and rebounds from Beau Zaczepinski. The Eliminators continued to roll in the second half, as Mariama Belew made steals, and Dominic Drew made assists and blocks, and Player of the Game-Ibrahim Ally finished the day with a double-double in points and rebounds to give their team the victory.
Platinum
Barracudas vs Cobras
The best was saved for last, as the last match of the weekend turned out to be the most exciting. The Cobras took the early first quarter lead with baskets from Grayson Klein and Hunter Esposito-Doi. The Barracudas struck back to get the lead by the end of the first frame, with a basket from Kai Halpert, and multiple buckets from Gabriel Chibane, and continued to build on the lead in the second quarter with a basket from Augie Tucker-Maxcy.
But then the Cobras put their bite on midway through the second quarter and full court press the Barracudas, creating multiple turnovers leading to points by Austin Bernier, Matthew Scholze, and Antonio Rodriguez; but none more impressive than their teammate Hunter Esposito-Doi who had 16 points in the second quarter alone! The Barracudas regrouped in the third to start chipping away at the lead as Isaac Lynn made shots, Andrew Woolfolk put rebounds back in for points, and Dylan Kravitz got hot from beyond the arc with a couple of “3”s.
In the fourth quarter, the Cobras got two baskets from Max Baracy, a basket from Austin Bernier, and several points from Matthew Scholze to extend their lead; but, the Cobras kept coming as the two headed monster of Kai Halpert and Gabriel Chibane got close range shots as they received dimes from Alden Wong.
Before you knew it, with only a couple minutes left in the game, the Barracudas had what appeared to be an insurmountable lead, or so we thought. It now became Hunter Time! Hunter Esposito-Doi put on his game face and took over in the minutes with a couple of running floaters, and then with seconds left, hit the game tying “3” and got fouled to get the rare “And1” opportunity for which he converted the free throw to put his team up by a point. The Cobras were able to put the chokehold hold on defense and prevented the Barracudas from getting the last shot off, and escaped with the victory. Hunter had a triple-double for the match with 28 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 steals, to not only earn Player of the Game honors, but also Player of the Week as well in a remarkable performance.
SAT 3/16/24 WEEKEND #9
Copper
Darts vs Galaxies
Darts owned the first half as Oliver Chiba and Max Degeorge did all the scoring. The Galaxies kept pace with rebounding from Weaver Boden and Simon Grossman. The Galaxies got close in the third quarter as Claire Magid and Grayson Wells made free throws, and Nicolas Leblond played solid defense. The Darts picked it up in the fourth quarter as Player of the Game David Sharafi threw a couple of bulleyes into the net, and the defense of Brooks Carey, Owen Mitchell, and Kiana Soltani prevented a comeback from the Galaxies.
Silver
Javelins vs Chevelles
A duece apiece for both teams to end the first quarter, as Mateo Chan scored for the Chevelles, and Liana Enayati scored for the Javelins. The Javelins got more points in the second quarter as Todd Freeman and Leon Muenze each had a basket. In the second half, the Chevelles got steals from Hunter Calhoun, a basket from Cetine Travnikoff, and two baskets each from Rex Bulette and Logan Christenson as he is a Javelin, but agreed to go help the shorthanded Chevelles. Eventually the Javelins would prevail, as the defense of Steven Brown, Knute Haglund, and Marcel Jimenez locked down the opponent, Levi Lapierre made a basket, and Decker Amos and Player of the Game-Liana Enayati continued to run up the scoreboard.
Judges vs Superbirds
The Silver League’s Judges vs. Superbirds game started off hot for the Judges, with Buck Jacobs and Peter Rodrick leading the charge with their several points and assists.
Even though they were starting off strong, the Superbirds’ Alex Melamed came here to play, and was battling the Judges’ Mason Altshule on the defensive end. Altshule responded by getting multiple defensive rebounds, steals, and blocks. There was great teamwork on both ends, and Buck Jacobs continued showcasing his skills through his rebounds and fastbreaks. This was a constant battle on the court, with both teams keeping heads turning. The Superbirds were putting up a valiant effort, but the Judges continued stretching the lead, making it 21-2 by halftime. By the time the second half rolled around, it was case closed, and the Judges had secured their victory.
Through their great teamwork, strength, and continuously pushing the ball up the court, the Judges were able to build the gap to a final score of 47-9. Although it was a tough loss for them, it was great to see the resilience the Superbirds showed. In the end, they held their heads high, and the Judges were respectful with their victory, showing what it means to be a good player on the court and a good person off the court. Submitted by Priya Mevasse.
Marauders vs Ramblers
From the start, it was clear that the Silver League’s Ramblers vs. Marauders game was going to be a close one. Both teams came ready to play, with the Ramblers starting with warmups and the Marauders starting with a team huddle. There was great ball movement on both sides of the floor, with the Marauders’ Henry Mack getting several rebounds and put backs, and the Ramblers’ Theo Edelman pushing the ball up the court to get points for him and his teammates. Both teams’ offensive and defensive competitiveness could be seen on the court, with players falling on the floor, getting steals, and shooting buckets. The second half continued to be a nail-biter, but after a fierce battle down to the last minute, the Marauders emerged victorious.
This game really showed these players’ grit and determination as they continued to fight until the end. It was truly a pleasure to see the dedication of each and every one of these players, who all showed what it means to love the game. Submitted by Priya Mevasse.
Gold
4 Stingrays vs #5 Novas
This was a play-in game for the in-season tournament for the Gold division in which the winner would be in the tournament. The Stingrays got it rolling in the first half as Leonardo Garcia had 12 points, Ocean Yaghoubzadeh had a “3”, and Conrad DiMauro had two baskets. The Novas kept pace with a pair of “2”s and a “3” from Jude Lombard, and steals from Liam Broihier. The Novas got other players on the scoreboard in the second half as Oliver Lynn, Terry Gunderson, and Zidan Jivani each had a basket, and teammate Beau Zaczepinski had 8 points in the fourth quarter including a trey from downtown.
But the lead of the Stingrays was too much for the Novas to overcome, as Jared Garibay got into the scoring column, Nico Palomares played strong defense, and Player of the Game-Felix Carpenter controlled the boards to give their team an invitation to the in-season tournament.
Platinum
Impalas vs Cobras
There were only two Cobras, two Gold division players to help the Cobras, and two Impalas who agreed to play for the Cobras. Regardless of what happened, the Impalas would get credit for the victory. This actually turned out to be a very fun and exciting game. The Impalas built a good halftime lead on a couple of treys and deuces from Roderick Johnson, and additional treys from Diego Gonzalez and Rowan Booher. The Cobras kept pace thanks to their Impala subs Ethan Schwartz with 12 points for the game, and his Impala teammate, Christian Villegas, helping the Cobras with 7 points including an “And1” conversion.
In the second half, the Impalas got additional scoring from brothers Mooney, Ezra and Leo, and free throws made from Louis Meehan Smith and Derek Knott. However, the Cobras mounted a comeback as both Gold division subs, Leonardo Garcia and Jared Garibay nailed “3”s, and Cobra Matthew Scholze made a couple of baskets to tie the score. With only a few seconds left, Player of the Game-Antonio Rodriguez sank the last second shot from 12 feet out on the side to give the Cobras the victory; however, both teams get the credit for the victory, so everyone goes home happy.
Firebirds vs Mustangs
The Firebirds were missing many players, and the question would be if the Firebirds could keep their unbeaten streak going? It looked good in the first half as the Firebirds used diversified scoring with baskets from Mia Kondratyeva, Landon Broihier, AJ Evans, Dagmawi Ayele, and Cassius Taylor with his barrage of “3”s. But the Mustangs would not give up, as their chef got cooking, in other words, James Cook started hitting nothing but net with makes from downtown and near the rim, and aided by Aayan Lakhani with hoops on penetration drives.
The Mustangs also had strong rebounding from River Zelenovic and Estevan Padron, along with steals from Ryan Nagise and Amen Alemayehu to cut into the Firebirds lead. In the end, strong defense held on, as the Player of the Game, Ethan Kondratyev made key blocks and rebounds to preserve the victory, and keep his team undefeated.
Barracudas vs Roadrunners
First half scoring for the Roadrunners came from Christian Ferew, Cam Pariser, Jarvis Wakefield, and Alex Providas. The Barracudas built a good lead on assists from Rayan Chibane, mostly to his brother Gabriel who had a game high 27 points, and teammates Kai Halpert, Andrew Woolfolk, and Julian Vecekerelli had multiple buckets. The second half saw Azariah Gebeyehu get on the scoreboard, and teammate Cam Pariser had two “3”s in the fourth quarter. The difference maker was Player of the Game, Augie Tucker-Maxcy of the Barracudas, who led the game in steals and made a couple of baskets to propel his team to victory.
SUN 3/17/24
Copper
Cyclones vs Super Bees
Super Bees got the halftime lead on three made baskets from Miles Agramonte, two free throws from Gavin Wong, and steals from Kiera Broihier and Vivienne Lapierre. The third quarter belonged to the Cyclones as they played team ball, with Lincoln Sheng and Owen Wang scoring and assisting Player of the Game-Rohan Henderson who had 10 points in the the third quarter to give the Cyclones a big lead after three. The Super Bees got a bucket in the fourth quarter from Tate Avitabile, but the Cyclones were too strong on defense as Rachel Lao and Lola Lashkari stole the ball, Ivy Huss and Isabelle Ma got rebounds, and Ella Sands blocked shots to keep the Bees at bay, and go on to win today.
Bronze
2 Skylarks vs #3 Venturas
First of two semi-final games in the bronze division in-season tourney had the Skylarks get the halftime lead on baskets by Elliot Sheng, Walker Rosenthal, and Tyson Skinner.
The Venturas kept pace with a couple of buckets from Teddy Millman. In the second half, the Venturas got additional scoring from Soren Verleun, and good defense from Sora Nomoto and Oliver Williams. But the Cyclones continued whirling and swirling as Lachlan Canniffe got rebounds, Lior Vaisburd made nice assists to teammate and Player of the Game, William Holt, as he had 6 big second half points to help his team move on in the in-season tourney.
1 Thunderbolts vs #5 Sabres
In the second in-season tourney semi-final, defense reigned supreme as both teams ended the first half with the Thunderbolts having a football field goal, and the Sabres having a football safety for a 3-2 score. Jakob Sroka had all the first half points for the Thunderbolts, while Rodrigo Padron had the only first half bucket for the Sabres. In the second half, the Sabres built a lead with baskets by Beau Bigler, Hugo Casarella, and Aiden Yousefi. The Thunderbolts had a free throw from Rayden Toteja, and things were not looking good for the top seed in the Bronze division; however, Oscar Farrar would save the day, as he made three crucial baskets in the final minutes of the game to sneak past the Sabres for the narrow victory. Great game played by all players on both sides.
Silver
Chevelles vs Judges
The Judges were out to avenge their early loss to the Chevelles this season, and they were ready as all Judges players scored in the match. The Judges got a bucket from Mason Altshule, a perfect four for four from the charity stripe by Buck Jacobs, 6 points from Sean Murphy, 8 points from Dylan Read, and a dozen each from Henry Fyda and Peter Rodrick. The Chevelles had scores from Mariella Belew, Rome Ricks, and Olivia Wu, and good defense from Mateo Chan and Mai Ly Pariser. But it was the Judges day, and they hammered the gavel and went onto the victory.
Gold
2 Eliminators vs #3 Torinos
The first of two in-season tournament semi finals in the Gold division saw the Eliminators take the first half lead on multiple baskets from Nyla Smith, Olivia Ruiz, Buck Jacobs, Ibrahim Ally, and Olivia Ruiz. The Torinos kept pace with baskets from Diego Gonzalez, Jack Meyer, and Ross Nelson.
The Torinos took advantage of the full court press in the second half, as Ethan Chang and Liam Desante scored off turnovers created by Azumi Nomoto and Julia Enayati. But the Eliminators stayed strong as Auden Travnikoff and David Yonatan grabbed rebounds, Abdullah Jooma made penetrating drives for layups, and Player of the Game-Dominic Drew had steals, blocks, and points to give their team the victory and move onto the the in-season tournament first place match for the finale of the season next week.
1 Daytonas vs #4 Stingrays
In the second in-season tournament semifinal, the Stingrays built a big first half lead on deuces and treys for Ocean Yaghoubzadeh and Leonardo Garcia. But the Daytonas would not be denied, as they came roaring back with their own “3” party in which Grey Ross, Mika Steele, and Trajan Booker were the Three Basketeers. “All for one and one for all”.
The Stingrays tried to get the lead back with a basket from Jared Garibay and rebounds and steals from Felix Carpenter and Nico Palamares; however, the Daytonas had Player of the Game, Sam Affleck, shut down the opponent with impenetrable defense and help maintain the undefeated season, and a chance for perfection in the finale of the season next week.
SAT 3/23/24 WEEKEND #10
Copper
3 Darts vs #4 Galaxies
The seeding game for the Copper featured a lot of scoring from both sides, with plenty more from the Darts as Player of the Game, Owen Mitchell, had 28 points for the match, and teammate Max Degeorge had 16 points, and Oliver Chiba added a basket. The Darts steal leader was Charles Lewis, and Weaver Boden grabbed a couple of rebounds for the Galaxies. The Galaxies had baskets from Claire Magid, James Edelman, and Alexander Wolf, and teammate Simon Grossman made a free throw.
The assist leader in the match was Dylan Martin who made a couple of nice passes to teammates for scores. When all was said and done, both teams combined for over 60 points which is surely a record for the Copper division.
Silver
Javelins vs Ramblers
The Javelins struck first as Decker Amos, Steven Brown, and Logan Christenson scored in the first half. But the Ramblers had Player of the Game-Theodore Edelman on fire as he scored 16 first half points, and hit 7 consecutive free throws. But it wasn’t all Theo, because he had good defense from Tucker Gissendaner who made key steals, and Natalie Vicuna, Katarina Epstein, and Sadie Bellavia controlled the boards, and Linus Verleun added a couple baskets. The Javelins fought back with Liana Enayati, and Levi Lapierre making the scoring column, and steals from Todd Freeman and Marcel Jimenez, but it would not be enough the catch the Ramblers, as they rambled on to victory.
Judges vs Marauders
The Marauders struck first with baskets from Henry Mack and Niam Pahwa; however, the Judges would come back strong with baskets from Mason Altshule, Henry Fyda, Dylan Read, Peter Rodrick, and Buck Jacobs to take a commanding lead at halftime.
In the second half, the Marauders played tough and got Krsna Pathak and Nanda Aysola on the scoreboard, Nakai Shriqui and Sebastian Joyce made steals, and Krishna Aysola and Ashton Miller grabbed rebounds. The Judges continued their scoring, but really showed how good they were on defense as Harrison Bond and Teo Escalante cut off the perimeter, and Player of the Game-Dylan Jackson would not allow the opponent to get to the hoop, as he stole the ball multiple times to lead the fast break for his team onto their victory and a share of the division title for the Winter season.
Chevelles vs Superbirds
The seeding game for the Copper featured a lot of scoring from both sides, with plenty more from the Darts as Player of the Game, Owen Mitchell, had 28 points for the match, and teammate Max Degeorge had 16 points, and Oliver Chiba added a basket. The Darts steal leader was Charles Lewis, and Weaver Boden grabbed a couple of rebounds for the Galaxies. The Galaxies had baskets from Claire Magid, James Edelman, and Alexander Wolf, and teammate Simon Grossman made a free throw.
The assist leader in the match was Dylan Martin who made a couple of nice passes to teammates for scores. When all was said and done, both teams combined for over 60 points which is surely a record for the Copper division.
Platinum
Roadrunners vs Impalas
The Roadrunners took the first half lead on baskets from Trace Ebeling and Cam Pariser, and “3”s from Adonyinas Yonas and Kaleab Seyum. The Impalas kept pace with points from Derek Knott and Josh Weil, and “3”s from Christian Villegas and Roderick Johnson. The Roadrunners extended the lead in the third quarter with baskets from Christian Ferew, and rebounds and assists from Joshua Edwards and Nicholas Mirich. But then the Impalas went on a big run in which Diego Gonzalez and Ezra Mooney made drives to the hoop for points, Ethan Schwartz put back rebounds for points, Christian Villegas and Leo Mooney were making treys from downtown, and Player of the Game Josh Weil continued his dominance of the boards and scored key fourth quarter points to give the Impalas the come from behind victory.
Mustangs vs Barracudas
The first half saw the Mustangs rely on the long ball with “3”s from Darien Jones, Brandon Israels, and Amensisa Alemayehu; while the Barracuda played the inside game with drives to the hoop for points from Kai Halpert, Gabriel Chibane, and Augie Tucker-Maxcy as both teams were tied at halftime. The second half had the Mustangs get an additional “3” from River Zelenovic; while the Barracudas got a “3” each from Dylan Kravitz and Alden Wong, and teammate Andrew Woolfolk made the scoreboard and grabbed key rebounds, and Gabriel Chibane and Kai Halpert continued to score enough inside the lane points to give the Barracudas the victory.
Cobras vs Firebirds
The Firebirds obtained an early lead on points from Mia Kondratyeva, Sam McGowan, Cassius Taylor, and Dagmawi Ayele. The Cobras fought back as Matthew Scholze made outside shots and inside drives, Hadi Zeki and Austin Bernier made 15 footers, Max Baracy had putbacks, steals from Dwain Brown, and Rylan Newton used his crossover dribbles to create opportunities for points and assists to teammates to draw closer to the Firebirds, and only 3 points separated the two teams at the end of the third quarter.
The Firebirds relied on multiple blocks from Ethan Kondratyev, steals from Harlan Mansfield, and a basket each from Rohham and Radin Taherian that helped to fire up the Firebirds to get more points from teammates Sam McGowan and the eventual league MVP, Dagmawi Ayele, to finish strong in the final minutes and onto the victory for an undefeated season and league
championship.
SUN 3/24/24
Copper
1 Cyclones vs #2 Super Bees
This would turn out to be the best game of the season that would have all the fans on the edge of their seats till the very end. The first half saw the Super Bees get most of their scoring from Gavin Wong as he scored on transition drives and outside jumpers; while the Cyclones had a couple baskets each from Lola Lashkari and Lincoln Sheng.
In the second half, the Super Bees got their lead a little larger as Miles Agramonte and Gavin Wong each made a basket in the third quarter, but the Cyclones would catch up as Lincoln Sheng and Lola Lashkari continued to score, and teammates Owen Wang and Tucker Levitan each made a key basket; however, the Super Bees would strike back each time the Cyclones got the lead, and it came down to one player, the Super Bees Miles Agramonte. Each time the Cyclones would score in the fourth quarter, Miles would put his Super Bees back on top as he would hit floating ten foot shots.
The Cyclones got the lead with less than 30 seconds left in the game, and with time winding down, and with only seconds left, Miles drove down the court and launched his shot and it would it go through the net as time would expire, and not only did the Super Bees win the match, they won the division title. Miles not only earned player of the Game honors, but Player of the Week honors as well to cap off a magnificent season.
Bronze
Venturas vs Sabres
The 3rd place in-season tourney match featured two teams that have shown vast improvement as the season progressed. The Sabres won the battle of the first half as brothers Casarella, Billy and Hugo, each had a basket, and teammate Beau Bigler made a bucket. The Venturas kept pace with rebounds from Aidan Schneider, steals from Sora Nomoto, and three baskets from Soren Verleun. The second half showed tough defense from both sides, and the Sabres Aiden Yousefi made two free throws which would be just enough to give his team the victory.
Cyclones vs Thunderbolts
The 1st place tourney game featured the matchup of the two top teams in the league.
The first half was a defensive battle with the Thunderbolts getting rebounds from Olivia Wang, and a basket from Oscar Farrar. The second half is when the Skylarks scored in bunches to blow the game open as Tyson Skinner had 10 points for the match, William Holt was dishing dimes with his assists, Ashok Dhaka put back rebounds for points, Walker Rosenthal mad a basket, Lior Vaisburd was solid on defense with his rebounding, and Player of the Game-Elliot Sheng played an all around game that put his team up by many points. The Thunderbolts did get baskets from Rayden Toteja and Landon Schmidt, but it would not be enough to catch the soaring Skylarks. Consolation prize for the Thunderbolts would be the division title because to the better head to head record during the season.
Gold
Novas vs Silver All-Stars
This was a match in which everybody won because we had to interchange players on both teams throughout the match. Highlights for the Novas included scoring from Andrey Sterlyagov, Beau Zaczepinski, and Player of the Game-Oliver Lynn. Silver All-Stars that made the scoring column were Saum Safavi, Peter Rodrick, Theo Edelman, Declan Wong, Henry Mack, Leo Yaghoubzadeh, and Alexander Melamed. Other Silver All Stars made big contributions, which were Mai Ly Pariser, Linus Verleun, Leon Muenze, Mason Altshule, Logan Christenson, Krishna Pathak, Krishna Aysola, Nanda Aysola, and Jaxon Silversteing who all enjoyed playing on the big court.
Torinos vs Stingrays
In the 3rd place tourney game, yours truly had to fill in to coach the Torinos, so I had them use a 3-1-1 zone half court defensive trap that worked very well in the first half as we had a 12 point lead at the end of the first quarter, as we had 8 points from Silver sub Peter Rodrick, and baskets from Constantine Avramopoulos Orlandos(takes me a minute to type that name) and Liam Desante. The Stingrays started to catch up in the second half as Ocean Yaghoubzadeh made “3”s, Kamden King made three baskets, and Jarec Garibay and Felix Carpenter scored. The Torinos did their best to try and stay ahead as Azumi Nomoto and Jack Meyer made baskets. However, the Stingrays Leonardo Garcia was too much as he played big and had a game high 26 points.
Kudos to the Torinos Julia Enayati as she made a shot as the buzzer sounded.
Daytonas vs Eliminators
The 1st place tourney game was an opportunity for the Daytonas to have a perfect record for the season. The Eliminators did their best to try and spoil it, as early points came from Ibrahim Ally, Abdullah Jooma, and a “3” from Mariama Belew. The Daytonas eventually got ahead on baskets from Elliot Israels and Lucas Dogic, along with “3”s from Mika Stele. In the second half, the Eliminators got rebounds from Brendan Still and David Yonatan, blocks and steals from Dominic Drew who then would move the ball up the court to assist Olivia Ruiz who would make crossovers to get to the hoop for scores, and before you knew it, the game got close in the fourth quarter.
Eventually the Daytonas relied on rebounds and putbacks from Liam Adams, a couple of made deuces from Siddhant Khanna, and high scorer and Player of the Game-Trajan Booker who made 17 points to give his team the victory and the undefeated season.
This Issue’s Profile
Each issue, Swish has a profile of a coach, player, or someone in the program who inspires all of us involved in Santa Monica YMCA youth basketball.
This issue’s profile is of Lamondo Greer who was the youth sports director for several westside YMCAs in the LA Metro system. He is now the executive assistant to the new Corona YMCA where he will help to get their youth sports programs off the ground and running. He has been involved with the LA Metro YMCA youth basketball program for over a decade. He first started with helping the Santa Monica YMCA when Peter Arbogast resurrected the youth basketball program several years ago, by helping Peter get teams to our YMCA, and inviting teams to his YMCA.
For many years, our summer season was essentially playing games in the leagues that Lamondo was in charge of. When the COVID pandemic hit and shut our YMCA down from indoor activities. Lamondo created an outdoor court in the back of the Culver/Palms YMCA in the summer and fall of 2021 to get kids playing basketball again. Lamondo was gracious enough to invite kids from the Santa Monica YMCA to participate in these leagues.
It was an amazing experience that gave hope to so many kids that we would get through this, and Lamondo was the key to making this happen.
After the pandemic, Lamondo and I would exchange teams from each of our YMCAs to go and play against each other. It created a fun Jr. Clippers vs Jr. Lakers rivalry. Many of our games featured all girls matches to the delight of many parents, as
these matches were always exciting to watch.
I asked Lamondo a few questions for the Swish:
DocDrew: Which were your favorite things about running the youth basketball program at the YMCA?
Lamondo: The opportunity to give anyone a chance to participate. I love to coach! I remember when I first started at Culver Palms Family Y in 2011. That’s when I got into coaching .. and building the program. The basketball league at that location only had maybe 98 participants.. Today over 350 enrolled.
Also, building relationships throughout the community , and meeting different families. I got the opportunity to work with different Y’s such as Santa Monica Y and others in the LA area.
DocDrew: Which are your fondest memories over all these past years?
Lamondo: Well, I can brag about the success of my programs over the years.. but the one that comes to mind. Is the impact on the kids I coached. I had several of them come back and work at Y. They will continue to make a positive impact in the community. Which is priceless to me!
DocDrew: Who were your favorite players and coaches, and how did they inspire you?
Lamondo: Well I grew in the 90s and Tennessee. One of our prime channels for sports was WGN 9, I got to watch a lot of Bulls games and my favorite player Michael Jordan. Then I moved west of Mississippi, I began to follow my other favorite Kobe Bryant. They both inspire me with their work ethic and determination. Just keep trying to improve yourself no matter what!
This isn’t goodbye forever, but only the beginning of seeing how Lamondo will make the new Corona YMCA youth sports programs successful, and he plans to come back and visit us often. We wish him all the best, and thank him for all that he has done for all the boys and girls that he has impacted with his kindness and dedication to making this youth generation succeed in life. God bless and thank you, Lamondo.
Scores
THUR 2/29/24
Bronze
Skylarks 22, Sabres 15
SAT 3/2/24 WEEKEND #7
Bronze
Camaros 19, Venturas 13
Thunderbolts 18, Skylarks 8
Copper
Darts 5, Cyclones 17
Silver
Javelins 18, Judges 39
Ramblers 25, Chevelles 29
Gold
Torinos 31, Novas 20
Daytonas 22, Eliminators 14
Platinum
Roadrunners 40, Firebirds 53
SUN 3/3/24
Copper
Galaxies 8, Super Bees 22
Bronze
Sabres 11, Thunderbolts 18
Silver
Judges 39, Ramblers 18
Superbirds 36, Javelins 16
Platinum
Cobras 25, Mustangs 35
Impalas 28, Barracudas 44
THURS 3/7/24
Bronze
Skylarks 26, Camaros 19
SAT 3/9/24 WEEKEND #8
Copper
Super Bees 13, Darts 4
Bronze
Venturas 14, Skylarks 27
Sabres 8, Camaros 22
Silver
Ramblers 24, Superbirds 27
Marauders 23, Javelins 18
Gold
Eliminators 31, Stingrays 29
Novas 11, Daytonas 56
Platinum
Roadrunners 47, Mustangs 58
Impalas 27, Firebirds 43
SUN 3/10/24
Copper
Galaxies 10, Cyclones 20
Bronze
4 Camaros 10, #5 Sabres 14
Silver
Chevelles 35, Marauders 11
Gold
Stingrays 27, Torinos 18
Novas 15, Eliminators 37
Platinum
Barracudas 55, Cobras 56
SAT 3/16/24 WEEKEND #9
Copper
Darts 18, Galaxies 5
Silver
Javelins 27, Chevelles 12
Judges 47, Superbirds 9
Marauders 22, Ramblers 20
Gold
4 Stingrays 39, #5 Novas 24
Platinum
Impalas 42, Cobras 44
(Impalas also receive a win)
Firebirds 38, Mustangs 25
Barracudas 47, Roadrunners 29
SUN 3/17/24
Copper
Cyclones 21, Super Bees 10
Bronze
2 Skylarks 17, #3 Venturas 8
(Tourney semi-final)
1 Thunderbolts 10, #5 Sabres 8 (Tourney semi-final)
Silver
Chevelles 8, Judges 46
Gold
2 Eliminators 39, #3 Torinos 19 (Tourney semi-final)
1 Daytonas 31, #4 Stingrays 20 (Tourney semi-final)
SAT 3/23/24 WEEKEND #10
Copper
3 Darts 46, #4 Galaxies 15
Bronze
All-Stars 8, Camaros 35
Silver
Javelins 21, Ramblers 30
Judges 52, Marauders 16
Chevelles 28, Superbirds 39
Platinum
Roadrunners 30, Impalas 40
Mustangs 43, Barracudas 47
Cobras 33, Firebirds 51
SUN 3/24/24
Copper
1 Cyclones 19, #2 Super Bees 20
Bronze
Venturas 6, Sabres 9 (3rd place tourney game)
Skylarks 20, Thunderbolts 8 (1st place tourney game)
Gold
Novas 18, Silver All-Stars 23
(Both teams get the win due to players switching teams throughout the match)
Torinos 24, Stingrays 42 (3rd place tourney game)
Eliminators 35, Daytonas 44 (1st place tourney game)
Standings:
Teams are awarded 5 points for a win, 3 points for a tie, 1 point for a loss, 0 points for a forfeit. Tournament games have greater point value. Teams are listed in their place in the standings with W-L-T and team points.
Copper:
Super Bees 8-2-0, 44 points Champions
Cyclones 6-2-2, 40 points
Darts 3-5-2, 27 points
Galaxies 1-9-0, 15 points
Bronze:
Thunderbolts 8-2-0, 44 points Champions
(2-1-0 vs Skylarks)
Skylarks 8-2-0, 44 points
Camaros 3-6-0, 21 points
Venturas 3-6-0, 21 points
Sabres 2-8-0, 18 points
Silver:
Superbirds 8-2-0, 42 points Co-Champions
Judges 8-2-0, 42 points Co-Champions
(Both teams 1-1-0 vs each other)
Chevelles 4-6-0, 26 points
Ramblers 4-6-0, 26 points
(Both teams 1-1-0 vs each other)
Javelins 3-7-0, 22 points
Marauders 3-7-0, 22 points
(Both teams 1-1-0 vs each other)
Gold:
Daytonas 10-0-0, 52 points Champions
Eliminators 6-4-0, 36 points
Stingrays 5-6-0, 31 points
Torinos 4-6-0, 27 points
Novas 1-9-0, 14 points
Platinum:
Firebirds 9-0-1, 48 points Champions
Barracudas 5-4-1, 32 points
Mustangs 5-5-0, 30 points (2-0-0 vs Impalas)
Impalas 5-5-0, 30 points
Cobras 4-6-0, 26 points
Roadrunners 2-8-0, 18 points
Fall Season Awards
Copper
Most Valuable Player
Gavin Wong- Super Bees
Most Outstanding Player
Lincoln Sheng-Cyclones
Most Improved
Nathan Stafford-Galaxies
Hustle award
Brooks Carey-Darts
Top Passer
Vivienne Lapierre-Super Bees
All First Team
Lincoln Sheng-Cyclones
Claire Magid-Galaxies
Gavin Wong- Super Bees
Nathan Stafford-Galaxies
Brooks Carey-Darts
Vivienne Lapierre-Super Bees
Jaxon Oxendine-Super Bees
Miles Agramonte-Super Bees
Kiera Broihier-Super Bees
Rohan Henderson-Cyclones
Owen Wang-Cyclones
Oliver Chiba-Darts
Max Degeorge-Darts
Kiana Soltani-Darts
Ivy Huss-Cyclones
Penelope Johnson-Cyclones
Tucker Levitan-Cyclones
Ella Sands-Cyclones
Wiley Myers-Galaxies
Grayson Wells-Galaxies
Owen Mitchell-Darts
All Second Team
Tate Avitable-Super Bees
Ben Levy-Cyclones
Isabelle Ma-Cyclones
Rachel Lao-Cyclones
Lola Lashkari-Cyclones
David Sharafi-Darts
Maya Larmore-Darts
Delora Soltani-Darts
Simon Grossman-Galaxies
Nicholas Leblond-Galaxies
James Edelman-Galaxies
Dylan Martin-Galaxies
All Honorable Mention
Issa Ally-Super Bees
Weaver Boden-Galaxies
Camila Jamshidi-Galaxies
Alexander Wolf-Galaxies
Eve Lee Coriarty-Super Bees
Jake Jackson-Super Bees
Shay Gulati-Super Bees
Luke Schendel-Super Bees
Sebastian Janka-Darts
Charles Lewis-Darts
Galiel Sarfati-Darts
Bronze
Most Valuable Player
Oscar Farrar-Thunderbolts
Most Outstanding Player
Elliot Sheng-Skylarks
Most Improved
Phoenix Volken-Camaros
Hustle Award
Beau Bigler-Sabres
Top Passer
Soren Verleun-Venturas
All First Team
Killian Georgaris-Camaros
Bodhi Kothari-Beagles
Oscar Farrar-Thunderbolts
Oliver Farrar-Thunderbolts
Kingston Smith-Thunderbolts
Olivia Wang-Thunderbolts
Killian Georgaris-Camaros
Jay Miller-Camaros
Ashok Dhaka-Skylarks
William Holt-Skylarks
Elliot Sheng-Skylarks
Tyson Skinner-Skylarks
Rodrigo Padron-Sabres
Soren Verleun-Venturas
Beau Bigler-Sabres
Aiden Yousefi-Sabres
Teddy Millman-Venturas
Oliver Williams-Venturas
Louis Liu-Camaros
Bodhi Kothari-Camaros
Rayden Toteja-Thunderbolts
All Second Team
Hugo Casarella-Sabres
Phoenix Volken-Camaros
Jakob Sroka-Thunderbolts
Corbin Strock-Thunderbolts
Jaxton Stangel-Thunderbolts
Tyler Enayati-Camaros
Lior Vaisburd-Skylarks
Matteo Barraza-Camaros
Greysen Lovett-Camaros
Lachlan Canniffe-Skylarks
Walker Rosenthal-Skylarks
Luke Sarley-Skylarks
Rahm Kapgan-Sabres
River Stanton-Sabres
Otis Smith-Sabres
Callie Dean-Venturas
Tomas Leblond-Venturas
Sora Nomoto-Venturas
Aidan Schneider-Venturas
Theo Stele-Camaros
Billy Casarella-Sabres
Landon Schmidt-Thunderbolts
All Honorable Mention
Oscar Grossman-Venturas
Hogan Barth-Thunderbolts
Jackie Pittman-Sabres
Sofia Pulusani-Sabres
Esme Chen-Sabres
Adeline Smith-Sabres
Julian Boden-Venturas
Nalina Chopra-Venturas
Frida Garcia-Skylarks
Soltan Jackson-Skylarks
Zeke Mower-Skylarks
Bennett Zibit-Camaros
Grayson Mitchell-Thunderbolts
Jonathan West-Thunderbolts
Silver
Most Valuable Player
Buck Jacobs-Judges
Most Outstanding Player
Alexander Melamed-Superbirds
Most Improved
Sadie Bellavia-Ramblers
Hustle Award
Krishna and Nanda Aysola-Marauders
Top Passer
Mai Ly Pariser-Chevelles
All First Team
Leo Yaghoubzadeh-Superbirds
Decker Amos-Javelins
Cetine Travnikoff-Chevelles
Mai Ly Pariser-Chevelles
Mateo Chan-Chevelles
Mason Altshule-Judges
Sean Murphy-Judges
Peter Rodrick-Judges
Dylan Read-Judges
Buck Jacobs-Judges
Ray Song-Superbirds
Faizan Khan-Ramblers
Declan Wong-Chevelles
Olivia Wu-Chevelles
Henry Mack-Marauders
Steven Brown-Javelins
Griffin Marder-Marauders
Krsna Pathak-Marauders
Krishna Aysola-Marauders
Nanda Aysola-Marauders
Logan Christenson-Javelins
Theodore Edelman-Ramblers
Oakley Entsminger-Superbirds
Alexander Melamed-Superbirds
Henry Fyda-Judges
Saum Safavi-Superbirds
Linus Verleun-Whippets
All Second Team
Harrison Bond-Judges
Rome Ricks-Chevelles
Nyla Smith-Chevelles
Katarina Epstein-Ramblers
Tucker Gissendaner-Ramblers
Liana Enayati-Javelins
Levi Lapierre-Javelins
Todd Freeman-Javelins
Nakai Shriqui-Marauders
Ashton Miller-Marauders
Sadie Bellavia-Ramblers
Niam Pahwa Marauders
Teo Escalante-Judges
Dylan Jackson-Judges
Linus Verleun-Ramblers
Natalie Vicuna-Ramblers
Itamar Yurman-Ramblers
Sebastian Joyce-Marauders
Mariella Belew-Chevelles
Rex Bulette-Chevelles
Leon Muenze-Javelins
Ryder Range-Superbirds
Allison Lyons-Superbirds
Qiao Ren-Superbirds
Jaxon Silverstien-Superbirds
All Honorable Mention
James Canniffe-Marauders
Nicholas Jones-Superbirds
Hunter Calhoun-Chevelles
Knute Haglund-Javelins
Seher Khan-Ramblers
Marcel Jimenez-Javelins
Oliver Valles-Javelins
Milena Zewde-Judges
Amarveer Gupta-Ramblers
Gold
Most Valuable Player
Trajan Booker-Daytonas
Most Outstanding Player
Leonardo Garcia-Stingrays
Most Improved
Liam Desante-Torinos
Hustle Award
Beau Zaczepinski-Novas
Top Passer
Dominic Drew-Eliminators
All First Team
Trajan Booker-Daytonas
Andrey Sterlyagov-Novas
Leonardo Garcia-Stingrays
Tomonori Kugawa-Novas
Beau Zaczepinski-Novas
Dominic Drew-Eliminators
Liam Adams-Daytonas
Mika Stele-Daytonas
Lucas Dogic-Daytonas
Liam Desante-Torinos
Olivia Ruiz-Eliminators
Ibrahim Ally-Eliminators
Abdullah Jooma-Eliminators
Azumi Nomoto-Torinos
Constantine Avramopoulos Orlandos-Novas
Jarec Garibay-Stingrays
Kaya Dahukey-Stingrays
Liam Desante-Torinos
Auden Travnikoff-Eliminators
Conrad DiMauro-Stingrays
Jack Mayer-Torinos
Ethan Chang-Torinos
Ocean Yaghoubzadeh-Stingrays
Liam Broihier-Novas
Jude Lombard-Novas
Grey Ross-Daytonas
Felix Carpenter-Stingrays
All Second Team
Terry Gunderson-Novas
Nico Palomares-Stingrays
Kamden King-Stingrays
Oliver Lynn-Novas
Zidan Jivani-Novas
Diego Gonzalez-Torinos
Mariama Belew-Eliminators
Chloe Scofield-Eliminators
Sam Affleck-Daytonas
Brendan Still-Eliminators
Siddhant Khanna-Daytonas
Spencer Nelson-Torinos
Ross Nelson-Torinos
Sean Dobbs-Torinos
Faizan Khan-Torinos
Julia Enayati-Torinos
Redeat Gebeyehu-Daytonas
Elliot Israels-Daytonas
Honorable Mention
David Yonatan-Eliminators
Calvin Carpenter-Stingrays
Cruz Bourget-Novas
Levi Cogan-Daytonas
Orion Mane-Novas
Raul Palomares-Stingrays
Nyla Smith-Eliminators
Buck Jacobs-Eliminators
Platinum
Most Valuable Player
Dagmawi Ayele-Firebirds
Most Outstanding Player
Matthew Scholze-Cobras
Most Improved
Andrew Woolfolk-Barracudas
Hustle Award
Maryck Booher-Impalas
Top Passer
Aayan Lakhani-Mustangs
All First Team
Dagmawi Ayele-Firebirds
Matthew Scholze-Cobras
Estevan Padron-Mustangs
Rylan Newton-Cobras
Max Baracy-Cobras
James Cook-Mustangs
Aayan Lakhani-Mustangs
Darien Jones-Mustangs
Amensisa Alemayehu-Mustangs
Gabriel Chibane-Barracudas
Louis Meehan Smith-Impalas
Leo Mooney-Impalas
Cam Pariser-Roadrunners
Sam McGowan-Firebirds
Ryan Chambers-Firebirds
Cassius Taylor-Firebirds
Adonyinas Yonas-Roadrunners
Maryck Booher-Impalas
Kai Halpert-Barracudas
Ezra Mooney-Impalas
AJ Evans-Firebirds
Christian Ferew-Roadrunners
Cristian Villegas-Impalas
Dylan Kravitz-Barracudas
Ethan Schwartz-Impalas
Roderick Johnson-Impalas
Mia Kondratyeva-Firebirds
All Second Team
Andrew Woolfolk-Barracudas
Noah Michael-Barracudas
Augie Tucker Maxcy-Barrcudas
Julian Veckerelli-Barracudas
Harlan Mansfield-Firebirds
Landon Broihier-Firebirds
Isaac Lynn-Barracudas
Alden Wong-Barracudas
Derek Knott-Impalas
Josh Weil-Impalas
Trace Ebeling-Roadrunners
Kaleab Seyum-Roadrunners
Jarvis Wakefield-Roadrunners
Amir Enayati-Mustangs
Danilo Samardzija-Roadrunners
Ryan Nagase-Mustangs
Asher Zaczepinski-Impalas
Rowan Booher-Impalas
Diego Gonzalez-Impalas
Nicholas Mirich-Roadrunners
Antonio Rodriguez-Cobras
Brandon Israels-Mustangs
Noah Michael-Barracudas
Ethan Kondratyev-Firebirds
Azariah Gebeyehu-Roadrunners
Alden Wong-Barracudas
Austin Bernier-Cobras
Radin Taherian-Firebirds
Rohham Taherian-Firebirds
Dwain Brown-Cobras
Justin Tun-Cobras
Hadi Zeki-Cobras
Hunter Esposito Doi-Cobras
Honorable Mention
Olana Alemayehu-Mustangs
Rayan Chibane-Barracudas
Yisaac Tariku-Mustangs
Grayson Klein-Cobras
Griffin Wolf-Barracudas
Joshua Edwards-Roadrunners
Aiden Lin-Roadrunners
Parker Cappiccille-Cobras
Logan Cappiccille-Cobras
Alex Providas-Roadrunners
Thank you very much, to all the coaches, parents, players, referees, and my assistant Nicholas Walker.
Special thanks to the Los Angeles Lakers Youth Foundation for partnering with the Santa MonIca Family YMCA youth basketball program.
Dr. Paul Drew, youth basketball coordinator at the Santa Monica Family YMCA, editor and publisher of Swish
