Super Chargers run to glory

Agoura girls’ basketball captures section championship



IN THE PAINT—Gigi Olelewe, a junior power forward, provides toughness and defense in the post for the Agoura Chargers.

IN THE PAINT—Gigi Olelewe, a junior power forward, provides toughness and defense in the post for the Agoura Chargers.

The Chargers were spiraling out of control.

They lost three of their last four regular-season games.

They endured injuries while transitioning to their third head coach in as many seasons.

They were still learning how to play man-on-man defense.

Then the playoffs arrived— and everything clicked for the Agoura High girls’ basketball team.

The Chargers captured the CIF-Southern Section Division 3AAA championship by defeating top-seeded Gahr 60-39 at the Anaheim Convention Center on Feb. 27.

Agoura’s magical postseason ended with a 65-52 loss in the CIF State Girls Division III semifinals to Chaminade on Tuesday, despite 29 points from junior guard Kim Jacobs.

Regardless of the setback, these Chargers are remarkable.

“We knew we could do it,” Jacobs said. “Once we started getting wins, we knew it was possible.”

Agoura defeated El Dorado 64-53 in the state regional quarterfinals last weekend in front of a boisterous home crowd. Jacobs scored 22 points while teammates Noam Leead and Gigi Olelewe added 15 points and 12 points, respectively.

It was the perfect setting for AHS fans to celebrate the Char- gers, who had upended El Dorado in overtime in the section semifinals on Feb. 23 on the road.

“The crowd was crazy,” junior guard/forward Brittany Mazal said after Agoura held off the Golden Hawks on Saturday.

“This is the most people we’ve ever had at a girls’ basketball game. It was awesome. We were feeding off the energy.”

When the Chargers get rolling, they make sweet music fit for the Sydney Opera House.

Leead, a junior point guard who returned from an injury in time for the postseason, is the conductor. Leead penetrates to the basket at will, creating open shots for teammates.

Olelewe, a junior power forward, is a tenacious rebounder, shot blocker and defender.

Jacobs is an offensive wunderkind— scoring appears effortless for the star guard.

Mazal is a Swiss Army Knife. She does many things well and stays cool under pressure.

Senior captain and forward Sydney Bennett is a sparkplug who makes plays through her hustle and determination.

They are resilient, confident . . . and they are fun to watch.

“It’s been a fun ride for all the girls,” head coach Conley Oliver said on Saturday. “We’re pretty beat up at this point. What keeps them going is their passion.”

Oliver gets the most out of his players.

He’s been coaching basketball for 20 years, primarily as a private instructor. He assisted Cal State Northridge in 1996.

Oliver suited up for 1991 Oregon state champion Wilson High of Portland with Damon Stoudemire, a former NBA Rookie of the Year and dynamo point guard.

The coach said there are similarities to that Wilson squad and this Agoura team.

“We had it together. I feel the same way about this team,” Oliver said. “We’re all doing our jobs well. We’re confident in the shots we’re taking. There’s good chemistry.

“Originally, there was some trial and error. The kids found a way to put it all together.”

The coach called this team “stubborn.”

“They get mad at me for calling them stubborn,” Oliver said with a smile. “They keep fighting. They don’t stop.”

Mazal has a unique sports background.

She was a Little League baseball pitcher in Westlake for six years, making the all-star team every season.

“ I’d strike out the boys,” Mazal said, beaming with pride. “They used to cry after games and their dads would freak out.”

She patrols center field for AHS softball.

Mazal was a catalyst off the court for the Chargers. She urged Agoura students to cheer the Chargers in the section secondround home game against Sonora.

“I told Megan Kolakowski, ‘I bet we win if we get 40 students to the game,’” Mazal said. “Fortyone students showed up.”

Leead made a game-winning layup in the Chargers’ 42-40 victory against Sonora.

The Chargers primarily utilized zone defense under previous regimes, and Jacobs got too comfortable playing zone for her club squads. Oliver, a rookie varsity coach, instilled a tough man-toman defensive philosophy.

“I didn’t know how to play good defense,” Jacobs said. “Conley taught us a lot, me especially. I was not the best defensive player. We finally got used to it. That’s really helped us.”

Bennett, Kolakowski, Natalie Bradley, Jesse Thompson and Colleen Cullen are seniors. Shaunna Borenstein, a senior shooting guard, aided the Chargers before leaving the team late in the season for personal reasons. Emma Freidl and Abbe Boyle bolster the bench.

Agoura has struggled this season with injuries, close losses and enough adversity to sink the Queen Mary.

These Chargers, however, are stubborn. And they’re champions.

“This is the best experience of high school, by far,” Mazal said.

“I love everyone. It’s been really fun.”


EMOTIONAL GAME—Agoura High girls’ basketball standouts Brittany Mazal, left, and Kim Jacobs smile in the fourth quarter of the Chargers’ win against El Dorado on Saturday. El Dorado’s Jennifer Ventura, right, bites her jersey as time runs out on the Golden Hawks.

EMOTIONAL GAME—Agoura High girls’ basketball standouts Brittany Mazal, left, and Kim Jacobs smile in the fourth quarter of the Chargers’ win against El Dorado on Saturday. El Dorado’s Jennifer Ventura, right, bites her jersey as time runs out on the Golden Hawks.

SECTION CHAMPS—The Agoura girls’ basketball team captured a CIF-Southern Section Division 3AAA title in Anaheim on Feb. 27. The Chargers posed with their new hardware after toppling Gahr. Pictured in the back row, from left, are Las Virgenes Unified School District superintendent Dan Stepenosky, assistant coach Joe Heredia, Noam Leead, Kailey Bennett, Abbe Boyle, Jesse Thompson, Gigi Olelewe, Kim Jacobs, Sydney Bennett, Colleen Cullen, head coach Conley Oliver and assistant coach Laurence Anderson. Front row: Natalie Bradley, Brittany Mazal, Megan Kolakowski, Emma Freidl and Agoura principal Larry Misel.

SECTION CHAMPS—The Agoura girls’ basketball team captured a CIF-Southern Section Division 3AAA title in Anaheim on Feb. 27. The Chargers posed with their new hardware after toppling Gahr. Pictured in the back row, from left, are Las Virgenes Unified School District superintendent Dan Stepenosky, assistant coach Joe Heredia, Noam Leead, Kailey Bennett, Abbe Boyle, Jesse Thompson, Gigi Olelewe, Kim Jacobs, Sydney Bennett, Colleen Cullen, head coach Conley Oliver and assistant coach Laurence Anderson. Front row: Natalie Bradley, Brittany Mazal, Megan Kolakowski, Emma Freidl and Agoura principal Larry Misel.

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