GIRLS BASKETBALL: Pinewood Blasts Past St. Francis-CCC

Pinewood 75, St. Francis-CCC 26

It didn’t take long for the Pinewood School girls basketball team to take hold of the Central Coast Section Division V Girls Basketball semifinal playoff game Wednesday night at Pinewood School in Los Altos Hills.

The Panthers jumped out to a double digit lead and never looked back, defeating St. Francis High-Watsonville 72-26 to advance to Saturday mornings Division V finals.

Pinewood raced out to an 11-0 start, feasting on shots from behind the arc and turnovers from its opponent.

The Panthers led 29-7 after one quarter and 55-16 at the halftime break.

Hailie Eackles led all scorers with 26 points, including five 3-pointers. Pinewood hit 16 treys in the win.

Casey Cairo went six-for-six from 3-point land, scoring 20 points for the Panthers.

Pinewood will play Eastside Prep in the Division V final on Saturday morning. The game will tip at 10 am on the campus of Santa Clara University.

Lauren Price led St. Francis, the Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League tournament champions, with eight points. Maria Barcells had six points.

St. Francis wraps up the season with an 18-11 record overall. Top scorer Ana Lasich missed the final four games of the season due to a knee injury sustained in an opening round game of the SCCAL tournament.

Pinewood will go for its third straight D-V title on Saturday. The Panthers defeated Castilleja in the finals the past two seasons.

Eastside Prep won the section crown in 2008.