Sacramento girls basketball Top 20: League play starts with mainstays, upstarts, resurgents

As the calendar turns to 2025, we now turn to league play on the Sacramento-area high school girls basketball landscape.

Talent runs deep in Sacramento. Big-time Division I collegiate commits and returning Bee All-Metro players have already left their marks on a great start to the 2024–25 season.

Here’s a peek at what to watch for as we head into January’s league slate.

Sierra Foothill League includes Folsom

Bee No. 1-ranked Folsom is poised to be at the top of the class with three Division I commits bolstering the Bulldogs.

University of the Pacific-bound guard Sophia Mindermann has one of the sharpest jump shots around and recently eclipsed the 1,000-point mark for her career at the Dorothy Speck Tournament in Davis on Dec. 5. Dixie McLanahan, an Air Force commit, can score in a variety of ways. And UC Santa Barbara-bound Ava Rawlins is back and healthy for her senior year after missing most of her sophomore and junior seasons due to a bevy of injuries.

“We should have an opportunity like we’ve had in the past several years,” Folsom head coach Lynn Wolking said at a recent practice. “Our goal is simple: Be the best we can be and take on all comers. We’re not afraid of getting beat. What we’re afraid of is not improving. We work, so when we get these big opponents, we’re not intimidated by them.”

▪ SFL opposition includes Oak Ridge, which despite losing its top player Liv Yergensen to injury, posted an 8-6 showing before January. Head coach Steve White is approaching 700 career wins.

▪ A one-point loss to Central of Fresno kept Whitney from winning the sapphire bracket of the West Coast Jamboree at the end of December in the Bay Area. Tylie Kitchen and Kendall Dykstra earned All-Tournament honors. Dykstra recently reached the 1,000-point milestone for her career. Natalia Benavides and Za’Raya Harris look to help the Wildcats toward a Sac-Joaquin Section three-peat.

▪ Del Oro won the West Park Winter Classic for the second consecutive year to close out 2024. Bella Von Seipler, a University of San Diego commit, was named Tournament MVP after averaging 15.3 points in wins against Bella Vista, West Park and Inderkum.

“I think we’re gonna surprise a lot of people in league,” Von Seipler said after a 53-40 tourney final win vs. Inderkum. “It’s really hard to beat a team that plays like family and wants to see each other succeed. So, I think we’re gonna be dangerous come league.”

▪ Other players to watch in the SFL include Davis freshman Lorelei Nachman, Granite Bay junior Alli Powell, St. Francis senior Sydney Teoh and sophomore Tayli Paeu-Lindgren, and Rocklin junior Bianca Slone and sophomore Gisele Negueloua.

Pondo rolling

Much of the girls sports at Ponderosa High in Shingle Springs has been seemingly untouchable so far this year. After the Bruins’ flag football team went 25-0 in the fall, the girls basketball team kept the unbeaten streak alive at 16-0 to start the winter season and to a No. 3 Bee ranking.

The Bee’s Flag Football Player of the Year, Brooklynn Nordquist, returns for her fourth varsity season on the hardwood and is complemented by fellow All-Metro flag footballer Rowan Thomas.

Seniors Casey Dreiling, Sammie Porter, Macy Taylor, and Izzy Hampton-Teiber have all contributed to a well-balanced Bruins team.

“We believe in team basketball and finding the best offensive opportunities while making things happen on the defensive end too,” Ponderosa coach Bre Rizzo said. “The whole team is seizing the day and having fun doing it.”

Metro League runs deep

Led by reigning Bee Player of the Year Nina Cain, No. 2 McClatchy looks to be the early favorite for a strong Metro League title. But the Lions will have some heat on their tails with Antelope, Kennedy and Grant fully capable of making a run as well.

▪ No. 4 Antelope recently won a consolation bracket at the West Coast Jamboree.

The Titans have a star freshman in Londyn Odom, whom head coach Sean Chambers said could be “the next five-star recruit out of Sacramento.”

“She is dominating the competition,” Chambers said of Odom. “I honestly don’t think we’ve seen a lot of players like her in Sacramento. A combination of size, quickness, speed, ball handling ability, great hands and can play with power.”

▪ No. 8 Grant is led by sophomore Asia Washington, a menace down on the blocks, averaging 17.6 points, 12.3 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game. Senior point guard Nerissa Hamilton has shown she can take over a game when needed, averaging 14.3 points for the Pacers.

▪ Kennedy finished 2024 at 10-1, including a championship in the Lincoln Invitational Tournament. The Cougars haven’t had this type of start since 2006, when they went 28-5 and were the section Division I runners-up. Four four-year varsity players lead the Cougars, including Kacie Shinmoto, Kaylee Wong, Suelyn Saelee and Malia Tsuye.

500 wins for Team Johnson

In her 20th season, Vanden coach Allison Johnson won her 500th game at the Solano County school — adding to a legacy that, in recent seasons, includes two section championships and several CIF Northern California Regional tournament berths.

Johnson is listed as the head coach but she’s quick to remind that her husband, Jake Johnson, has been paramount as a co-coach. Their son, Jake Johnson IV, has also been a coach on the bench.

The Vikings, ranked No. 7 by The Bee, are 7-7 with no losses within section play as the Vikings traditionally play a state-wide schedule.

Early stat stars

▪ Last season’s Bee Smallest School Player of the Year, Lauren Harris of Faith Christian of Yuba City, is poised to repeat the honor. In the new year, Harris led the Sac-Joaquin Section in scoring (26.8 points per game) and assists (7.2). She also averages five 3-pointers a game and is approaching 2,000 career points as a junior. Faith Christian teammate Presley Berry also surpassed 1,000 career points earlier this season.

▪ Liberty Ranch junior Haley Smith is averaging 21.5 points and 8.0 rebounds per game for the 11-2 Hawks, who seek a fifth consecutive Sierra Valley Conference crown.

▪ Cosumnes Oaks junior Caitlin Subejano averages 25.5 points per game, good for second in the section. She shoots 40% from the field, 31% from three and 80% from the free throw line.

▪ Torrence Harter of Sutter can fill up a stat sheet, evidenced by a near quintuple-double to open Golden Empire League play. The senior had 17 points, 19 rebounds, 15 blocks, 11 steals and nine assists in a 55-38 win over Casa Roble on Friday. Harter goes for 14.0 points, 16.1 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 6.5 steals and a section-best 8.2 blocks per game.

THE BEE’S TOP 20

(Records entering Monday)

1 .Folsom (9-2)

2. McClatchy (8-5)

3. Ponderosa (16-0)

4. Antelope (10-4)

5. Vanden (7-7)

6. Christian Brothers (7-5)

7 .Colfax (8-6)

8 .Grant (12-3)

9. Whitney (9-5)

10. Oak Ridge (8-6)

11. Del Oro (8-5)

12. Inderkum (9-5)

13. Monterey Trail (6-5)

14. Liberty Ranch (11-2)

15. Davis (9-5)

16. Kennedy (10-1)

17. Cosumnes Oaks (7-6)

18. Rocklin (8-5)

19. Pleasant Grove (9-5)

20. West Campus (7-4)

Bubble: Bear River (8-5); Faith Christian (10-2); Laguna Creek (9-6); Lincoln (10-4); Marysville (8-4); Oakmont (11-2); Placer (11-4); Rio Linda (11-3); Sac Adventist (11-1); Sacramento (10-5); Sheldon (10-4); St. Francis (6-7); Sutter (8-7); Twelve Bridges (9-3); Valley Christian (9-3); Vista del Lago (6-7); West Park (11-6); Woodcreek (7-8).