Carson girls win Alaska opener against Australian squad

The Carson High girls basketball team traveled north to Alaska and beat a team from Down Under Tuesday at the Princess Cruises Capital City Classic in Juneau, Alaska.

Sinead McSweeney scored 13 points and Nicole Scott 9 to help the Senators post a 46-22 victory against Kilsyth, a touring team from Victoria, Australia, during the first day of the tournament.

Carson took a 24-12 halftime lead and then pulled away with a 15-4 run through the fourth quarter against the touring team from Kilsyth (located 32 kilometers east of Melbourne).

"They might have been a little tired because they'd been flying 30 hours to get there," Carson assistant coach Ron Tamori said.

"It was a good game for us. Everyone got to play a lot, they all played pretty well and we got a chance to get some things worked out," he added.

In addition to McSweeney and Scott, Abby Rankl shot 5-for-6 from the free throw line and finished with seven points. Kaitlin Burroughs contributed four points and a couple of steals. Brandi Vegas and Rosella Nunez added four and three points respectively and gave solid performances from their guard positions, according to Tamori.

The Senators play again today against Wasilla, Alaska, then take a day off on Thursday to tour the Juneau area, including a visit to the Mendenhall Glacier. They play their final game at 6 p.m. on Friday night against the tournament host Juneau-Douglas Crimson Bears, Alaska's defending 4A state champions.

Tuesday's game also offered a chance for some cultural exchange.

"There was a little exchange of Nevada gifts and Australian gifts," Tamori said. "Then there was some interaction after the game ... the Australian girls stayed to watch their boys team play (Kilsyth vs. Hidden Valley High, Grants Pass, Ore.) and our girls watched with them."

JUNIOR VARSITY

Even though Carson played solid defense, allowing just six field goals, McQueen capitalized on 18-for-25 free throw shooting to secure a 30-28 win against the Senators in the State Farm Classic J.V. girls tournament on Tuesday.

Sophomore point guard Meagan Kilty scored 13 points to lead the Senators offensively. Christa Casci and Sandy Howard also had five points each.