It all comes down to this.  We’ve spent the week telling you what a win Saturday would mean for one of the team’s seniors, what it would mean for the team, what the Rabbits will be wearing, and even what to do in Bakersfield while you’re not rooting Poly on.  Now, we figured we should probably tell you who they’ll be taking the court against.  

“Sara James (#24) is supposed to be the real deal,” says Poly coach Carl Buggs to start the conversation about the Oak Ridge Trojans.  Hoo boy, no kidding.  Check these stats from the 5’10” guard/forward combo: 34 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists, 6 steals on average.  “Plus she’s going to Stanford,” points out Buggs, “so she’s not just good, but intelligent.  We’ll just have to do our best to try and contain her.”

Thus far this season, easier said than done.  This is a Trojans team that knocked off Brea earlier this season (shortly before Brea beat Poly), and who defeated previous three-time Poly opponent Berkeley in the NorCal Regional to reach the state finals.  The advantage for Poly, if you can imagine, is in the post, where once again they’ll face a team without the height and depth in the paint that the Rabbits have.  The Trojans have just one six-footer, senior captain Caitlin Welsch (#33), who’s six feet even.  “She’s not a presence inside,” says Buggs.  “But she can step out and shoot the three, so we’ll have to play complete defense.”

Other potential scorers are Megan Griswold (#34), and Carly Bettencourt #14), both of whom have scored in double digits several times this year.

“They’re just very disciplined and patient,” says Buggs.  “They’ll run their offense till they get something good, whether it’s 28 seconds into the shot clock or 10.” 

So it’s safe to say you’ll get your money’s worth if you’re heading north this weekend.  In the past four years, Poly has won three of their titles by 20+ point margins—don’t expect this to go down that way, just because it has in the past.  James is the key—if Poly’s post players can combine for more points than James can put up, and if the Rabbits can play defense out to the perimeter…well, the green and gold could be making history once again.