Homestead, Fremont girls collide on the court

The league season was quite different for the girls basketball teams at Homestead and Fremont.

The Mustangs were very much in the race for the title in the De Anza Division of the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League, finishing second with a solid 10-2 record.

The Firebirds, on the other hand, were out of the race quickly and finished a dismal 5-7 in the division after expecting to figure among the contenders.

But other than the 12-game league schedule, it's been something of a similar slate for the Mustangs and Lady Birds. And those similarities will clash this week when they meet in the Central Coast Section Division II semifinals March 1 at Mt. Pleasant.

The Mustangs head into the game with a 20-7 season record following wins over Woodside (50-27) and El Camino (57-42) in the first two rounds of CCS. The Firebirds are 18-10 after opening the playoffs with wins over South San Francisco (51-31) and Menlo-Atherton (55-48).

The 1999-2000 season started out similar by for the Mustangs and 'Birds. Homestead was 8-5 in the preseason, and Fremont was a hot 11-3. But Fremont took a detour during league play and fell off the pace.

The Firebirds, though, have battled back to show flashes of their early season brilliance, and they'll meet Homestead Wednesday in a game that will send the winner to the CCS finals.

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