The Firebirds faced some of the best teams in the county and the Central Coast Section--Wilcox, Palo Alto, Notre Dame, Gunderson and Leigh. They faced Mercy of San Francisco and El Camino of Sacramento, two of Northern California's finest.

In his first season as Fremont's coach, Fred Yepez had to be pleased that his team's preparation for the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League El Camino Division season included fast teams, deliberate teams, fullcourt pressure defenses and packed-in zones of various sorts. With no player taller than 5-foot-9, the Firebirds had to deal with four teams with centers 6-foot-2 or taller.

But there was one kind of player that the Firebirds had not faced during their 8-8 pre-season, or even while winning their first three league games. They had not faced a three-point shooter as prolific as Lynbrook senior Laura Crisler.

With 67 three-point goals in her first 17 games, the 5-foot-8 Crisler came to the Fremont gym on Jan. 12 ranked second in the state. In fact, Crisler had scored at least three three-pointers in 15 of the 17 games. She had scored in double figures in all but one game, and had canned 20 or more points on six occasions.

But the Firebirds played awesome defense. With consistent on-ball pressure throughout the game, they limited Crisler to a season-low two points during a 51-30 victory.

Fremont applied "full-court, man-to-man pressure throughout the game," Yepez explained. "We were fighting over screens, making it hard for them to get their shots. Victoria (Cunha) guarded her most of the time, and she really shut her down."

Crisler's only bucket came in an opening flurry when the Vikings jumped to an early 12-2 lead. Fremont recovered, though, closing out the period with 11 straight points to go ahead 13-12. Fremont led 26-17 at halftime, then stretched the lead throughout the second half.

The victory improved Fremont's record to 4-0 in the El Camino and 12-8 overall. Meanwhile, Lynbrook dropped to 2-1 and 14-4 overall.

Lynbrook had captured its first two division games despite injuries to key players. But, without senior point guard Kaitlin Tash in the line-up, the Vikings could not overcome Fremont's stingy defense. Junior center Emily Shen, who sat out league wins over Cupertino and Los Altos, returned to the line-up against Fremont with team highs of 11 points and nine rebounds.

Meanwhile, junior point guard Carol Hoang scored 15 points to lead Fremont. Senior post player Marylin Avila and junior post Alison Bushnell tallied 12 apiece, and senior Marissa Cabana added eight. Avila (19 rebounds) and Bushell (11) controlled the backboards, as the Firebirds often limited Lynbrook's offense to one shot.

Cunha, a senior guard, was quiet on offense with two points, but her defense spoke volumes.

In Fremont's three other league wins, the defense sparked the offense. In the opener, holding Saratoga to four points in the second quarter, proved to be critical in a 50-46 decision. After a 13-13 first quarter against a taller Mountain View team, Fremont's fullcourt press ignited a 32-point second period and helped build a 20-point lead. The Firebirds made 23 steals in a 56-29 win over Cupertino.

Four Firebirds hit double figures in the 63-52 win against Mountain View. Hoang led with 15 points and six assists. Cabana popped in 11, while Cunha and freshman Amy Chwa had 10 each.

Homestead (0-3, 6-8) nearly claimed its first win of the De Anza season, before losing in overtime to Wilcox, 59-54, on Jan. 12. Junior Cheryl Ichikawa popped in 20 points and senior Jennifer Irish tallied 11 for the Mustangs, who were coming off a 36-24 non-league triumph over San Jose. Junior Kate Mower scored a team-high 13 points in that game. Ichikawa had scored 14 and Mower nine in a 59-39 loss at Palo Alto on Jan. 6.

Seniors Jessica Butelo (14 points) and Kady Garcia (10) paced The King's Academy to a 44-38 triumph at Menlo School in Atherton on Jan. 7.

Mustangs top 'Birds

In De Anza boys play, Homestead improved to 2-1 with a 44-32 win at Mountain View on Jan. 13. Junior center Ryan Dedrick (17 points) and junior guard David Ostrow (15) were the scoring leaders for the Mustangs.

Ostrow had scored 20 and Dedrick 10 in Homestead's opener, a 51-26 thumping of Fremont.

The Firebirds bounced back with a 48-42 win over Mountain View, before losing to Milpitas and Los Gatos. Junior guard Jeremy Allen scored 21 points against Los Gatos on Jan. 13, but the Firebirds lost the home game 63-58. Two other juniors, center Leo Janisse (13) and guard Michael Bursky (11) scored in double figures for Fremont.

Fremont's roster has just one senior, 6-foot-1 forward Jason Blackwell, and only one returning starter, Janisse. With 6-foot-4 junior Sam Kesten the only other player with varsity experience, coach Miguel Castillo knows he has to be patient with his team.

"This is a very hard-working group and is improving quickly," the veteran coach said.

The King's Academy, which played in the Division V playoffs last year, also is going through growing pains. Coach Marc Taylor has a seniorless team that includes three freshmen and four sophomores.

The Knights lost seven seniors to graduation last year and standout forward Tim Biederman transferred to Valley Christian. Juniors Steven Lim, Jon McBirney and Colin Foshay are the only players with varsity experience. McBirney scored 11 in a recent 46-37 defeat to Pinewood.