By Alex Leichenger

Relentless pressure on defense and precision passing on offense fueled the girls’ basketball team to a 66-43 thrashing of Indio Saturday at Chaminade High School. 

Girls’ basketball earned its third consecutive berth in CIF Finals and became the third Harvard-Westlake winter team this year to qualify for the championship round. But unlike the weekend games of boys’ basketball and girls’ water polo, the Wolverine faithful had little cause for concern at any point Saturday night.  

Playing at a frenetic pace, the Wolverines jumped out to a 23-11 lead, then worked through a foul-happy second quarter for a 34-21 lead. They opened a 30-point lead, 57-27, by the end of the third quarter. 

“Most people have not had the kind of defensive pressure applied to them that we apply,” Head Coach Melissa Hearlihy said. 

Natalie Florescu ’13 (16 points) and Skylar Tsutsui ’11 (15 points) led a balanced scoring attack for the Wolverines, who will play in the Southern Section championship game next week.