Whittier’s Cassandra Hair (42) looks to block Bishop Amat’s Damiana Bagues (32) in their varsity girls basketball game at Whittier High School in Whittier on Thursday January 8, 2015. (Photo by Keith Durflinger/Whittier Daily News)

By Stephen Ramirez
WHITTIER — December was hit and miss for the Bishop Amat High School girls basketball team as it adjusted to first-year coach Treana Allen.
January has been much better.
Adrienne Franco scored 13 points and Damiana Bagues had 12 as the Lancers scored their second victory of the month with a 46-39 victory over host Whittier in a nonleague game on Thursday.
Marisa Brown also had 10 points for Bishop Amat, which improved to 7-9. Julia Ochoa had 14 points for the Cardinals, who slipped to 9-8.
The key for the Lancers came in the fourth quarter. Bishop Amat, after not making a field goal in the third quarter, had six in the fourth, including 3-pointers by Bagues and Franco for a 39-35 lead with 4:40 remaining.
Leslie Rivera then had a key three-point play at 4:08 for a 42-37 lead. Bagues followed with a 12-footer with 18 seconds left to clinch it at 46-39.
Bishop Amat coach Treana Allen: “This is great. I told our girls that we started the season strong, with three wins, now we’re finishing the preseason strong (with back-to-back wins in January). This is good for our confidence going into a very tough league, against a good Whittier team.”
Whittier coach Willie Pittman: They shot 28 free throws, we shot seven, at our place. I felt like a foreign team. Both teams played hard, we made our adjustments. I’m not saying we don’t foul, but we got fouled just as much. We just have to build from it. It’s a tough one to swallow.”
OTHER SCORES
BOYS
Olympic League
Cerritos Valley Christian 63, Whittier Christian 42
Nonleague
La Serna 51, Schurr 44
GIRLS
Olympic League
Cerritos Valley Christian 31, Whittier Christian 25
Nonleague
Orangewood Academy 46, Cantwell 42