On Jan. 18, the Mens Varsity Basketball team took on the Oceanside High Pirates.  With home court advantage as well as a lethal mix of talented players the Lancers were able to secure another victory.

After the tip off, sophomore Chase Ogden was quick to land a lay-up that set the Lancers ahead 2-0.  Ruben Gonzalez quickly followed up with a three pointer and, due to a solid performance by the offense, the Lancers were able to minimize Oceanside’s lead to six points.  The first period ended with the Pirates on top 21-15.

The second period saw more of the same offensive performance.  Sophomore Matthew Tomaneng landed two free throws and closed the deficit to one point.  Unfortunately, this small deficit was not to last as the first half closed out with Oceanside beating Carlsbad 35-27.

In the second half, the Lancers started to come together defensively.  Tomaneng and Ogden were successful in getting rebounds, opening up even more opportunities for Carlsbad to score.  A buzzer shot by Gonzalez at the end of the third period left the score 48-45 Oceanside, but it was much more apparent that the defense was being more cohesive and the Lancer’s prospects began to improve up as they moved into the fourth period.

Senior Rob Loud brought the Lancers to 49-48 and then quickly landed a free throw to make the score 50-48 within the opening minutes of the fourth period.  Late in the period, Senior Brian Kobyashi landed a 3 pointer and for the remaining minutes of the game Carlsbad was able to maintain its lead.  The final score ended up with the Lancers winning, 69-63.

“We picked up our defensive intensity,” Kobyashi said. “We dug deep and we found what we needed to win the game.”