By Brandon HENSLEY

The days for Caity Bouchard and her senior teammates are numbered but, as long as there are games on the schedule, she’s happy to make the most of her time left as one of the top players at Crescenta Valley High School.

Bouchard is a captain for her varsity basketball team and along with Georgina Kregorian and five other seniors the team is leading the Falcons to what could be a second-place finish in the Pacific League as the regular season wraps up tonight at Arcadia High School at 5:30 p.m.

If CV wants to take the spot outright from Pasadena, it’ll most likely have to beat the Apaches, and that’s a tough order. Arcadia dominated the Falcons on Jan. 11, 52-24. The Falcons have since run off five straight wins, including a senior night victory over Glendale on Tuesday 42-36. That gave the team a 17-9 record, 10-3 in league heading into the finale.

“It wasn’t anything we were doing wrong, we just weren’t making our shots,” Bouchard said of the Arcadia loss. “I think if we come out more focused [we’ll] make sure to hit our shots.”

Bouchard said that however the offense goes, so goes the team. The Apaches are 12-1 in league having wrapped up a league title. Maybe they’ll come out softer, or maybe they won’t. A win for CV would give it a better chance of hosting a CIF playoff opener next week.

Bouchard was a freshman when her team won the CIF Division IA championship at Azusa Pacific University in 2016. That team had All-League center Alisa Shinn and playmaking guard/forward Josie Brock. Bouchard is tall and lanky and her skills make her noticeable on the court, and she’s normally soft spoken. She said she’s had to learn how to step up as a more vocal presence, especially now she’s a captain – like motivating teammates in practice.

“I’ve felt like I’ve had to step up this year in several ways,” she said. “[Since] being put in leadership roles, without really wanting it, I’ve developed those skills and it’s who I am now.”

Dating back to Rosemont Middle School, Bouchard’s always had teammate Rachel Dayag to count on. But Dayag graduated last year, and this year it’s the younger Dayag sibling Denise who’s fit into Rachel’s spot. The team also has Mari Lee, a diminutive guard with a penchant for launching clutch three-pointers, and that’s something CV can count on in tight moments.

Last week, Bouchard realized as she spoke that there was only one more week of basketball left in her high school career.

“At practice, we’re putting in all our effort because we know this is our last go-round,” she said.

If the Falcons do what Bouchard is stressing and make their shots, this last go-round could last a little bit longer.

Boys’ Basketball Update

The CV boys’ varsity basketball team will play its final regular season game tonight at Arcadia at 7 p.m. It looks like the Falcons will wrap up the second spot in league.

The team easily dispatched Arcadia on Jan 11 by a score of 55-31. CV (10-3 in league) is a game in front of Muir, and the Falcons swept the season series from Muir after winning on senior night last Friday 62-47. Tyler Carlson had 21 points, including four three-pointers.

If the Falcons win, it would be their ninth straight victory heading into the CIF playoffs.

  Brandon Hensley