Basketball Recap: Whittier Takes Loss Despite Strong Performances from Andrea Castillo and Kassandra Mendoza

Whittier lost against California back in January and unfortunately they wound up with the same result on Monday. The Whittier Cardinals took a 38-32 hit to the loss column at the hands of the California Condors. While losing is never fun, the Cardinals can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 695th, while the Condors are ranked 319th).

Kassandra Mendoza

Rebounds

02/03/25 @ California	8
01/31/25 @ Santa Fe	4
01/29/25 @ La Serna	6
01/22/25 @ El Rancho	3
01/17/25 vs California	5
+ 17 more games

Whittier's loss came despite strong showings from Kassandra Mendoza and Andrea Castillo. Mendoza posted six points in addition to eight boards and six steals, while Castillo scored eight points and six rebounds. That's the most boards Mendoza has posted since back in January of 2024. Another player making a difference was Rosebella Cardenas, who had four points.

Even though they lost, Whittier smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in five consecutive games.

California can attribute much of their success to Teresa Rabina, who put up five points and nine rebounds.

Whittier has been struggling recently as they've lost seven of their last eight matchups, which has put a noticeable dent in their 9-16 record this season. As for California, the victory (which was their third in a row) raised their record to 13-9.

Whittier wasted no time getting back out on the court and has already played their next contest, a 48-36 defeat against El Rancho on the 5th. California will get to enjoy the win for a while: their next game is against Beaumont at 7:00 p.m. on February 13th.