When Ariana Demery wasn't bulling her way around inside, there was Casey Reck.

When Reck wasn't dropping 3-pointers, there was Christine Martin.

And when Martin wasn't plowing down the lane for a layup, there were more than enough talented guards and bigs to compensate.

Santa Ynez showed it can do it all on Friday, to the chagrin of the Santa Maria Saints. The Pirates shook the Saints off in the second quarter, scoring 13 straight points in an eventual 56-36 win.

Santa Ynez moved to 4-0 in Los Padres League play and 13-5 overall. Santa Maria dropped to 1-4 in the LPL and 4-13 overall.

Once again, height was an issue for the Saints, who struggled to contain the talented trio of tall Pirate guards.

Reck, Martin and Lea Gregordi led the assault from beyond the perimeter and Demery scored a team-high 20 points from the inside.

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“We go into games thinking we should dominate down low,” Santa Ynez coach JoAnn Reck said. “If we don't, something's wrong there.”

Nothing was wrong on Friday, as Demery started corralling offensive rebounds early. And then she threw in the occasional post fadeaway.

“She's got a really soft touch,” Reck said. “Great hands and very quick. She moves up and down the court. We call her ‘Butter.'”

While Demery was a one-man wrecking crew in the middle, Martin and Reck were no softies from the outside.

Both Reck and Martin have experience in the post, having made a recent transition to the guard position. Reck stands at 5-foot, 10-inch and Martin stands at 5-foot, 11-inch. Both presented a mismatch problem for the Saints, who field only one 5-10 player.

Less than 10 seconds into play, Martin scored the game's first points on a smooth jumpshot.

“She's in another dimension,” Reck said of her senior, who is bound for San Jose State in the fall.

“Dribbling was something I knew I had to work on. I knew I would have to do that going into college,” Martin said.

Martin and Reck played their previous seasons at the forward position. This season, they made the switch to the perimeter. Martin still charges the hoop with the strength of a forward, but with the speed of a guard.

“I've always liked doing that,” Martin said. “Coming from the outside, you need to push it.”

Reck also showed the switch was no problem on Friday, dishing the ball out in the first half and knocking down long jumpers in the second.

“My teammates were so helpful tonight,” Martin said. “When I drove and dished, Casey hit the three. Or I could put it into Ariana.”

Ariana Demery hit a pair of free throws on the second offensive possession, and the Pirates were already up 4-0 - never to trail.

In the first quarter, Reck and Demery started to run their staple play, the pick and roll.

“Casey and Ariana have played since they were in fourth grade,” Reck said. “They can run the pick and roll in their sleep.”

The Saints employed a fast-paced offense to make up for their lack of height. They were led by the duo of Hannah Miller and Alyssa Lopez. Miller finished with a team-high nine points, while Lopez warmed up in the second and finished with five points.

Both Lopez and Miller got their hands in the passing lanes and stole a number of balls.

“We have a couple of the best defenders in league,” Santa Maria coach Michael Oani said. “They are pretty disciplined. They make sure they're not reaching.”

Miller scored the first Saints points on a Miller 3-pointer. The Saints would stick around in the first quarter, much as they had done a week prior against a much larger St. Joseph team. The Saints only trailed 16-7 after the first quarter.

However, Santa Ynez put it all together in the second quarter, scoring 13 unanswered points.

Demery converted a post move before sinking two free throws to open the floodgates. The Pirates finished 13-of-15 overall from the free throw line.

Reck sunk a 3-pointer before finding Demery for a layup to make the score 25-7.

St. Joseph 79, Templeton 15

The Knights (3-1, 14-3) grounded the Eagles early in this LPL game at St. Joseph's Hofschulte Gym. They led 21-2 after one quarter.

Ane McPike led St. Joseph with 23 points. Sisters Devin and Analise Riezebos scored 19 and 10 points respectively for the Knights.

Erika Barnett, Templeton's leading scorer this year, had one point for the Eagles (0-4, 2-12).

Boys basketball

Templeton 73, St. Joseph 64

The Eagles scored a major upset over the Knights, outscoring them 14-4 in the third quarter.

Templeton, the Los Padres League's last-place team, shot 40 free throws in the upset over the three-time LPL champions.

Leading the Knights (2-2, 6-13) in scoring was Brannon Adlesh with 20 points. Dominic Brunello had 13 points, Patrick Cusack had 11 and both Vincent Brunello and Sam Schur scored seven.

Lompoc 85, Morro Bay 62

Morro Bay played an outstanding first half and trailed by one, but Lompoc (4-0, 11-6) took their game up a notch and put more distance between the teams, with a 21-9 third quarter.

Anthony Burtley had another terrific game, scoring 41 points, with 16 rebounds and four assists. Mikell Ray pulled down eight rebounds and scored 17, while Daniel Diaz dished out 10 assists.

Wrestling

Cabrillo 42, Lompoc 27

On the strength of five pins and two Lompoc forfeits, the Conquistadores rolled past the Braves, moving to 2-0 in the Los Padres League.

Caleb Mesa, John Petree, Matt Zahuta and Ross Rienaker registered pins in four of the first six matches, and coupled with an early forfeit, took a commanding 30-3 lead. a Cabrillo forfeit at 135 pounds. a pin by Lompoc's Mason Blow at 140 and a 10-6 win by Miquel Medina at 145, drew the Braves to 30-18.

Nikolai Cook had a pin for Cabrillo over Adolfo Robles in the 152 match, ending Lompoc's bid.

Derrick Luken won the final match of the night, pinning Jacob Ramsey just 43 seconds into the first.

Jan. 13, 2007