Bishop O'Dowd High School Basketball Team's Season Ends On Scheduling Error
OAKLAND (KCBS) – The girls basketball team from Bishop O'Dowd High School in Oakland lost its appeal to be able to defend its state title, after a scheduling error disqualified the team from the North Coast Section playoffs.
Staff failed to designate one of the team's games as a scrimmage, meaning the Dragons went over the allotted number of games allowed by the section.
Oakland High School Basketball Team's Season Ends On Scheduling Error
At a news conference on Thursday, senior Loren Lassiter called the end to the season extremely disappointing.
"It's really tough because it's something we've been aspiring to since last year," Lassiter said.
Fellow senior Alexandra Kalmbach talked about ending her high school career this way. "That's probably the hardest part," she said, fighting back tears. "Because I have been with this team for four years."
Head Coach Malik McCord said it was his mistake, which put the team one over the number of games allowed.
"And that's what kills me the most, because I let my girls down," McCord said.
On Wednesday, NCS Commissioner Gil Lemmon denied the school's plea to be able to take part in the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Northern California Open Division girls basketball tournament. He said it would be unfair since the team missed the NCS playoffs.
The Dragons won the CIF Open Division state championship in 2013.
