Central Valley High School's varsity girls basketball team will lose eight players to graduation.

Mia Lorenzo, Ali Martinez, Casey McCloskey, Adrianna Mendez, Tamara Uti, Jazareth Valencia and Tamara Uti competed at home for the final time last week.

Mireiyah Pelayo missed the game because there was a death in her family.

The Hawks routed the Wolves of Livingston 63-33 on Senior Night in Ceres on Tuesday, Feb. 11.

"I try not to get emotional," Central Valley head coach Jesse Padilla said. "I just sit back and enjoy the moment. I got to see them come in as little freshmen and leave as adults. I feel lucky. They're a good group of girls. They worked hard."

McCloskey tallied a team-high 13 points for the Hawks (5-6 WAC).

Lorenzo, Uti, Zuniga, Valencia, Martinez and Mendez had 11, nine, six, four, three and two points, respectively.

Central Valley teammates Melissa Afortunado (six points), Lindsey Alexander (five), Lynaya Lerma (two) and Jewel Miranda (two) also broke into the scoring column.
Lorenzo, McCloskey, Uti, Martinez and Mendez started against Livingston.

The Hawks held a slim 13-11 lead when Zuniga, Valencia, Alexander, Lerma and Mikayla Mabie entered the game at the 1:41 mark of the first quarter.

Ahead 30-20, Central Valley outscored Livingston 19-4 in the opening eight minutes of the second half. McCloskey had nine points in the third period.

"I thought we'd be overexcited," Padilla said. "They came out level-headed. The third quarter was big for us. We didn't let them back into the game."

"It's my last home game," said Lorenzo, a third-year varsity player. "I wasn't that nervous. My goal was to get 20 points. I don't think I reached it. I wish I would have done a lot better this year."

Lorenzo was promoted to Central Valley's varsity squad during the 2011-12 school year. The Hawks defended their Western Athletic Conference title and advanced to the playoffs for the second consecutive season.

Central Valley posted an 11-14 record and placed fourth in the WAC standings (6-6) in 2012-13.

"Mia's a cornerstone for our whole program," Padilla said. "All the girls look up to her and respect her. She just plays and works so hard. She's a perfect example on the court."

Lorenzo, Martinez, McCloskey, Mendez, Uti, Valencia and Uti were all recognized prior to tipoff.

Each player received a rose, candy lei and framed picture.

Mia stood next to her mother Josie and cousin Abby.

"My mom's been at every game since I was in elementary school playing for the Westport Rockets," Lorenzo said. "It's kind of sad. This is it. I'm going to miss all of my teammates. It was nice playing with them. We're going off in our own directions."