Palm Springs basketball christens new gymnasium with win over Xavier Prep

Shad Powers, Palm Springs Desert Sun
·3 min read

The Palm Springs boys' basketball christened their new gym and basketball court with a win Tuesday night.

In the first game ever played on the new court which features an oversized "PS" at mid-court and black paint inside the three-point arc, the Indians beat Xavier Prep 64-50.

Zach Buley felt at home right away, scoring 19 of his 24 points in the first half. Coby Christensen added 23 points, including 12 in the fourth quarter as the Indians pulled away. Stephon Souvenir added 13 rebounds for the Indians (6-3).

The Indians will be home again on Thursday against Palm Desert.

More: First look: Tour the new Palm Springs High School gym and basketball court

Palm Springs players run past the logo on the back wall of the gym before a boys' basketball game against Xavier Prep on Jan. 18, 2022. The game was the first for Palm Springs in its new gymnasium.
Palm Springs players run past the logo on the back wall of the gym before a boys' basketball game against Xavier Prep on Jan. 18, 2022. The game was the first for Palm Springs in its new gymnasium.

Boys' basketball

La Quinta 70, Rancho Mirage 65: The Blackhawks picked up one of its best wins of the season, outrunning the Rattlers even without three players including star Malachi Murrell sidelined.

Ray Benjamin led the way with 22 points, 14 rebounds and five steals. Calvin Miller added 18 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Thomas Ansley had 14 points and Ryan Henderson had 14 points, eight rebounds and seven assists.

Cathedral City 82, Coachella Valley 66: The Lions rolled past the Arabs on Monday behind 29 points and nine rebounds from Frankie Valentino. Louie Cabrera had 25 points, eight rebounds and five steals, while Ethan Clagg had 15 points and six rebounds. CJ Taylor has seven points, 14 rebounds, nine assists and five steals.

Boys' soccer

Xavier Prep 2, Palm Springs 1: The Saints moved into a tie for third in the Desert Empire League with a key win over the Indians. Xavier Prep is now 4-3 in league play.

The Indians who dropped to 5-2-2 got a goal from Frank Rosales five minutes into the game with an assist by Dylan Armendariz, but were held off the scoreboard the rest of the way.

La Quinta 3, Rancho Mirage 3: This dramatic game went into overtime at 2-2 and saw both teams score in the extra session before finishing in a tie.

For La Quinta, Aiden Brothers, Anthony Jaime and Kevin Francic scored for the Blackhawks, who are still unbeaten in league with a 4-0-3 record.

Palm Desert 3, Shadow Hills 2: The Aztecs got a pair of goals from Tristan Mulahusejnovic and a goal by Cash Anderholt to pick up the win. Vincent Granados, Kyle Alas and Luis Honold all had assists, while Jake Presser had five saves.

Girls' soccer

Shadow Hills 1, Palm Desert 0: In a crucial win for the Blackhawks, Taylor Christensen found the back of the net in overtime to give the Knights the win. The assist went to Charlii Gonzalez

The win was important as the Knights move to 6-2, Palm Desert falls to 6-2-1 and Palm Springs also has just two losses at 4-2.

La Quinta 6, Rancho Mirage 0: The Blackhawks got a hat trick from Hailei Hutchinson in the victory. Iliana Rivera, Lizbeth Ruiz and Illjana Arbaugh each scored once for the Blackhawks.

Girls' water polo

Palm Springs 24, Rancho Mirage 18: The Indians led 9-0 before the Knights got on the board and cruised to the win. Reece Speer led the Indians with nine total goals, while Roselyn Gonzalez added five goals and Kay Pivonka four goals. Goalkeeper Paloma Alvarez held the Rattlers to 10 goals through three periods.

To report a high school result, please e-mail the information to sports@desertsun.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Palm Springs basketball christens new gymnasium with win over Xavier Prep