The Santa Ynez girls basketball team was so close to climbing the mountain last year — they were just one win away from the school’s first CIF championship in 29 years.

But they lost.

The players weren’t angry, however. Instead, they were proud.

“It was great getting to (the title game) but it’s a new year. We have to start fresh,” said senior forward Rylan Agin.

The Pirates loss to Immanuel nine months ago is behind them now.

Santa Ynez opened their 2025 season on Thursday with a 47-32 win over Nipomo.

Everyone is back except guard Kylie Lapointe.

It’s fair to say that coach Jennifer Rasmussen has her players ahead of schedule.

“Having consistency in your program is so important,” Rasmussen said. “Everything that we ended on is there. We just need to fine tune a few things so we

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