The Bishop Montgomery Lady Knights' basketball team, under first-year coach Bridgette Reyes, won the CIF-SS Division 4AA championship on March 8 with a 46-43 win over JSerra at Azusa Pacific University.
Senior center Janelle Odionu (who has committed to Cornell University) had 13 points, 5 rebounds, and 6 blocks. Junior guards Christine Delapina and Chelsea Lidy scored 12 points and 8 points, respectively. Other team members include Alexandra Ambriz (Our Lady of Guadalupe), Asia Anderson, Kayla Cainglet (St. Philomena), Courtney Keaton (St. Jerome), Hana Kitamura, Jessica Malazarte, Tyler Quinn and Hanna Romero (St. Margaret Mary).
It was the fifth section title in program history and the first since 2002-03 for the Lady Knights, who are 23-8 on the season. They advanced to the state playoffs as the third seed in Division 4, and were scheduled to host Exeter March 12 at 7 p.m.
In the boys’ 3A final, Oak Park defeated St. Francis, 60-53. The Knights rallied from several deficits to tie the game in the fourth quarter and lead briefly (48-47), but Oak Park pulled away at the end. Kyle Leufroy led St. Francis with 26 points.
Three schools from the Orange Diocese won boys’ basketball titles. Mater Dei outlasted Chino Hills, 48-44 to win the Open Division; Santa Margarita won the 3AA title over Brea Olinda, 53-46; and JSerra beat Oaks Christian, 83-62 for the 4AA crown.
In girls’ basketball, Windward beat Mater Dei, 61-46, in the Open Division final, and Santa Margarita stopped Inglewood, 53-41, to win the 3A title.
The finalists were selected along with schools that performed well in consolation brackets to appear in the state championship regional qualifying tournament which began this week. Games (all March 12 unless noted) include the following:
Boys: Mater Dei vs. St. Augustine (Open Division, March 14); Loyola vs. Palisades (Division 1); St. John Bosco vs. Granada Hills (Division 2); Chaminade vs. Dinuba, Santa Margarita vs. Independence, St. Francis vs. Kearney, and Cathedral vs. Hamilton (Division 3); J.Serra vs. Tri-City Christian, Cantwell-Sacred Heart vs. Bakersfield Christian, and Serra vs. Granite Hills (Division 4).
Girls: Mater Dei, first round bye (Open Division); Alemany vs. Granada Hills (Division 1); Chaminade vs. Tulare Western (Division 2); Santa Margarita vs. Central (Division 3); Serra, first round bye, J.Serra vs. Ocean View Christian, Bishop Montgomery vs. Exeter, Rosary vs. Mater Dei/Chula Vista (Division 4).
Soccer: Loyola, Cathedral win
Two Los Angeles boys’ Catholic schools won CIF-SS soccer championships March 8 by the same 3-1 score. Loyola High School won the Division 1 title over San Clemente, while Cathedral took the Division 4 crown over Oak Hills.
In girls’ soccer: After four Catholic school teams reached the semifinals, the finals saw Santa Margarita beat Edison, 3-1, to win Division 1; Oaks Christian beat St. Joseph of Lakewood, 2-0, to win Division 3; and Gabrielino beat St. Monica, 3-0, to win Division 7.
Southern Section regional championship play began March 10 and 11. In boys’ soccer, Loyola defeated Bell in Division 1, and Cathedral downed Animo Leadership in Division 2. Girls’ soccer action included St. Joseph at San Diego Cathedral and Hart at Santa Margarita in Division 2. In Division 3, Marymount topped St. Monica 4-0 on March 10 to advance to the March 12 semifinals.
In wrestling: St. John Bosco High School of Bellflower, coached by Omar Delgado, won the Small Schools state wrestling title last weekend at the Rabobank Arena in Bakersfield.
Brothers Zahid and Anthony Valencia finished the season undefeated and were crowned California State Champions in their respective weight classes (132 and 170), where both are ranked number one nationally. Joseph Dominguez and Jeremy Gendreau also contributed points to the Braves’ championship effort.
