Chaminade girls' basketball team celebrates their win Feb. 23. (PHOTO COURTESY CHAMINADE ATHLETICS TWITTER)
The Eagles of Chaminade Preparatory School have once again landed on top of the girls’ basketball world.
A thrilling 52-49 win over favored M.L. King on Feb. 23 gave Chaminade its fourth CIF-Southern Section championship in the last seven years, continuing a reign of excellence under coach Kelli Di Muro.
The Division 1 title — to go with Open Division crowns in 2015 and 2016, and a 3A championship in 2013 — wasn’t the easiest to come by. Chaminade lost a nine-point fourth quarter lead after having taken control in the second quarter, and trailed 49-48 in the final minute.
But junior Alexis Whitfield’s 24 points, including a go-ahead layup with eight seconds remaining, and two late Maiya Jackson free throws allowed the Eagles to prevail over a team that entered the game 29-1 (to Chaminade’s 21-10).
The Mission League champions from West Hills — who received solid performances from Leslie Hunter, Julinna Fletes and Jasmine Rodriguez — also accomplished the feat in “enemy” territory, with game played at Cal Baptist University in Riverside, less than 10 miles from the King campus. And it ended King’s 24-game winning streak.
In the CIF-SS Division 5A final, No. 6 Bishop Conaty-Loretto (20-13) ended its season with a 55-38 loss to No. 1 seed Bloomington Christian (26-2) on Feb. 23 at Colony High School in Ontario.
The Wildcats — runners-up for the second time in a CIF final, having lost to L.A. Baptist in the 2007 Division VA title game — nonetheless enjoyed an outstanding season as Horizon League champions, after an 0-4 start.
Mike Nelson is the former editor of The Tidings (predecessor of Angelus News).
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