While the third time did not prove the charm for the Mater Dei Catholic High School girls basketball team in its quest to defeat Mesa League rival Bonita Vista for the first time this season, good things did come in threes for the Barons as they won last Friday’s San Diego Section Division I championship title at SDSU’s Viejas Arena.
Top-seeded Bonita Vista defeated third-seeded Mater Dei Catholic, 68-59, in a marquee matchup of South County juggernauts that was high on energy and excitement at both ends of the court.
When the final horn sounded, the Barons were crowned queens of the court.
“It’s a great feeling,” said BVHS coach Tristan Lamb, whose team collected its third win over the Crusaders this season. “The kids worked hard through the season. This is what they wanted. They wanted to be champions.”
Now they are.
In winning this year’s Division I championship, Bonita Vista (27-6) accomplished two milestones:
- The Barons dethroned the Crusaders (19-13) as reigning division champions.
- On a more personal note, the CIF title provided an appropriate crowning achievement for Bonita Vista scoring star Shyla Latone, who set the section’s single-game scoring record earlier this season with 76 points.
Latone won a scoring duel with Mater Dei Catholic’s Chloe Webb last Friday. Both players lit up the scoreboard for their respective teams, with Latone pouring in 26 points and Webb dropping in 25 points.
But it was team depth that pushed the Barons over the edge. While Latone may be a veritable scoring machine, Bonita Vista proved it was not a one-woman team.
Julia Cosalan dropped in 21 points while teammate Anneth Grijalba added 15 points to brace Latone in the scoring department.
Latone and Keyanna McCoy each grabbed seven rebounds.
Above all, it was a group effort.
“I tried my hardest,” Latone said. “They (the Crusaders) are a great team; we had to work harder. We were playing them for the third time this season, and it’s hard to beat the same team three times in one season.”
“We couldn’t have done it without everyone,” Grijalba interjected.
While the Barons led after every quarter, the score fluctuated within each quarter.
Bonita Vista erased an early 10-7 Mater Dei Catholic lead to go up 24-15 at the end of the opening quarter on the strength of a hurricane-like 16-0 run.
The Crusaders closed to within 35-33 on a three-point play by Webb with 19 seconds left in the first half. But a pair of free throws by Latone put the Barons up by four points, 37-33, at the half.
Bonita Vista out-scored Mater Dei Catholic 20-17 in the third quarter to lead 57-50 heading into the final quarter. But it was still too close to call.
Marissa Sanchez dropped in two points to tie the game at 39 with 6:01 to play in the third quarter and again at 41. It was then Webb’s turn to tie the score at 46 after sinking a pair of free throws with 3:17 left in the quarter.
But Latone sank a pair of three-point bombs to put the Barons ahead 53-46. Grijalba dropped in four points on free throws to quickly extend the lead to 57-46.
Latone exited the game near the end of the third quarter after picking up her fourth foul. She returned two minutes into the fourth quarter. But in her absence, the Crusaders could only make up two points on the scoreboard.
Sanchez later narrowed the score to 57-54. But the combo of Grijalba and Latone proved to be too much for the defending division champions to handle.
Grijalba dropped in a trey and Latone scored on a steal to quickly provide some much needed breathing room on the scoreboard at 62-54.
Bonita Vista extended its lead to 10 points, 68-58, before finally settling for the nine-point win.
Sanchez had 20 points and seven rebounds in the loss while JaTianna Drummond led all players on the court with 15 rebounds. Webb had 12 rebounds and two blocked shots.
“It was a great atmosphere,” Lamb said. “We started off a bit shaky but came together as a team as the game went on. We knew them very well and they knew us very well.”
