The Etiwanda girls basketball team suffered some losses early in the season, but the Eagles once again showed why they can never be counted out.
Cal-bound point guard Aliyahna Morris scored 26 points to lead Etiwanda to a 74-65 victory over Incarnate Word Academy of St. Louis on Monday at the Hoophall Classic in Springfield, Mass. Incarnate Word entered the event with 141 consecutive victories, a national record for high school girls basketball.
Morris knocked down four 3-pointers in the opening quarter to help Etiwanda grab an 18-13 advantage. Incarnate Word battled back and even led by as many as three points in the second period. Etiwanda led 35-34 at halftime and 53-50 after the third. The advantage swelled to 10 points during the fourth.
Aliyah Phillips had 16 points and seven rebounds for Etiwanda, and LSU-bound forward Grace Knox finished with 12 points and 13 rebounds.
Etiwanda (16-4) is the two-time CIF State Open Division defending champion. The Eagles started this season 4-4, including a loss to Ontario Christian in the championship game of the Harvard-Westlake Tournament. Etiwanda has won 12 straight games, two against ranked national foes. In addition to the win over Incarnate Word (No. 15 in Maxpreps.com national rankings), Etiwanda also defeated Sidwell Friends of Washington D.C. (No. 9 by MaxPreps).
MORE RESULTS FROM THE HOOPHALL
Ontario Christian, the No. 1 girls basketball team in Maxpreps.com’s national rankings, also delivered an impressive performance at the Hoophall Classic.
Sophomore Kaleena Smith and freshman Tatianna Griffin scored 26 points apiece as the Knights cruised to an 87-75 victory over Christ the King (N.Y.) on Friday afternoon. Ontario Christian (23-1) never trailed during the game and led by as many as 27 in the second half en route to its ninth straight victory.
Smith was chosen MVP of the game and also tallied 12 assists, five rebounds, and five steals. Griffin also had five rebounds, eight assists, and six steals. Senior Alanna Neale added 15 points and seven rebounds for Ontario Christian, and sophomore Dani Robinson finished with 10 points and three steals.
The Roosevelt boys basketball team saw its 19-game winning come to an end with a 73-55 loss to Gonzaga (Washington D.C.) on Monday morning.
Roosevelt (23-2) entered the showcase event as the No. 1 team in Maxpreps.com’s national rankings. Gonzaga (17-2) was No. 4 in those rankings.
The game was close at halftime, with Gonzaga holding a 32-30 advantage. The Eagles outscored Roosevelt 41-25 in the second half to pull away.
Issac Williamson and Brayden Burries finished with 15 and 14 points, respectively, for Roosevelt.
MERRILL WINS HEAVYWEIGHT SHOWDOWN
Wrestling fans who attended the 5 Counties Invitational at Fountain Valley High School were treated to battle of the state’s top two-ranked heavyweights.
St. John Bosco’s Nicholas Sahakian and North’s Coby Merrill entered last week’s tournament as the state’s No. 1-ranked and No. 2-ranked heavyweights, respectively, according to The California Wrestler. Sahakian, last year’s CIF State runner-up at 285 pounds, registered three technical falls and a pinfall to advance to the championship round. Merrill, the state runner-up at 220 pounds last season, was equally impressive with four pinfalls in the earlier rounds.
The championship match was scoreless after the opening period. Sahakian began the second period in the bottom position and scored with an escape to take a 1-0 lead. Merrill took a 3-1 lead with a takedown just eight seconds later. Sahakian surrendered another point by letting Merrill up to start the third. The score remained 4-1 in favor of Merrill until the final seconds. Merrill took down Sahakian again with 14 seconds left on the clock and locked in a pin.
Merrill, a junior, is unbeaten this season and previously won the heavyweight titles at the Reno Tournament of Champions and Doc Buchanan Invitational.
FOUR LOCALS CLAIM TITLES AT AYALA INVITATIONAL
The Ayala girls wrestling program hosted its annual invitational last week, and four Inland wrestlers walked away with individual championships.
Orange Vista had two individual champions in Ayana Contreras and Zahra Stewart. Contreras won the 110-pound title when she pinned Emma Albanese of SLAM Academy (Nevada) in the first period. Stewart claimed the 125-pound crown when she pinned Mika Yoffee of SLAM Academy in the third period.
Corona’s Jestinah Solomua was the area’s fourth champion, winning the 145-pound title with a 7-2 decision over Northview’s DJ Juarez. Solomua’s win also helped the Panthers capture the team championship. Corona finished the tournament with 203.5 points, 11 better than its longtime rival Northview.
Ayala’s Tatiana Chavarin captured the 155-pound championship when she pinned Centennial’s Olivia Rodriguez in the final seconds of the second period.
Rodriguez and five other Inland wrestlers advanced to the championship round and finished as runners-up in their respective weight classes: Elsinore’s Riley Rivera (95) and Alexis Llamas (140); Lakeside’s Jillian Wells (100), and Corona’s Itzel Herrera (115) and Jasmin Taulanga (235).
