Varsity girls basketball suffers 51-54 loss against Menlo in CCS final, earns second place
Varsity girls basketball narrowly lost to Menlo 51-54 in the CCS Division IV final on Mar. 1 at Mission College.
Harker won the tipoff and immediately jumped to a 6-0 lead off of layups by center Emily Mitnick (12), shooting guard Claire Yu (11) and point guard Jillian Chen (9). As the Knights fought back, the game tied at 8-8 before Claire contributed with a layup and Jillian made a three-pointer, bringing the score to 13-11. With two seconds left on the clock, Emily rebounded for a layup, securing the Eagles a 15-11 lead at the end of the period.
Menlo scored two two-pointers to tie the game 15-15 at the beginning of the second quarter. Jillian made a two-pointer to bring Harker back into the lead, but after losing possession due to a foul, Menlo made both free throws, tying at 17-17. Although both teams traded baskets for the rest of the quarter, with guard Isabella Lo (12), Emily and Jillian putting points on the board, the Eagles went into halftime down 24-27.
“I knew they were going to be a tough matchup because they were the upper seed,” guard Alicia Yan (11) said. “At halftime, we had a good talk about keeping the energy up. I’m really proud of how the team played.”
Jillian sank a layup in the first minute of the third quarter, and Menlo immediately responded with a three-pointer. Another two-pointer from Jillian and a transitional fast break layup by Isabella wore away at the Knights’ lead, pulling the Eagles even 30-30. After a Menlo foul, Isabella scored a free throw to put Harker back in the lead. Increasing their offensive pressure, the Knights quickly gained back the advantage by converting free throws and long-range shots, keeping the Eagles at 33-42.
Coming into the fourth quarter down 11 points, Harker fought to narrow the gap, with a passing sequence between Isabella, center Sanika Das (10) and Jillian ultimately making a three-pointer. Another three-pointer by Claire and a two-pointer by guard Finley Ho (10) continued to wear away at Menlo’s lead.
With 11 seconds on the clock and trailing 54-51, the Eagles called a time-out. Returning to the court, the Eagles retained possession of the ball with five seconds on the timer. They passed the ball from player to player before Isabella launched a three-pointer just as the buzzer sounded. The ball circled the rim but lipped out, sealing Harker’s close loss 54-51.
“[That game] was absolutely awesome,” spectator and Facilities Manager Mike Bassoni said. “They are a very well-orchestrated team, with ball control, ball handling and passing. That last shot, we were holding our breaths. The last section when they came back, and they didn’t give up — it was very inspiring.”
Emily reflected on the Eagle’s season thus far, commending her teammates for their efforts as the team went 9-1 in their league play.
“It’s only the second time in school history that we made it this far, so I’m very proud of us and how hard we pushed ourselves,” Emily said. “We were in a 12-point deficit and brought it up to three points by the last moment, so we just didn’t give up the entire time. We haven’t finished fighting, so we’re going to keep going on to the next games and fight even harder.”
