CIF girls basketball section finals: McClatchy seeks repeat, Antelope and CB clash
The CIF Sac-Joaquin Section girls basketball championships will be held Friday and Saturday at Golden 1 Center, home of the Sacramento Kings.
After Tuesday’s semifinal games, the championship matchups are set. Divisions II, IV and VI will take place Friday starting at 10 a.m. Divisions I, III and V will be held Saturday with boys finals alternating with the girls. All games will be broadcasted and livestreamed through ABC JAM Productions on the NFHS Network.
Several Sacramento area teams will compete for a coveted blue banner this weekend. All section finalists advance to next week’s CIF Northern California Regional rounds.
Division I
No. 1-seeded St. Mary’s vs. No. 6 McClatchy
6 p.m. Saturday
In a matchup of the last two large-school champions, top-seeded St. Mary’s of Stockton (24-2) will take on defending D-I champion McClatchy (22-8), which returns to the finals as a 6-seed.
The Lions took down Cosumnes Oaks at home in the opening round before eliminating Sierra Foothill League powers Folsom and Oak Ridge on the road. They’ll line up across from the Rams, who have rolled through the postseason with an average margin of victory of more than 60 points against Edison of Stockton, Sheldon and Vanden under coach Alle Moreno, who set 3-point shooting marks at Sacramento State in 2013-14.
Daisy Throckmorton, Mikayla Reyes and Laila Stancil-Williams return from last year’s championship team for McClatchy, along with reigning Sacramento Bee Coach of the Year Jeff Ota who is the program’s co-coach with Jessica Kunisaki. St. Mary’s boasts a record 22 section championships features Oregon State-bound Evelini Smith and elite junior Kori Rogers.
Division II
No. 1 Antelope vs. No. 2 Christian Brothers
6 p.m. Friday
It has felt like these two were on a collision course for Golden 1 Center all season in Division II. Antelope (25-4) beat Bear Creek of Stockton, Lodi and Woodcreek by lofty margins while the Falcons defeated Fairfield and Grant handily before surviving a gritty challenge from Del Oro in overtime on Tuesday.
Christian Brothers (26-5) owns five section crowns and is in its third final in the past four seasons under head coach and school alumna Shandyn Foster. Capital Valley Conference Co-MVPs Olivia Novi and Joy Omishakin lead the charge for the Falcons.
Sean Chambers, Antelope’s founding head coach, has led the Titans to two titles in five championship tries. Antelope is paced by senior Kamaria Charlo and a litany of underclassmen, including sophomores Londyn Odom and Paradise Manning as well as freshmen Callia Johnson and Shaylah Taplin.
Division III
No. 1 Placer vs. No. 2 East Union
2 p.m. Saturday
Neither Placer (29-2) nor East Union (26-5) has seen championship action since the early 1990s, but both teams are superbly coached by longtime coaches Tony Camillucci for the Hillgals of Auburn and Jim Agostini for the Lancers of Manteca.
Placer took down Florin, Rio Linda and Foothill Valley League rival Twelve Bridges while East Union beat Yuba City, Nevada Union and Lathrop, which was previously 30-0 heading into the semifinals.
Placer, which is 3-0 in section championship games, is led by juniors Brookelyn Dunkle, Lana Terrell and Ginger Biddle while seniors Zyondupree Beasley, Ava Barrera and Shebra Rezaye pace East Union, which is in search of its first title. Placer last won a girls section title in 1990, en route to a CIF State Division III championship under coach Jim Mallery.
Division IV
No. 1 Central Catholic vs. No. 3 West Campus
2 p.m. Friday
The only loss for the Raiders of Modesto (27-1) came in an overtime battle against fellow Valley Oak League rival East Union. West Campus (20-3) toppled defending Division IV champion Liberty Ranch of Galt on the road in the semifinals to reach the program’s seventh section final.
The Warriors of the Sacramento City Unified School District are led by head coach John Langston, who previously guided the program to a section three-peat from 2017-19, which included two CIF State championship seasons. Senior Naomi Johnson had 27 points and junior Loismary Justice had 18 points and 19 rebounds in the semifinal victory at Liberty Ranch.
Central Catholic, whose last section title came in 1998, is led by juniors Ayla Parcon, Hannah Garcia and Samantha Nichols.
Division V
No. 1 Bret Harte vs. No. 2 Faith Christian
10 a.m. Saturday
Saturday morning will tip off with a matchup featuring last season’s Division V and VI champions. The Bullfrogs of Calaveras County (25-4) upended reigning CIF State champion Woodland Christian in Tuesday’s semifinal, 51-45.
Faith Christian of Yuba City (27-1), meanwhile, is just a 2-point loss to Chico in mid-December from being undefeated. The Lions have won 19 straight behind the nation’s all-time leading 3-point shooter Lauren Harris. Harris is averaging a section-best 31.7 points and leads the Lions in rebounding (13.1), assists (5.7) and steals (2.5) per game.
Harris and fellow senior Presley Berry look to close their four-year varsity careers with a third section banner.
Division VI
No. 1 Sacramento Adventist vs. No. 3 Forest Lake Christian
10 a.m. Friday
Championship weekend begins with this between the Capitals of Carmichael (19-10) and the Falcons of Lake of the Pines (17-8).
Sac Adventist has seen more than its share of adversity, reaching the finals despite numerous injuries and illnesses throughout the season. Senior Gwen Rosich posted a quadruple-double in the quarterfinals against Turlock Christian with 23 points, 11 rebounds, 13 assists and 11 steals. Junior guard Kyla Friedrich had a 42-point showing in the playoffs.
Forest Lake Christian won three straight section titles from 2003-05 and again in 2020. The Falcons are led by senior Abbie Stokes, who averages 13.6 points and 11.4 rebounds.
Nick Pecoraro is a longtime area high school sports journalist who has contributed to the Bee since 2021. He is a staff writer for MaxPreps.