RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA >> The Santiago girls basketball team dominated Santa Margarita from the opening minutes of Wednesday’s game to advance to the CIF-SS Division 2A championship contest.
The Sharks led by double digits from midway through the first quarter and wound up winning 60-48 game.
Santiago (21-9) will host Ontario Christian in the championship game Saturday night.
Santiago last reached the championship game in 2019 when it won the Division 3AA championship against Crossroads.
“We had a lot of ups and downs trying to get everyone to buy into our team concept. It took a lot of pushing and pulling,” Santiago coach Michael Mitchell said. “We made the adjustments that we had to make, and when we got into the playoffs, all the chips fell into place. And we get to play at home. It’s the greatest thing in the world.”
Santiago beats Santa Margarita 60-48. Santiago will host Ontario Christian for the CIF D2A championship. Rylee Ghent 21 pts, Willardson 16 pts, 12 reb. Amaya Williams had 18pts, 11rev for SM. @ocvarsity @ocvarsityguy @CallMeEPJ @derryl_golfer @SantiagoSharks @latsondheimer pic.twitter.com/R4NJTV0GuO
— Michael Huntley (@mikehuntley63) February 24, 2022
The Sharks increased their lead each quarter. They jumped out to a 23-11 lead at the end of the first quarter and were up by 22 points entering the fourth.
Santiago had a massive rebounding advantage in the first half which contributed to the early lead. The Sharks outrebounded Santa Margarita 39-28 in the game and had a 20-11 rebound advantage at halftime.
“They are a big team, so we know if we could get the rebound advantage like we have been during the playoffs, we had a better chance to win,” said Mitchell, who used to be an assistant coach at Santa Margarita. “We were up and down during the regular season, but we are putting it together right now and it’s working.”
Rylee Ghent had a game-high 21 points for Santiago. The sophomore guard was all over the court for the Sharks and had seven rebounds and five assists.
“She had to sit out the first 30 days of the season (after transferring to Santiago), but we knew when she came back she was going to be our glue,” Mitchell said of Ghent. “She’s our strongest guard and can get her own shot. We missed her early but we are glad we have her now.”
Center McKinley Willardson had 16 points and 12 rebounds.
Freshman Tierra Taylor had 12 points and freshman Jayda Cobbs had 11 rebounds with four steals and a pair of blocks.
Santa Margarita (17-7) fought back in the fourth quarter to cut the margin of defeat to 12. Freshman guard Amaya Williams scored 14 of her 18 points in the fourth quarter. Williams added a team-high 11 rebounds and made two of the team’s four 3-pointers.
Kaitlyn Hedge had 11 points and 11 rebounds for the Eagles.
Santa Margarita finished third in the Trinity League standings and won playoff games against Xavier Prep, Mayfair and Culver City.