SANTA CRUZ — Baskets were at a premium in the first half of the Central Coast Section Division III Girls Basketball Championship on Saturday, when Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League rivals Santa Cruz and Aptos squared off for a third time this season.
The league champion Cardinals were intent on avenging their lone loss, and the Mariners were out to repeat as section champions with several members of last year’s graduated class cheering from the bleachers.
The teams defended each other so tightly that there were minimal “good looks” at the basket, just looks.
Cardinals guard/forward Bella Stevens made the most of those looks early in the third quarter as she went on one of her can’t-miss stretches. Stevens scored 11 of her game-high 29 points over a four-minute span, and Santa Cruz rode her hot hand to a comfortable lead and then held on for a 45-37 victory to bring the school its first CCS crown since 2010.
“I still can’t believe it,” said Stevens, wearing an ear-to-ear smile. “I’m sure it’ll kick in later.”
It was a near-perfect showing for the Cardinals (19-1), but coach Todd Trowbridge immediately found something to improve upon as his players cheered modestly following the win.
“We’re going to have to practice our celebration,” he told his team.
“We were just so excited, it was so much to take in all at once,” Stevens said. “We couldn’t believe it really. It felt surreal. We worked so hard for this.”
Stevens made five straight field-goal attempts in the third — draining three 3-pointers — to help the Cardinals push their 20-14 halftime lead to 33-14.
“Third quarter was it. That was gold for us,” Trowbridge said. “Bella Stevens hitting threes from behind the line, attacking, passing. It all came together for us tonight.”
Then, the Mariners (12-4) started to heat up. Junior forward Jasmine Ackerman scored 10 points during a 15-2 run spanning from the final three minutes of the third quarter to midway through the fourth. Six of those points came off set in-bound plays.
After Grace Parry made a pair of free throws to pull the Mariners within four points, 37-33, Stevens made a pair of free throws and senior forward Julie Robinson scored on a put-back to push the lead back to seven points, 41-33. But Ackerman buried a 3-pointer with just under two minutes left to make it a five-point game, 41-36.
“Honestly, I’m super proud of our team for coming back,” Ackerman said.
Santa Cruz senior guard Sam Courtright pulled down a key defensive rebound and the Cardinals closed with four free throws to one from the Mariners for the final score.
Attendance was limited due to the COVID-19 pandemic — which threatened the start of the season entirely — but those who did show up helped give the contest a championship feel.
“It was a really nice crowd,” Mariners coach Bruce Funk said. “Even though they were limited with how many people could come in, it really sounded loud for both sides. Both sides were cheering hard so it made for a great atmosphere.”
Santa Cruz finished with 16 free throws and Aptos made nine of its 11 free throws in the fourth quarter.
Claire Thompson finished with seven points for the Cardinals, Robinson scored six points and Isabella O’Donnell added three points.
Ackerman finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds for the Mariners. Jaylen Dang had seven points and six rebounds and Parry had six points, four rebounds and three steals.
“Heck of a team,” Trowbridge said of the Mariners, which made its fifth straight CCS title-game appearance. “Bruce always has them ready for us. If you’re not ready to play, they’re going to get ya.”
THE SCORE
CCS D-III Championship
Santa Cruz 45, Aptos 37
Up next: End of season