The Willow Glen Resident

Photograph by George Sakkestad

Trapped: Senior Rosanna Moreno is surrounded by Monarchs as she looks for a teammate to pass to in Presentation's 59-43 loss to Mitty in the CCS Division I championship game.

Presentation falls to the Monarchs--again

Panthers, Rams lose in playoffs

By Dick Sparrer

There was one club that the Presentation girls' basketball team just couldn't beat this winter. Unfortunately, for the Panthers, they kept running into that same club at the most inopportune moments.

Presentation just couldn't beat Mitty this season, and it meant that the Panthers had to settle for second place both in league and Central Coast Section play.

The Panthers were second to the Monarchs in the Mt. Hamilton Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League, and second to them again in the CCS Division I playoffs after a 59-43 defeat last Friday night.

The loss left the Panthers 21-7 for the Panthers with those powerful Monarchs doing the most damage to an otherwise outstanding Presentation record.

A couple of nights earlier, the Willow Glen boys finished an equally outstanding season when the suffered a heartbreaking 50-46 overtime loss to Capuchino in the CCS Division III semifinals. The loss ended the season for the Rams, who wrapped up the year 23-6.

Like the Rams, the Panthers saw their season come to an end last week, but in the finals of the CCS playoffs.

Presentation had opened the postseason with a 61-40 win over Watsonville before beating Monta Vista 62-55 in an overtime thriller in the semifinals.

The two victories pushed the Panthers in the championship game against their season-long nemesis, Mitty.

Seniors Megan Moniz and Molly Shanley each had a big night for Presentation, but it wasn't near enough for the Panthers.

Mitty outscored Presentation in every period but the fourth on the road to the 16-point win in the title game. The Monarchs topped the Panthers by seven in each of the first two quarters to take a convincing 14-point lead by intermission, 33-19.

Moniz and Shanley pitched in 14 points apiece to lead the Presentation attack. Shanley hit a pair of three-pointers among her six field goals to finish with 14, and Moniz had five buckets to go with four free throws.

Jaleh Donaldson supported with eight points, Rosanna Moreno tossed in five, including a three, and sophomore Sara Werner hit two.

Mitty had beaten Presentation twice in league play, winning the Mt. Hamilton Division title with a 12-0 record. The Panthers were second at 10-2.

Rams lose in OT

Willow Glen lost in the OT in the semis to fall out of the boys' CCS Division III playoffs.

Rayvon Jackson and Dion Saunders were standouts for the Rams in the final CCS game, just as they have been all season long.

Jackson, a 6-foot-3 senior forward, poured in a team-high 19 points for Willow Glen, and Saunders, a 6-foot-4 senior center, added 12.

Cory Warren, another 6-foot-4 senior center, joined the two in double figures with 10 points. Manny Myers added three points, and Nich Holt had three.

The Rams and Mustangs were tied 13-13 after a period in the semi game, but Willow Glen opened up a 24-15 lead by intermission, holding Capuchino to just a bucket in the second period.

The Mustangs would battle back, though, outscoring the Rams 16-10 in the third and 9-6 in the fourth to tie the game 40-40 by the end of regulation. Capuchino then won the overtime 10-6 to clinch the victory and advance to the CCS finals.

The loss ended Willow Glen's season, but what a year it was for the Rams. They finished in a three-way tie for first place in the Santa Teresa Division of the BVAL with Del Mar and Valley Christian. All three clubs ended up 8-4.

Willow Glen opened the CCS Division III playoffs with a 64-54 win over Aragon, then got a little revenge against co-champ Del Mar with a thrilling 43-41 victory to advance to the semifinals.

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