The Lady Dons had a solid showing in one of the two elite brackets of the West Coast Jamboree. First up was Vanden which came in ranked in the Top 20 in the state by CalHiSports. The girls jumped all over Vanden for a 39 to 17 halftime lead, which stretched to a 28 point 2nd half lead before finally winning 71 to 54. Next up in the Semifinals was Bishop O’Dowd which also came into the game ranked Top 20 in the state. This was a great game, as the Dons went to the half with a 7-point lead, stretched the lead to 15 in the 3rd quarter, but saw O’Dowd come all the way back and take the lead after the Dons suffered from foul trouble. Finally, in the 4th quarter the Dons reassumed control for a 67 to 62 victory.
In the Championship game the girls faced Salesian which was the team to knock them out of the Division 1 State Playoffs – Salesian also happens to be the defending Division 1 State Champion and came into the game ranked #8 overall in California. Salesian controlled much of the first half, however, the Dons fought hard and went into the half down 26 to 30. The Dons battled foul trouble in the 3rd quarter and trailed much of the 3rd quarter. A late surge tied the game at 45-all entering the 4th. The 4th quarter was a back-and-forth affair, as KK Lacanlale, Dulci Vail and Lexi Li all hit big shots in the quarter. With 1:15 left on the clock the Dons were up 4 points, but couldn’t hold on losing at the buzzer on a steal off an inbounds. Despite it being a very tough loss, the girls learned they could go toe-to-toe with elite teams which should have the squad battle tested for playoffs.
As far as individual performances go, KK Lacanlale and Sophie Chinn were both selected to the All-Tournament Team, while Dulci Vail earned a Sportsmanship Award for the Tournament.
The girls open League play Wednesday home against Campolindo. Coming into League the Lady Dons are overwhelming favorites to go back-to-back and win DAL.
