California's final four includes No. 1 Ontario Christian, No. 5 Archbishop Mitty, No. 6 Etiwanda, No. 19 Clovis West.
Twelve teams in the MaxPreps Top 25 high school girls basketball rankings will be competing for a title in their respective states this weekend as postseason action culminates in 26 states.
Not all 12 ranked teams will bring home the hardware as four of those are vying for the same title in California's Open Division.
On Tuesday, No. 1
Ontario Christian (Ontario) will try and punch its ticket to Sacramento's Golden 1 Center for the final against No. 6
Etiwanda in the Southern California regional final. It's the third meeting of the two Golden State powers with the top-ranked Knights looking for the season sweep after a nail-biting 65-63 win on March 1.
Etiwanda hopes to win the one that matters most as well as continue its quest for an unprecedented third straight Open Division title.
The SoCal winner meets the winner of No. 5
Archbishop Mitty (San Jose) vs. No. 19
Clovis West (Fresno) in a rematch of last season's Northern California regional final. It's also a rematch of the 2017 Open Division final, which Clovis West won 44-40 as a representative of Southern California.
Mitty is looking for its fourth straight state final berth — and first Open Division title. The last state title for the Monarchs was a Division I crown in 2015.
No. 3
Bishop McNamara (Forestville) sliced through the field of the Maryland private school tournament last week, capped with a monster performance from sophomore
Qandace Samuels in an 86-32 championship win over
St. Frances Academy (Baltimore). Samuels shot 11 of 13 from the field en route to 30 points in the final, including eight 3-pointers. The Mustangs also grabbed the prestigious Washington Catholic Athletic Conference crown.
In Georgia, No. 21
River Ridge (Woodstock) staged one of the biggest fourth-quarter comebacks in state history to beat previously-ranked
Langston Hughes (Fairburn) 52-47 in the Class AAAAA final. The Knights trailed 45-33 entering the final eight minutes and used a 19-2 outburst to secure the school's second state title.
Joy Tchamabe and
Kyla Cantey combined for 25 points in the victory.
Azanah Campbell has helped No. 16 Paul VI reach the New Jersey Non-Public A final. The Eagles beat Red Bank Catholic on Monday to set up a meeting with No. 2 Morris Catholic on Friday. (FILE PHOTO: Ron Esposito)
1. Ontario Christian (Ontario, Calif.)
Record: 30-1 |
Last week: 1
Kaleena Smith had 29 in a 69-57 overtime win over No. 12 Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth) on Saturday.
Tati Griffin had 19 and
Alanna Neale added 18. Both had five in the overtime period as the Knights outscored the Trailblazers 14-2
6. Etiwanda (Calif.)
Record: 26-5 |
Last week: 7
Aliyahna Morris scored 21 of her game-high 32 points in the second half of Etiwanda's 67-57 win over No. 10 Mater Dei (Santa Ana) on Saturday.
9. Clackamas (Ore.)
Record: 28-2 |
Last week: 11
The Cavaliers open their quest for a second Class 6A title in three years with McMinnville on Wednesday.
11. Princess Anne (Virginia Beach, Va.)
Record: 27-0 |
Last week: 12
Micah Ojo and the Cavaliers used a 21-0 run to advance with a 53-42 Class 5A semifinal win over Menchville (Newport News) on Friday. Princess Anne looks for its 15th state title Wednesday against Fleming (Roanoke).
13. Johnston (Iowa)
Record: 26-0 |
Last week: 13
Season complete. Class 5A state champion.
Rachel Thatcher had 10 points, including eight in the fourth quarter, and
Brooke Stagliano had 16 as the Eagles hung on for a 46-45 win over Red Bank Catholic in the South Jersey Non-Public A final.
19. Clovis West (Fresno, Calif.)
Record: 32-0 |
Last week: 19
Alexis Swillis had 21 points in the 69-62 win over San Ramon Valley on Saturday as the Golden Eagles advanced to Tuesday's NorCal regional finals against No. 5 Archbishop Mitty for the second straight season.
25. Grandview (Aurora, Colo.)
Record: 21-3 |
Last week: NR
MaxPreps National Player of the Year finalist
Sienna Betts leads the Wolves into a Class 6A semifinals matchup Wednesday against Pine Creek (Colorado Springs.)
On the bubble: Kenwood (Chicago, Ill.), 35-3;
Holy Innocents Episcopal (Atlanta, Ga.), 25-5;
Sacred Heart (Louisville, Ky.), 31-3;
Norman (Norman, Okla.), 24-2;
Arrowhead (Hartland, Wis.), 25-3;
Winton Woods (Cincinnati, Ohio), 26-0;
Belleville (Mich.), 24-1;
Osbourn Park (Manassas, Va.), 25-3;
Blue Valley North (Overland Park, Kan.), 18-4;
Purcell Marian (Cincinnati, Ohio), 22-6
