Basketball Recap: Ariana Gonzalez's Big Game Can't Quite Lead Mt. Carmel over Montgomery

It's hard to turn regular season success into postseason wins, a fact Mt. Carmel can now relate to. They lost 74-49 to the Montgomery Aztecs on Wednesday. While losing is never fun, the Sundevils can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 599th in California, while the Aztecs are ranked 250th in California).

Ariana Gonzalez

Steals

02/19/25 @ Montgomery	3
02/14/25 @ San Marcos	2
02/11/25 vs Valley Center	5
02/07/25 vs Ramona	5
02/04/25 vs San Pasqual	4
+ 20 more games

Mt. Carmel lost despite a true team effort on offense. The best among them was Ariana Gonzalez, who posted ten points along with eight boards and three steals. She is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in each of the last 25 games she's played. Lacey Quintanilla was another key player, putting up nine points.

Even though they lost, Mt. Carmel smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 19 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 14 offensive boards in ten consecutive matchups.

Mt. Carmel's defeat dropped their record down to 16-13. As for Montgomery, they have been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 19-9 record this season.

Mt. Carmel does not have any more games scheduled as of now. As for Montgomery, they have already played their next game, a 56-49 victory against Vincent Memorial on the 22nd.