California high school girls basketball: No. 6 Etiwanda beats No. 8 Archbishop Mitty 69-67 on last-second putback for CIF Open Division crown

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Jada Sanders grabbed one rebound in Saturday’s CIF Open Division girls final on Saturday. It was the biggest of the game and season as No. 6 Etiwanda (Calif.) beat No. 8 Archbishop Mitty (San Jose, Calif.) 69-67 as Sanders found the bottom of the net as time expired in the MaxPreps Top 25 battle.

With 19 seconds left in the game, the Eagles looked to put up the last shot after a timeout and got the ball to junior Kennedy Smith, who finished with a game-high 30.

Smith, who was sensational, saw her 18-footer hit the rim, roll around it twice before falling out.

“It was the shot we were looking for,” Etiwanda coach Stan Delus said. “I mean I was on my toes the whole time, but that’s the stuff we practice, boxing out. I’m so proud of her, but yeah, I was on my toes.

“I told her a few times that she was going to need to rebound and she did a really good job getting position.”

And when the ball fell to Sanders, she was in the right spot to put it up and through the hoop.

“I was watching it (Smith’s shot) the whole time,” she said.
The state title victory capped a monumental three-game run that saw Etiwanda beat top-ranked La Jolla Country Day (La Jolla), Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth) and Mitty in a week’s time.

“I said “you know what? Why beat La Jolla, why beat Sierra Canyon if you’re not going to finish?’ ” Delus said.

Etiwanda finishes 31-3 with their first state title and are sure to climb in the MaxPreps Top 25.

Archbishop Mitty falls to 27-3, having lost in the Open Division final for the second straight season.

“It’s a one-possession game,” Mitty coach Sue Phillips said. “A lot of people didn’t give us a chance in this game with how highly they were ranked and I think we gave them all they could handle.”

In a game with 13 ties and 10 lead changes, Mitty held a 64-57 edge with 2:14 to play.

“I said you can change the narrative and I told them to just play in the moment, just continue to improve because we were in a fight,” Delus said. “We have one game left in the season. Let’s change these two minutes to change the narrative and they did that.”

Sanders, who scored four points on the night including the game winner, finished a fast break off an assist from Aliyahna "Puff" Morris. Smith then grabbed her own rebound on the Eagles’ next possession and closed the gap to 64-61 with the putback.

Arynn Finley tied the score at 64 with her and-one fast break off an outlet pass from Smith.

Junior Morgan Cheli, who led Mitty with 24 points, matched Morris with three free throws down three down the stretch.

But a Mitty turnover with 41 seconds left set up the final sequence. Smith missed a jumper but grabbed the board before being tied up for a jump ball. The possession arrow pointed Etiwanda’s way and Delus called time to set up the final sequence.

In addition to Smith’s 30 points, Morris had 14 and Finley added eight. Mitty was led by Cheli’s 24 points while freshman McKenna Woliczko showed the future is bright with an 18-point, 10-rebound double-double.