No. 2
Archbishop Mitty (San Jose) advanced to its fifth straight California Open Division state final Tuesday with a 71-42 win over No. 25
Clovis West (Fresno).
The Monarchs take on No. 1
Ontario Christian (Ontario) at 6 p.m. Saturday at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento after the Knights beat No. 12
Sage Hill (Newport Beach) 73-51.
On Tuesday, the Monarchs got 16 from Iowa commit
McKenna Woliczko, who returned in January after an ACL injury 12 months earlier derailed her junior season.
Ze'ni Patterson led the Monarchs with 19, including 16 first-half points.
Maliya Hunter added 15.
Archbishop Mitty senior McKenna Woliczko had 16 points and seven rebounds as the No. 2 Monarchs reached their fifth Open Division state title game in a row with a 71-42 win Tuesday over No. 25 Clovis West. (PHOTO: Sam Stringer)
Clovis West was led by
Ramie Chatman with 17 points.
The host Monarchs jumped out to a 23-4 lead after one period on the strength of a suffocating defense, a trio of 3-pointers and opportunistic fast-break chances. Woliczko, Hunter and Patterson all hit from range as the Golden Eagles connected on only two field goals in the opening eight minutes.
The teams played even in the second quarter as Chatman got going for Clovis West despite battling foul trouble.
The Monarchs made sure there was no Clovis West second-half rally as Woliczko had eight in the third quarter and Mitty played out the final period comfortable knowing it would have a chance to avenge four straight state title losses.
Mitty enjoys the fruits of its labor Tuesday night but the Monarchs know the mission won't truly be complete until it hoists the state trophy this weekend in Sacramento. (PHOTO: Sam Stringer)
Head coach Sue Phillips and the Monarchs now seek their first state title since winning a Division II crown in 2015 and the first Open Division title in program history. Mitty has reached the state's biggest game in each of the previous four seasons only to fall in the title game, losing in 2022 to Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth) and in 2023, 2024 and 2025 to Etiwanda.
Mitty and Ontario Christian have waged some epic battles over the past two seasons. The Monarchs trounced Ontario Christian 59-34 in the 2024 Nike Tournament of Champions final only to have a rematch two weeks later at the Sabrina Ionescu Showcase. The Knights beat Mitty 61-44 in a game overshadowed by the Woliczko injury.
This season, the two played to a double-overtime thriller with
Kaleena Smith leading Ontario Christian to a 96-87 win by scoring 50 in the inaugural MaxPreps Game of the Week.
