SACRAMENTO – Mari Somvichian drilled a 3-pointer from the corner with a minute to go Friday and
Taliyah Logwood finished things off with a steal and layup to seal it for the
Oakland Tech (Oakland) girls basketball team.
The Bulldogs didn’t play their best game of the season, according to coach Leroy Hurt, but they were crowned state champions once again with a hard-earned, defensive-minded 39-33 win over
La Salle (Pasadena) in the CIF Division III title game at Golden 1 Center.
It was the second straight title for the Bulldogs (21-11) — the last was in 2019 before COVID-19 canceled the last two — and fourth overall.
Erin Sellers had 11 points and
Sophia Askew-Goncalves added eight points and 12 rebounds for the champions, who trailed most of the game until the fourth quarter.
“One of the toughest things in sports is to win when you’re supposed to,” Hurt said. “Honestly, we played one of our worst games of the year. But, defensively, we were fantastic.”
In the lowest scoring Division III girls game in state history, the Bulldogs forced 17 turnovers and just 33 percent shooting as they held the Lancers scoreless the last 1:47 and single-digits in points each of the last three quarters.
Oakland Tech celebrates its fourth state title and second in a row.
Photo by David Steutel
“We finished what we started,” said Somvichian. “We took what was ours.”
Outsized La Salle (31-3) got 13 points from
Audrey Chen and 10 by
Ryann Riddle, but ultimately couldn’t overcome Tech’s pressure. The Lancers were also without their top player
Ellie Chen who re-injured a knee during pregame warmups.
La Salle coach Scott Wiard was gracious in defeat, making no excuses for his short-handed team. He told reporters Ellie Chan's courage throughout the season was worthy of print.
"We cut it to one late, but they made the plays down the stretch," Wiard said. "That's why they're state champions. ... Everyone that comes to a big arena like this shoots well below their season average. It's hard.
"But there's really not much to say. We battled for 32 minutes and I couldn't be prouder of my team."
Ryann Riddle, La Salle
Photo by David Steutel
Hurt was equally proud and his girls and looked forward to his team moving up a division or two in the future. Tech won the Northern California Division II regional title in 2020 but the state finals were canceled due to COVID-19.
That made the championship even more sweeter for Askew-Goncalves.
“This means a lot,” Askew-Goncalves said. “We won the biggest thing there is. I’m proud of how we represented our school.”
La Salle - 11, 8, 6, 8 - 33
Oakland Tech - 5, 11, 13, 10 - 39
Lancers - Wong 4, Riddle 10, Cortes 6, Audrey Chen 13.
Bulldogs - Logwood 6, Sellers 11, Williams 3, Somvichian 6, Askew-Goncalves 8, Hunter 5.
3-pointers - LS 0-6, OT: 4-16 (Somvichian 2, Williams, Hunter).
Sophia Askew-Goncalves had eight points and 12 rebounds for Tech.
Photo by David Steutel
Oakland Tech with another trophy to add to its case.
Photo by David Steutel
