The Riverside Press-Enterprise
Los Osos wins, advances to state final
RANCHO CUCAMONGA >> Los Osos girls basketball coach Dawnesha Buckner admits she is “not a big fan” of the 2-3 zone defense.
But when a berth in the state finals is on the line, all strategies need to be considered.
After playing man-to-man coverage in the first half, the topseeded Grizzlies shifted to the zone in the second half and rallied to blow out No. 2 Redondo 60-39 Tuesday night in the CIF State Division III Southern California Regional final at Los Osos High.
Los Osos (28-5) will play for the state title in Sacramento on Friday at 2 p.m. against Colfax, the No. 3 seed from the Northern California Region.
Los Osos is making its first trip to the state finals since losing in the Division IV championship game in 2017.
Redondo’s season ends with a 20-13 record.
“That loss (in the CIF-SS finals) was a blessing,” Buckner said, referring to her team’s loss to Flintridge Prep on Feb. 25. “Because it humbled us. It showed us what it takes to be a winner. I hope we carry that up to Sacramento.”
The first half was tight Tuesday, with the Sea Hawks scoring the final eight points to take a 21-19 halftime lead.
Twice Redondo’s lead was as large as four points in the first 90 seconds of the second half, but the Grizzlies then went on a 21-4 run in a 5½-minute span as turnovers resulted in fast-break points. The Grizzlies never led by fewer than eight points thereafter.
“We just put it in yesterday,” Buckner said of the zone defense. “We put the 2-3 in and they loved it. They saw the benefit. Once we see a benefit to it, they just keep going and get stronger at it.”
It was a tough end of the season for Redondo, which lost in the CIFSS Division 2AA semifinals.
“Our mistakes, they capitalized on,” Sea Hawks coach Marcelo Enriquez said. “Our kids just couldn’t regroup from that. I think our kids were rushing tonight and they never really relaxed.”
Redondo’s leading scorer, 6-foot-4 junior Ella Zimmerman, scored 13 of her 19 points in the first half, when Los Osos struggled to deny her the ball. Senior Bri Boyd added 12 points, but no other player scored more than three points.
Enriquez felt the loss of freshman point guard Chloe Choy to a knee injury two games ago was difficult to overcome Tuesday.
Los Osos’ freshman point guard, Jackie Polk, scored 14 of her gamehigh 24 points in the third quarter, making 5 of 7 field goals and all three of her free throws.
“I knew it started with me and I really had to turn it up in the second half,” Polk said. “Because I wasn’t about to let us lose at home.”
Senior guard Hailey Estrada, who gave her teammates an impassioned speech before the game, not only had 18 points, but also grabbed 16 rebounds. Sophomore Destinee Knight added 14 points for the Grizzlies.