’Runners clinch HDL title
Cain helps Rosamond girls top Kern Valley
ROSAMOND — Rosamond girls basketball head coach Justin Armstrong said that there are a few certain dates that he circles on his calendar. One of those is against Kern Valley. “I love playing against Kern Valley because they are so well-coached,” he said. “It’s never easy against them.”
And Tuesday evening was no different.
It certainly wasn’t easy, but the Roadrunners wrapped up their second consecutive High Desert League championship with one game remaining in the regular season, with a hardfought, 41-33 victory over the Broncs on Senior Night at Rosamond High School.
“This was the biggest win of the season. This kind of builds our confidence heading into the playoffs,” Armstrong said. “One of the big things early on is we shot too quickly; we were trying to get the ball in the paint. I told the girls we wouldn’t lose the game as long as we protect the ball.”
This is the fifth HDL championship for Rosamond (19-7, 10-1) in the past seven years since Armstrong has been the head coach.
Ariel Cain, who was plagued with foul trouble for much of the game, finished with a game-high 17 points, including nine in the fourth quarter when the Roadrunners needed a spark offensively. Cain scored all four field goals for Rosamond in the final frame.
“This was a big win for us because, obviously, we won league, so we’re excited,” Cain said. “At some points we played well, but others we didn’t. Sometimes we played down to their level. Our offense was rushing things. I knew that I couldn’t get in my head because it would bring the team down. We know we must pick things up heading into the playoffs.”
Following a free throw by Kern Valley (13-7, 8-3), Rosamond’s lead was cut to 32-29 with 2:27 remaining in
the game. That’s when Cain began to take over.
Her 15-footer stretched the lead to 34-29 with 2:01 left. Following a missed shot by the Broncs, Cain then drove the lane for a layup to give the Roadrunners a 3629 lead.
Kern Valley remained close as it scored the next four points to shave the lead to 36-33 with 42.3 seconds.
But following a timeout by the Broncs and the ball underneath Kern Valley’s basket, Cain was hit with a long touchdown pass for the layup and a 38-33 lead. She capped off an impressive fourth quarter with a steal and layup following a turnover by the Broncs for the final bucket.
Rosamond’s defense forced Kern Valley into 28 turnovers, 12 of those coming in the first quarter, but its offense was stagnant and couldn’t capitalize as it only led 9-5 after the first quarter.
“We were able to pull off this victory by working together as a team,” Rosamond’s Kiley Perez said. “We came in with a strong mindset. We were strong mentally and physically. We didn’t give up on each other. Kern Valley has always been one that we wanted to win. We are really excited for the playoffs, and I think we’ll be focused. I know we can take it all the way.”
Perez picked up the offensive slack when Cain was sidelined as she finished with 12 points and two 3-pointers. Senior Rihanna Williams finished with eight points, including two 3-pointers for the Roadrunners.
“It feels good getting the win,” Williams said. “I didn’t think our defense was the best, and it could’ve been better. In the first half, our shots weren’t falling, but we had much better ball movement in the second half. We played a lot smarter, and we locked in defensively.
“I’ll remember my teammates and my coaches here all four years. I’ll remember how we worked together and all the encouragement.”
The Roadrunners finish the regular season against another arch-nemesis, Desert, on the road at Desert.
The CIF-Central Section basketball playoff brackets will be announced on Saturday.