Genaya Wilkerson scored 12 points and pulled down 15 rebounds, 10 on the offensive board, but her double–double wasn't enough to carry the San Jacinto Tigers girls basketball team to victory as they fell to the visiting Perris Citrus Hill Hawks 38 to 30 in the final game of Mountain Pass League play Feb. 9.
The victory gives Citrus Hill the league championship with a 9–1 record, 16–9 overall, while San Jacinto finishes in fourth place at 5–5 MPL, 14–13.
The loss was disappointing for Tigers' coach Vicki Thomas, who lamented the fact that key players were out with illness, among them was her daughter Britney who had been averaging 11 points per game along with 10 rebounds. Though Britney played limited minutes, she was held scoreless. And that obviously hurt the Tigers' cause. "We had two players out, and we had no energy," said Thomas.
"Genaya played real well, but we had a bad week of practice, and we didn't play good enough to win."
Along with Wilkerson, Dana Smith had seven points, Adriana Delgado six points, and Sheena Hutchison scored three points and pulled down 10 rebounds.
The Tigers stayed close the entire game, and finished the first half with a 17-17 tie when Wilkerson scored underneath with three seconds left.
Late in the fourth quarter, Delgado's drive to the basket pulled San Jacinto within 32-30. But a 6-0 run aided by two Tigers' traveling violations and a Hawkes' steal allowed Citrus Hill to escape with the win.
But the season isn't over for San Jacinto. The Tigers qualified for the CIF Southern Section Division 3AA playoffs that began on Feb.16. They opened with a home game against Irvine (7-3, 19-7), the number three team from the Pacific Coast League. (Results not available at press time.)
West Valley (4-6 MPL, 12-12), the MPL's fifth place team, also qualified for the playoffs with an at-large berth. The Mustangs opened on the road, Thursday, with Rosemead, the number one from the Mission Valley League at 10-0, 19-7.
If the Tigers won, they would play the winner between Hacienda Heights Wilson and La Mirada on Saturday. Site undetermined at press time. If West Valley won, they traveled to Antelope Valley, also on Saturday.
A complete playoffs bracket can be found at www.cifss.org.
