The girls basketball team secured the 60-51 victory over the Torres Toros on Tuesday night. After a strong performance on both ends of the court, the Bears advance in the NorCal playoffs.
From the opening possession, the Bears set an aggressive tone when senior center Apé Ulukivaiola won the tip-off, and sophomore center Mary Tava immediately finished a layup. Senior power forward Lita Fakapelea built on this, scoring an and-one layup to give M-A an early lead, 5-0. Even so, Torres answered with a sequence of points, quickly putting the Bears in a 9-5 deficit by the middle of the first quarter.
M-A steadied themselves, pushing the pace and attacking the basket in an attempt to regain control. A strong drive to the hoop by Fakapelea, followed by a pair of quick baskets by the Bears, helped swing the lead back to M-A. The Bears continued to build momentum and closed out the quarter with a 20-14 lead.
The Toros opened the second quarter with an 8-0 surge to flip the scoreboard. Despite this, the Bears continued to fight and began chipping away to regain the lead. M. Tava battled in the post, and aggressive drives by Fakapelea guided M-A offensively. The Bears leaned on outside shooting, with clutch threes by senior shooting guard Luisa Tava and senior point guard Molly Gray to send M-A into halftime holding a 36-29 advantage.
Coming back from the break, the Bears were determined, setting the tone for the last half of the game. Freshman small forward Bella Gormsen and sophomore center Gracie Bullard* helped M-A push the lead to its largest advantage of the night, 39-29.
However, Torres mounted a furious comeback, trimming the gap with a string of threes and free throws to set up the third quarter for an intense back-and-forth game. Just when the Toros threatened to take control, Fakapelea nailed a three in the final few seconds of the period to put M-A up 46-42.
The fourth quarter was packed with tension and high stakes; plays got more physical, louder, and stressful. Torres grabbed a 47-46 lead early after a three-point play, leaving fans on the edge of their seats. M-A responded with energy. Fakapela, who finished the night as the team’s leading scorer, drilled a three and followed it shortly after with an inside finish, swinging momentum back to the Bears.
From there, the game turned into a battle of free throws. The Toros began fouling in a desperate effort to stay in the game, sending M-A to the free throw line again and again. L. Tava led the Bears at the line, confidently sinking six free throws to extend M-A’s lead and put the Bears in a promising position entering the final stretch.
M-A’s defense fed off this energy, forcing a five-second violation and running out the clock to seal the 60-51 victory.
“Even after a three hour bus ride, we don’t run out of energy, we’re ready to play,” Gray said when asked about their spirits going into the game.
“We were the 11 seed, they were the six seed, so we weren’t expecting to go in there and win,” junior point guard Isabelle Habibi said.
The Bears will face St. Bernard’s at home on Thursday at 7 p.m.
*Gracie Bullard is a journalist for the M-A Chronicle.
