The girls basketball team narrowly lost to their league rivals, the Half Moon Bay Cougars, on Friday night in an intense 51-49 game. With both teams previously tied 5-0 in league play, the loss puts the Bears second in the league and 13-3 overall.
High intensity from both teams dominated the court from the tip-off. A pass from senior shooting guard Luisa Tava to senior power forward Lita Fakapelea allowed her to make a swift three-pointer, putting the Bears’ first points on the board.
A layup off a fast-break from sophomore center Mary Tava tacked on two more points, shortly followed by a steal and another smooth finish from senior center Apé Ulukivaiola. The Cougars pounced determinately back, scoring their first three-pointer from the left wing. The Bears were leading 7-5 by 4:11, eager to continue scoring.
A lineup of fouls on Half Moon Bay succeeded the next few minutes, giving freshman small forward Bella Gormsen the opportunity to net two shots, increasing the Bears’ lead to 9-5. After calling a time-out from a period of intense back-and-forth shot attempts, M-A returned to the court determined to shoot, but was quickly overpowered by a Half Moon Bay three. The Bears fought for rebounds after weak shot attempts, but it was to no avail as the quarter clock ticked down to 0, ending the first quarter 9-8.
The second quarter became contested quickly, with both teams trading layups and free throws as fouls continued to pile up. The Cougars netted another three-pointer, which was immediately met by a M-A layup, tying the score at 11-11 just one minute in. Fakapelea added another point to the board with a free throw, and taking advantage of numerous fouls on Half Moon Bay, Ulukivaiola swung under the net for a reverse layup, bringing the score to 16-11 at 3:38.
The Cougars eagerly matched the Bears’ shots, scoring another layup and three-pointer, despite the ball being in the M-A’s possession for the majority of the quarter. With two more swift layups, senior point guard Molly Gray and Gormsen secured a tight 20-17 lead going into the second half.
The third quarter continued to feature relentless aggression and well-timed coordination from the Bears. M. Tava snuck a layup, but her point was quickly matched by a Cougar layup. Half Moon Bay’s belligerent play landed them numerous fouls two minutes into the quarter, allowing M. Tava to net another shot.
Unfortunately for M-A, the Cougars’ offensive pressure and continuous three-point shot attempts began to cut into the Bears’ lead. A free throw and a crucial three-pointer helped Half Moon Bay work its way up on the scoreboard, as the Bears fell behind 30-25. Although M-A continued to fight back with two-point shots from M. Tava and Gray, a series of smooth layups built a steady cushion between the teams, finishing the quarter with the Bears short 34-30.
The Bears entered the final quarter with newfound resolve to win back the game. Right off the bat, both teams netted two layups, succeeded by a shot from Fakapelea and two more M-A layups from M. Tava. However, Half Moon Bay kept up, scoring another three and matching the Bears’ two-point shots with fierce determination.
As the clock neared the four minute mark, the crowd slowly rose to their feet as both teams entered an intense back-and-forth battle for the lead. An electrifying three-pointer to beat the shot clock from Fakapelea rang out cheers, and M-A continued to take advantage of personal fouls on Half Moon Bay to create opportunities to score as the score reached 41-41.
From there, the teams traded baskets and fouls, both unable to pull away as the clock ticked down to the final three minutes. In the final moments, the lead switched between the Bears and Cougars. With two netted free throws from Fakapelea and a layup from Ulukivaiola, the game came down to a strained battle with the Bears just barely hanging on in the lead 49-48.
With just 10 seconds remaining, Half Moon Bay pushed the ball up the court and hit a commanding three-pointer, taking the 51-49 lead and putting the Bears in a stressful position for the final three seconds of the game.
The Bears had one last opportunity, and the crowd held its breath for a final three-pointer from L. Tava—the ball that swirled around the hoop, but fell out just as the buzzer sounded, ending the game as a 51-49 loss for the Bears.
“I mean, the energy was insane,” senior shooting guard Molly Rosen said. “The crowd was insane, and we fed off that energy.”
“I think on defense, we really locked them down, and we did our best defensively, guarding their obviously very big player,” junior point guard Isabelle Habibi said. “On the offensive side, our shots just weren’t falling. We were taking as many as we could. Nothing was hitting for us tonight, and I think that’s what stopped us from winning this game.”
“It was shot for shot, like we would have a good run, then they would have a good run,” Rosen added. “Ultimately, they just had one more shot than us.”
The team will travel to face the San Mateo Bearcats on Tuesday at 6 p.m.
