PASADENA — The second-seeded Westchester girls basketball team went into Saturday’s CIF LA City Section Open Division final against top-seeded Birmingham looking to win the title for the second year in a row.
The Comets (22-6) battled hard throughout the game, but foul trouble and poor free-throw shooting hurt their chances. Birmingham made a late 7-0 run and won the contest 55-50.
Birmingham wins its second Open Division title in three seasons, both times the Patriots defeated the Comets.
Reigne Waugh led the Comets with 15 points, six rebounds and five steals. Savannah Myles had 12 points.
Senior Mariah Blake finished with nine points, nine rebounds, six steals and five assists, despite playing the majority of the second half with four fouls.
“We played a tough game, but there were a lot of tough calls that went against us that kind of dictated the game,” Westchester coach EJ Henderson said. “I’m not taking anything away from Birmingham as they played very well, but when you have your top players in foul trouble its a game-changer.
“We were able to stay in the game by sticking together and playing as a team. Reigne (Waugh) stepped up big time for us today and played a great game and so did Savannah Myles. I’m very proud of these girls. We will be back and ready to play in the state playoffs next week.”
Westchester went up early thanks to its pressure defense that forced seven Birmingham turnovers in the first quarter.
Waugh and Serenity Johnson helped the Comets capitalize by scoring four and five points, respectively, as the Comets took an 11-7 lead with 1:59 left in the first quarter. That’s when Blake was whistled for her second personal foul and headed to the bench.
The lead went back and forth in the second quarter with six lead changes.
Birmingham’s Annette Jones scored seven consecutive points for the Patriots who took a 22-19 lead with 2:13 left in the first half. Blake re-entered the game for Westchester and scored to cut the lead to one. Later, she picked up her third foul, which also nullified a basket.
Myles would score a basket in the final minute to cut the deficit to one before halftime, 24-23.
Westchester came out strong in the second half scoring the first four points of the half to re-take the lead at 27-24. Blake and Johnson both picked up their fourth fouls, sending both to the bench.
Blake returned and hit a jumper for a 34-33 lead at the end of the third quarter, and Waugh tied the game at 36-36.
“We really wanted to go back-to-back, but we weren’t quite able to get it done today,” said Waugh, who had a game-high 15 points and five steals. “This has been amazing last two seasons and we will comeback ready to play next week that’s for sure.”
With Westchester trailing 45-42, Ariana Jackson stepped up and hit a corner 3-pointer to tie the game at 45.
Later, Waugh tied game at 48-48 with 1:30 remaining. After Birmingham re-took the lead, Waugh was fouled with 1:05 left, but missed both free throws. Birmingham’s Lili Martinez scored a lay-up for a 51-48 lead with 57 seconds left. The Patriots’ iced the game with four free throws from Natalie Lopez.
Westchester went 3 for 9 from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter.
“This was a tough loss today,” Blake said. “We fought hard until the end, but we didn’t make the plays when we needed them and struggled from the foul line. We definitely will be ready for Tuesday (CIF Regional), this will give us some fuel for our fire.”