SACRAMENTO — Harvard-Westlake girls basketball has steadily built toward a CIF State championship.
The Wolverines beat Colfax 60-45 in the Division II final at Golden 1 Center on Saturday to win their first state title since 2010.
Harvard-Westlake came together on the court but also came together at 10 p.m. the night before the game when players showed up at coach Melissa Hearlihy’s hotel door with makeup, ready to apply fresh eyelash sets. Bonding and visualizing winning helped the Wolverines succeed.
“In the end, (it was) just wanting each other to succeed and just being able to celebrate afterwards,” senior guard Jamie Yue said. “We have so much fun when everyone comes together and is able to contribute to one final thing. We were super excited to celebrate afterwards.”
Yue scored nine points in the game. Angela Habis scored 19 points and grabbed seven rebounds. Deana Thompson scored 18 points and had an additional four assists and four steals, while Valentina Guerrero came off the bench to record a double-double of 14 points and 13 rebounds.
The pinnacle of the season came after multiple injuries shuffled the lineups and kept the Wolverines (19-18) from establishing consistency on the court.
Hearlihy told reporters that her team had tied the record for most losses to make it to the state championships.
It wasn’t ideal, but Harvard-Westlake was able to grow from it.
“It’s just been one thing after another,” Hearlihy said. “What I think is a positive in that is that other people stepped up and other people got better.”
Harvard-Westlake found its rhythm late in the first quarter. Guerrero hit a layup and Deanna Thompson made back-to-back layups shortly after to get the Wolverines a 14-9 advantage.
Thompson was steadfast for the Wolverines all through the game, sure-footed and dribbling hard on her way to the basket.
“It’s just training and knowing that I can do these moves and and calming myself down during the game,”…
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