Harvard-Westlake girls basketball coach Melissa Hearlihy was a little worried when the boys basketball team stormed the court after her team had won a game.
“They tackled us, not realizing we’re not the guys,” Hearlihy recalled, smiling. “So we’re going down in a heap. I’m trying to catch Nik (Khamenia) as he comes falling because I don’t want him to get hurt and (coach David) Rebibo to kill me.”
The Wolverines accomplished a program first when both the boys and girls team won CIF State titles at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on March 1, setting an example of how mutual support can make success even sweeter.
Harvard-Westlake is the 12th team since 1981 to achieve the feat and first since Sierra Canyon’s 2019 teams to do so. The girls team won a Division II title by beating Colfax and the boys won in the Open Division.
The two Wolverines teams had drastically different journeys to the state championships. The boys were going for their second straight Open Division state title behind the dominance it had established that season while winning Mission League and Southern Section titles.
Harvard-Westlake also had a roster of recognizable names like USC commit Trent Perry, Harvard commit Robert Hinton and UCLA-bound Christian Horry.
@haleymsawyer Harvard-Westlake boys basketball goes back-to-back in the Open Division at the state championships 🏆 full story: https://www.dailynews.com/2024/03/10/harvard-westlake-boys-basketball-fights-off-salesian-to-capture-second-straight-open-division-state-title/ #golden1center #journalist #reporter #sports #basketball #highschoolbasketball #championships #studiocity #usc #harvard #championship #privateschool
♬ original sound – Haley Sawyer
The girls team had a .500 record coming into the state championships with a roster that at one point was down to its bones. Injuries had temporarily taken out players like Jamie Yue, Valentina Guerrero, Angelina Habis and Madison McDonald.
The Wolverines…
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