Los Alamitos High’s girls basketball team clinched the Sunset League Championship with a 60-34 win over Marina High on Feb. 9. The Griffins did fall in their final regular season game, 55-53, to Edison in overtime.
Edison’s Justine Modde made a steal and scored at the buzzer to clinch the win for the Chargers. But the Griffins went into the CIF-SS playoffs as the league champion and was seeded 7th overall in the division.
Sarah Hermann led the Griffins against Edison with 14 points and Dani Iwami added 12 points. Bayley Hagino had eight points for the Griffins. Against Marina, the Griffins were led by Brianna Flynn with 19 points. Hermann had 12 points and Iwami added 11.
The Griffins open the CIF-SS playoffs at home on Friday at 7 p.m. against Rancho Cucamonga, an at-large entry from the Baseline League.
Kennedy grabs at-large
The Kennedy High girls basketball team placed fifth in the Empire League, but qualified for an at-large spot in the CIF-SS Division 2A playoffs. Kennedy opens the playoffs on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Rio Mesa, the Pacific View League champion and No. 4 seed in the division.
The Fighting Irish lost its final two games by a combined three points against league leaders Tustin and Cypress. Against Cypress, Lindsay Masukawa hit a game-winning three pointer with 10 seconds left to lift Cypress to a 45-43 win over Kennedy. Masukawa and Justina Yoo led the Centurions with nine points apiece.
Kennedy was led by Kylie Matsuguma who had a game-high 19 points. Against Tustin, the Tillers rallied in the fourth quarter to defeat the Fighting Irish, 46-45. Camryn Hamaguchi had 11 points to lead Kennedy, while Ariana Conant and Dana Sugimoto each added eight points.
Cypress finished at co-league champions in the Empire League, tied with Tustin. The Centurions open the CIF-SS Division 1A playoffs with a home game at 7 p.m. on Saturday against Foothill, an at-large from the Crestview League. Foothill is the third seed in the division, despite being an at-large team due to a 20-5 overall record and its play in league against powerhouse teams such as Brea Olinda and El Dorado.