Pioneers get Saturday title matchup

The Providence High boys’ basketball team has earned a spot in its first-ever CIF Southern Section championship game.

The Pioneers will compete in the Division V-A title contest at 11:30 a.m. Saturday at Mater Dei High in Santa Ana.

Providence (25-4), the division’s No. 1 seed, will take on a familiar foe in No. 3 Holy Martyrs (19-11). While the Pioneers won their first Liberty League championship in 13 years this season, the Armens placed second.

In two head-to-head meetings in league competitions, Providence came out on two in both games, 56-53, and 62-54.

The Pioneers will be trying to win just the school’s second CIF championship in any sport. A Jeff Cirillo-led Providence baseball team captured the Small Schools crown in 1986.