Southern Section Roundup : Morningside Steals One From Damien

Mark Hammock stole an inbounds pass and scored on a layup with five seconds left to give Morningside a 64-63 victory over Damien in a Southern Section 3-A semifinal game at Inglewood High. A desperation 15-foot jumper by Kevin Paretington dipped in and out of the basket to preserve the Monarchs’ victory with one second left.

Morningside (22-4), which at halftime trailed by 18, rallied behind a pressure man-to-man defense which forced Damien into numerous turnovers. Three 25-footers by Raymond Scott brought Morningside within four at 58-54, giving Hammock his chance for last-second heroics.

Elden Campbell led Morningside with 14 points, while Efrem Leonard and Rick Neault each had 19 points for Damien.

Morningside’s opponent in the 3-A final will be Bonita (25-4), a 67-63 winner over Nogales (23-7) at Rowland High.

Greg Trygstad scored 32 points, including 10 of 12 from the line. Forward John Nichols’ 30 points went for naught for the Nobels, who made just 3 of 13 free throws, compared to 27 of 31 for the Bear Cats.

Chadwick (25-2) will face Santa Monica Crossroads (19-8) in the 1-A final, following its 70-57 victory over Whittier Christian at Sonora High. Forward Andre Jackson scored 14 points in the first quarter as the Dolphins jumped out to a 13-point halftime lead and never allowed the Heralds closer than eight in the second half.

Crossroads surprised No. 2 seeded Montclair Prep, 75-64, at St. Monica High to advance to the final and a rematch with Chadwick, a team it lost to earlier in the season.

In girls’ action, junior forward Sonja Bracken came off the bench to score 14 points to lead No. 1 Compton to a 60-46 win over Lynwood at Long Beach Jordan High. Senior forward forward Felicia Benson added 13 points, while senior center Kim Thompson pulled down 10 rebounds. Compton will face Muir (24-1) in the final, as they defeated Gahr, 58-55.

The 2-A girls final pits San Luis Obispo against top-seeded La Quinta (26-4), a 50-33 winner over Cajon (25-3). San Luis Obispo advanced to the final as Audrey Rocha hit a 12-foot jumper with four seconds left to lift the Tigers to a 45-43 victory over Chino at Diamond Bar High. Center Kim Crawford scored 15 of her 28 points in the fourth quarter for San Luis Obispo, mostly on inside shooting. Candida Echeverria had 21 points in a losing effort for the Cowgirls.

The 1-A final will feature Valley Christian against San Dimas, which upset top-seeded Santa Clara (24-3) in its 1-A semifinal game, 50-48, at Rio Mesa High. Senior guard Audrey Perkins scored 25 points to go with seven assists and five steals to lead the Saints (26-2). Candy Eckard added 16 points and 15 rebounds. Valley Christian (19-7) advanced to the final with a 37-32 victory over Nordhoff.