West Torrance Girls Beat Jitters, Then Bishop Montgomery, 75-61

Going into Saturday night’s Southern Section 4-A girls basketball semifinals, West Torrance High clearly had an edge in experience over Bishop Montgomery.

The Warriors had six seniors, including three starters. The Knights had only one senior, their starting lineup included a freshman.

But as Bishop Montgomery took a 16-14 lead at the end of the first quarter, it was West that was suffering from big-game pressure, according to the Warriors’ leading scorer, guard Rosa Olloque.

But the rest of the game was a different story. Olloque, who scored 25 points, led West (23-4) to a 75-61 win.

“I was a little nervous before the game,” admitted Olloque, who had only five first-quarter points.

She was at her best when it counted the most, though. Olloque scored 17 second-half points, including 12 in the fourth quarter, when she went 5 for 5 from the floor.

The Knights (17-10) were led by freshman Natalie Graham’s game-high 27 points.

A Graham free throw gave Bishop Montgomery its last lead of the game at 19-18 with 4:55 left in the second quarter. The Warriors followed with an 8-0 run, capped by Olloque’s driving layup.

The Warriors led 31-28 at the half and 51-38 after three quarters.

Senior forward Mary Litzenberg added 19 points and nine rebounds for the West Torrance. Carolyn Sumida came off the bench to add 10 points.

The Knights’ last gasp was a three-point play by Mirlen Martinez that cut the lead to 58-51. But they never got any closer, and West made seven free throws in the last 1:21 to seal the win.