St. Bernard Keeps Share of First in Mission League

Playing in a hostile environment against a revenge-seeking rival proved to be no problem for the St. Bernard girls’ basketball team Thursday night.

The Vikings sputtered early but recovered for a 60-52 Mission League victory over Bishop Montgomery.

St. Bernard (17-3 overall, 5-1 in league play) remained tied for first in the Mission League with Alemany. It was the second time the Vikings had defeated Bishop Montgomery (18-4, 4-2).

The Knights trailed early, but rallied for a 13-10 lead at the end of the first quarter. With Shelly Dungo scoring 10 first-half points, Bishop Montgomery held a 29-26 lead at halftime.

But St. Bernard made its charge in the third quarter by outscoring Bishop Montgomery, 18-7. The Vikings were never seriously threatened thereafter.

“At halftime I told our team it was still a game,” St. Bernard Coach Lori Pawinski said. “If we’re down three or five points, we’re still in the game. I just told them to get out there and do what we do best, which is play hard and play good defense.”

The Vikings outrebounded the Knights, 45-24.

St. Bernard guard Joi Harper had a game-high 24 points and guard Kelly Shimabukuko added 15. Both players helped contribute to the third-quarter comeback with six and five points respectively.

Dungo led Bishop Montgomery with 15 points and center Keisa Smith added 11, including nine in the fourth quarter.

Knight Coach Cedric Hurt was optimistic his team could regroup.

“We’ve got the kind of team that can come back so I’m not too worried about us,” he said. “We just have to play hard and stay focused.”