DIVISION III GIRLS : Costa Mesa Gets Boost From DiCamilli’s 36 Points in 67-45 Victory

They keep winning, Heather Robinson says, so they can continue to play alongside Olivia DiCamilli.

They know something special when they see it.

Robinson and her teammates watched DiCamilli again work her magic on a basketball court, scoring 36 points to lead second-seeded Costa Mesa to a 67-45 victory over University of San Diego High School in a Southern California Division III girls’ semifinal.

The victory sends the Mustangs to the finals at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Los Angeles Sports Arena to face Inglewood Morningside, the Southern Section III-AA champion. Morningside beat Santee Santana, the San Diego Section runner-up, 68-59.

DiCamilli, who already has signed to play for San Diego State next year, is averaging 31.7 points in six playoff victories. She and her Costa Mesa teammates, now 29-4, are two victories away from a State championship.

But this victory didn’t come without a struggle.

University (17-10), the San Diego Section champion and the tournament’s third seed, held a 28-15 lead with 4 minutes 29 seconds left in the second quarter. Then Costa Mesa reeled off 11 consecutive points and a 17-4 run to tie the game at 32 on a shot at the buzzer by Robinson. That final basket came after a turnover after which officials awarded the ball to Costa Mesa with 11 seconds left. It was a decision Mustang Coach Lisa McNamee accepted with a smile and without comment.

Using the momentum of the second-quarter blitz, Costa Mesa continued its onslaught in the third quarter. Another 11-0 run broke a 36-36 tie and the Mustangs were never challenged.

DiCamilli, who had seven points in the third-quarter run, single-handedly outscored USDHS in the second half, 19-13.

“When we need her, she always steps up,” said Robinson, a junior who scored eight points. “Every game is special. We want to keep winning so we can keep playing together because we know we’ll never play together again.”

Losing is something DiCamilli said she won’t let happen.

“We’ve come too far,” she said. “I don’t think we have any intentions of being satisfied with where we are. We’re going to fight to the last second. We’re not going to give up.”

That tenacity saved the day against USDHS, which got 10 first-quarter points from Shanta Duffield (team-high 15 points) to take an 18-10 lead. The Dons led 24-13 when USDHS’ defensive specialist, Susanne Robertson, picked up her third foul with 5:18 left in the half. She went to the bench and DiCamilli went to the free-throw line, where she made both shots. She finished 15 of 18 from the line.

USDHS added two field goals to stretch its lead to 28-15, but made only six more field goals in the game. The Dons were only two of 14 from the field in the decisive third quarter.

McNamee said she was surprised USDHS didn’t use its press in the third, which helped it open up the big lead early, and that Robertson’s departure was the game’s pivotal point.

“Olivia was making her shots, but I’m not sure she could have gone 32 minutes working that hard,” McNamee said.