St. Bernard Comes From Behind to Beat Bear River : Girls’ basketball: Center Olympia Scott, who scored 24 points and got 15 rebounds, ignited a third-quarter surge. Vikings’ 59-48 win gives the team its first state title.

St. Bernard High girls’ basketball Coach Lori Pawinski said nearly every major college in the country is recruiting Viking center Olympia Scott.

After Scott’s performance Friday in the State Division IV championship game, it’s easy to see why.

The 6-foot-2 junior turned the state final into her personal showcase, scoring 24 points, pulling down 15 rebounds, blocking five shots and igniting a third-quarter surge to lead St. Bernard to a 59-48 come-from-behind victory over Bear River of Grass Valley at the Oakland Coliseum Arena.

“It was her best game of the season,” Pawinski said. “She stepped up and said, ‘I’m not going down like this.’ ”

For awhile Friday, it appeared that St. Bernard might fall against a smaller but determined Bear River team. The Bruins took a 28-24 halftime lead, bothering St. Bernard with a full-court press that prevented the Vikings from consistently getting the ball inside to Scott and 6-4 Marte Alexander.

Unaccustomed to facing a press, St. Bernard committed 11 of its 18 turnovers in the first half.

“We didn’t pass very well in the first half,” Pawinski said. “Our height was to our advantage, but we didn’t utilize it in the first half at all. In the second half, Olympia stepped up and decided to take control in the key.”

St. Bernard opened the third quarter with a 14-0 run to take a 38-28 lead. Scott scored the last 12 points of the surge on six baskets, all but one coming from close range. The Vikings led by at least five the rest of the game.

“In the first half, we weren’t setting up the plays,” Scott said. “We’re normally a fast-breaking team, but Bear River was running with us. So we slowed down the ball, passed it around and got it inside. I mean, I can’t score if I don’t get the pass.”

St. Bernard (30-4) finished with a 25-game winning streak en route to the school’s first state title. Bear River finished 32-3.

Bear River Coach Dwaine Ganskie, whose team’s tallest starter is 5-10, said the game hinged on how well the Bruins shot from the outside. Bear River made seven of 20 three-point shots, but was only 16 of 54 overall (29.6%) from the field. The Bruins had great difficulty scoring inside against St. Bernard’s taller front line and were outrebounded, 40-22.

“Against a team like that, you really have to shoot exceptionally well,” Ganskie said. “We went a little cold in the third quarter. They got a run going and that was that.”

Ganskie, though, said his team had nothing to be ashamed of.

“We lost to the best Division IV team in the state, that’s the bottom line,” he said. “They are undoubtedly the most athletic and physical team we’ve played.”

With Scott and Alexander, another junior, coming back next season, the prospects look good for St. Bernard to make another run at a state title. Alexander finished with nine points, eight rebounds and one blocked shot coming off the bench.

“It’s nice having two big kids back, but we’re losing two great guards,” Pawinski said.

Point guard Kelly Shimbukaro scored 12 points and passed for four assists in her last game for the Vikings. Shooting guard Joi Turner, a San Jose State recruit, had an off game, scoring only four points on one-for-five shooting.

This was a game that belonged to St. Bernard’s big girls, a fact pointed out by Bear Valley forward Jess Wolf.

“It’s really frustrating when you’re 5-5 going up against a 6-4 girl,” Wolf said. “You can’t practice against that.

“I just went into the game thinking, ‘I just don’t want to lose by more than 20.’ At least we did that.”