Palmdale Achieves Golden Rule, 48-40

With 6-foot-3 center Kristy Rose struggling in the lane Thursday night, the Palmdale girls’ basketball team had no choice but to attack from the outside. What they found there was not only success, but a Golden League title.

Led by guard Rena Bonde’s three-point shooting, Palmdale erased a 10-point fourth quarter deficit and defeated Quartz Hill, 48-40, to clinch the championship.

“We couldn’t get it to Kristy so we had to shoot to come through,” said the 5-foot-5 Bonde, who hit three three-point shots in the second half and finished with 19 points.

The Falcons (20-3, 10-0) shot their way back into the game behind Bonde, then turned to Rose down the stretch. She hit a baseline jumper with 1:45 remaining that gave Palmdale a 41-40 lead--its first since a 5-0 start.

For most of the game Rose was neutralized by Jackie Johnson of Quartz Hill (14-6, 8-2). Rose scored only three points in the first half and missed a number of close-in shots, while the bruising Johnson scored eight.

The Falcons made only 16% of their shots in the first half and trailed, 20-10. Their game plan was to work the ball inside to Rose--who came into the game averaging 15 points and 11.1 rebounds--but it wasn’t working.

“(Kristy) missed about eight hook shots in a row,” said Palmdale Coach George Corisis, whose team has won 13 consecutive games. “But I told her you can still get on the boards and play good defense.”

That she did, forcing Johnson into her fourth foul with 6:32 left.

It was then that Bonde took over, hitting a pair of three-pointers, closing Quartz Hill’s lead to 38-33 with 5:25 remaining.

With Palmdale pressing, Quartz Hill’s offense sputtered and the Falcons took advantage, scoring the game’s final 13 points. Rose, who finished with 11, nailed a turnaround and Casey Bledsoe hit a shot from just inside the three-point line to narrow the Rebels’ lead to 40-39 with 2:10 left.

Sanethia Thomas scored 14 points for Quartz Hill. Johnson scored only four points in the second half and finished with 12.

“They had to make their shots and they did,” Quartz Hill Coach Brett Neal said. “They wanted the game.”

Especially Bonde, a senior, who saw the opportunity to step up in her last league game. She finished the game with a layup on a breakaway pass, then made a technical free throw after Quartz Hill called a time out it didn’t have with five seconds left.

“I wanted to go out with a bang,” she said. “I knew I had to step up.”