San Clemente Lets Game Slip Away to Peninsula

Natalie Kelly has been a big force on the baseline for Palos Verdes Peninsula all season, but Thursday night she made the two biggest plays of her career in the waning moment of the Southern California Division I girls’ basketball semifinal.

With Peninsula leading by a point, Kelly blocked a turnaround six-foot jumper by San Clemente’s Colleen Turnbull with seven seconds left in overtime, grabbed the rebound and two seconds later sank the front end of a double bonus foul as the Panthers rallied to beat the Tritons, 56-52, at Peninsula.

Guard Lauryn Morita grabbed the rebound after Kelly, a 6-2 junior center, missed her second free throw and Morita was immediately fouled. She sank both free throws to secure Peninsula (30-3) its 21st consecutive victory and a shot at Harbor City Narbonne in the Southern California regional final Saturday at Pauley Pavilion.

For much of regulation, it looked as if San Clemente (28-6) would advance.

Thanks to baskets by guard Debby Caine (14 points, five assists), the defense of Kelley Kruger and low post work by Marissa Ficklin and Andrea Jacobs (10 points, seven rebounds) on Kelly, the Tritons held a 42-36 lead with five minutes 15 seconds left in regulation.

That was somewhat surprising in that standout forward Colleen Turnbull (12 points, 11 rebounds) was on the bench with four fouls most of the second half.

With two minutes to go, Peninsula Coach Wendell Yoshida had his players foul in an attempt to get the ball back. San Clemente reserve Molly Ela sank one of two free throws and the Tritons led, 45-40, with 1:01 remaining in regulation. Then the Panthers warmed up.

The Panthers, who made only 21 of 61 field-goal attempts, got a three-point basket from Morita. Caine sank a free throw for a 46-43 lead, but Panther backup guard Kimberly York made a three-pointer.

Caine’s driving eight-footer didn’t drop and Turnbull couldn’t get the rebound off in time to beat the buzzer.

“They hit those three-pointers and that did it,” San Clemente Coach Mary Mulligan said. “I thought that when they started fouling toward the end of the fourth quarter that we had this one.”

After a pair of free throws by Jacobs gave San Clemente its last lead, 52-51, with 1:09 left in overtime, the Tritons looked like they had Morita trapped along the Panther baseline with the shot clock winding down and 42 seconds to go in the game. But Kruger was called for a foul with only three seconds left on the shot clock and Morita (14 points) made both free throws.