Hart Still in a League of Its Own

The girls’ basketball team at Valencia High has likened itself to the Spice Girls on promotional posters, but it was Hart that showed its seasoning on Friday night.

Seniors Briana Kentfield and Christina Sanchez, and junior Tiana Jameson combined for 17 points in the fourth quarter and Hart rallied to beat the youthful Vikings, 51-39, in a Foothill League opener before a packed house at Hart.

The Indians won their 39th consecutive league game and the 62nd in 63 games.

“We didn’t want to be the first ones to lose it,” Kentfield said of the streak, which dates to 1995.

Hart (7-7), which had gone eight seasons since losing seven games in a season, appears particularly vulnerable this year.

Rival Canyon, which travels to Hart on Tuesday, is considered the favorite to end the Indians’ streak of six consecutive league titles.

“I’m a realist,” Coach Dave Munroe of Hart said. “Nobody’s going to go undefeated this year . . . but we’re going to try.”

Kentfield and Sanchez each finished with 13 points and Jameson added 11 points.

Senior guards Renee Reyna and Mia Anderson contributed relentless defense and helped force Valencia into seven fourth-quarter turnovers.

The Vikings (8-8) led for most of the game, but never by more than six points.

Freshman Holly Feneht had nine points for Valencia and sophomore Valerie Pina added eight.

The Vikings’ final lead came when Pina hit a three-point basket with seven minutes left for a 37-35 lead.

Hart answered with a 16-2 run.

“We obviously did a lot of things well,” said Coach Greg Hayes of Valencia, whose 12-player roster features only two seniors. “We put in 30 good minutes, but just needed to sustain that.”