Girls’ Basketball

Lindsey Davidson (14.9 points, 6.1 assists) goes for her fourth section title this weekend when Brea Olinda (27-3) plays third-seeded Foothill (27-3). Brea has won 10 consecutive titles. Dates and times have not been released by the Southern Section.

Historically, Brea hasn’t shot well in arenas such as the Pyramid. One advantage it has this season is the development of Chelsea Trotter (21 points) as a dominant go-to player inside, where the shooting background should be less a factor.

To Foothill’s advantage is that it doesn’t rely as much on the perimeter game, and even when it does, 6-foot-2 Kristen Mann (15.5 points, 10.8 rebounds) and 6-2 Chavaughn Brown (14.6 points, 10.8 rebounds) have been adept at cleaning up the rebounds and scoring. They’ll certainly be more challenged than any other game this season, facing Trotter (6-3, 11.5 rebounds) and Kate Ides (6-2, 10.2 points, 7.1 rebounds).

Calvary Chapel’s Cathy Joens (17.9 points) had a brilliant night Saturday, scoring 36 in a 62-61 victory over Playa del Rey St. Bernard. It was a rematch of last year’s title game. Calvary Chapel (24-5) will play Santa Monica Crossroads (27-2), the top-seeded team in Division IV-A.

The other local team that has assured itself a title shot is Rosary (21-8), which is playing its first championship game in 34 years of basketball. The top-seeded Royals will play second-seeded Pomona Ganesha (26-3). Rosary has advanced despite the absence of center Romina Bollini (12 points, 9.2), who suffered a knee injury on the opening tip of the Royals’ first playoff game.

“We’re crossing our fingers,” Coach Rich Yoon said of Bollini’s availability.

Debby Caine of San Clemente has been exceptional in the playoffs, scoring 16 in an upset of undefeated Troy and 17 in an upset to top-seeded Riverside North. The Tritons (22-8) play a Division I-A semifinal game tonight against Ventura Buena (25-3). At the beginning of the playoffs, when San Clemente Coach Mary Mulligan saw her draw, she complained that her schedule--”too tough,” she called it--had hurt her team when it came to the seeding process because of its eight losses.

It proved to be an advantage in the long run.

“We don’t panic when we get behind,” Mulligan said of the Troy game in particular, a 55-49 victory. “Maybe that’s where our tough schedule helped us.”

Mater Dei is also in a Division I-A semifinal. The Monarchs play Moreno Valley at 7:30 Wednesday at Santa Ana College.

Second-seeded El Toro (22-4) is in the semifinals for the second consecutive season and will face Lynwood, which upset third-seeded Chino Hills Ayala in double-overtime, 66-61. That game is tonight at Laguna Hills. Though sisters Giuliana (24.5 points) and Gioconda Mendiola (19.0) have continued to score well in the playoffs, El Toro has had at least a third player in double figures in each playoff game, Amy Rikimaru (14) and Amy Everett (12) against Dana Hills, Everett (10) against Esperanza, and Rikimaru (13) against Fontana Miller.