Foothill Advances Despite Foul Trouble

Foothill held off a late third-quarter rally by La Jolla University City and went on to defeat the Centurions, 56-41, in a Southern California Division II girls’ basketball playoff game Tuesday at University City.

The third-seeded Knights (28-4) will play second-seeded Fresno Edison on Thursday.

When Foothill center Kristen Mann picked up her fourth foul with 2 minutes and 30 seconds left in the third quarter, the Centurions took advantage, chipping away at a 10-point Knight lead.

Foothill turned over the ball on three consecutive possessions and University City closed the gap to 43-39 with 4:30 left in the game.

Mann reentered and Foothill went on a 7-0 run to take a 50-39 lead with 2:03 remaining. Mann finished the game with 16 points, 14 rebounds, four assists and four steals.

“I wasn’t worried about it,” said Footill point guard Jacky Williams. “I was just trying to keep the team calm and keep everything under control.”

Williams was a key in the game for Foothill on both ends of the court. She held Centurion point guard Breezy Ambort to eight points, well below her 14-point average.

“[Williams] handles the ball so well and when she pushes it up you can’t stop her,” Foothill Coach Ty Watkins said. “She is tremendous. [Williams] is the difference in getting us this far.”

Williams had a lot of help though, as teammates Chavaughn Brown, who was recovering from the flu, and Kelsi Sousa each added 14 points.

University City center Shannon Torregrosa, headed for the University of Arizona, led the Centurions with 21 points and nine rebounds. With Mann out of the game, Torregrosa went untouched and scored six of her team’s seven points in their comeback bid.