Sage Hill girls’ basketball wins pool with first win over Mater Dei
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Sage Hill’s girls’ basketball program had long looked to Mater Dei as the standard it hoped to achieve.
Finally though, the Lightning got over the proverbial hump Wednesday night as they earned their first win over the Monarchs, giving themselves a claim to be the top team in Orange County, at least for the time being.
Amalia Holguin scored a game-high 24 points, and coupled with a lockdown defensive performance, Sage Hill walked away with a 56-45 win in front of a capacity crowd at home.
Sage Hill (26-4), winner of Pool D in the CIF Southern Section Open Division, will play host to Oak Park (20-8) on Saturday in a quarterfinal game. Oak Park was the last team to beat Sage Hill, which extended its winning streak to 21 games.
“I’ve been here for four years, so this means a lot,” Holguin said. “It’s like the rivalry game, they say ‘best in O.C.,’ and now we got to show them that we [are] the best in O.C. this game, and hopefully we carry it on to the next. We’re 1-0, so it’s just like the next game for us.
“We’re not trying to focus on the past. We’re trying to get to the next game, which is Oak Park, and that’s where our head is at now.”
Kamdyn Klamberg had 15 points and 10 rebounds for Sage Hill. Eve Fowler added seven points, nine rebounds, six blocked shots and two steals, a notable figure in a Lightning defense that held the Monarchs to just seven points going into halftime.
“I think our defense was really great tonight,” Fowler said. “I think that my teammates did an amazing job. I think Kam did an amazing job on the back side, and Addi[son Uphoff] did. Amalia had great ball pressure, and I think Alyssa [Cuff] also did a great job protecting that paint, too.”
Holguin came out firing, sliding to her left and hoisting up a barrage of three-pointers. She made five in all, including one in which she performed a behind-the-back dribble to set up a shot in front of the Monarchs’ bench.
“I’m going to shoot it every time I’m open, and I know my teammates have my back, and I know they’re not going to look down on me, even if I do miss,” Holguin said. “Today, I was on. It’s because of my teammates, and it’s because of my coaches, and they trust me to put that shot up, and I just hope it goes in, but I’ve been putting the work in, so it better go in.”
Sage Hill’s suffocating defense began with a tone-setting play by Klamberg, who took a charge against Stella Hoss on the opening possession of the game. The Lightning also forced a shot clock violation, and did not surrender a field goal until Legend Tyler’s three-pointer with under two minutes remaining in the first quarter.
“That was on their minds, for sure,” Sage Hill coach Jethro Julian said of the Lightning notching their first win against the Monarchs. “... They wanted to take on the challenge and get this win today. Happy for them. They were pumped up, though. It was the most emotion I’ve seen from them all season.”
Uphoff added seven points, five rebounds and two steals. Mikhaila Cudia made a fourth-quarter three, helping to stem the tide as the Monarch pushed the pace to try to get back into the game.
Harmony Golightly had a team-leading 18 points, including four three-pointers, for Mater Dei (25-5), which has drawn a road game at Chatsworth Sierra Canyon (27-2) in the quarterfinals. All teams advancing to the Open Division quarterfinals have qualified for the CIF State playoffs.
CIF Southern Section Open Division playoffs
Sage Hill 56, Mater Dei 45
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Mater Dei 5 - 2 - 17 - 21 — 45
Sage Hill 10 - 14 - 15 - 17 — 56
MD — Golightly 18, Tyler 11, Hoss 7, Goran 4, Lewis 3, Strong 2.
3-pt. goals — Golightly 4, Lewis 1, Tyler 1.
Fouled out — Goran.
Technicals — None.
SH — Holguin 24, Klamberg 15, Fowler 7, Uphoff 7, Cudia 3.
3-pt. goals — Holguin 5, Cudia 1.
Fouled out — Cuff.
Technicals — None.
Also in the CIF Southern Section girls’ basketball playoffs:
Marina 51, Pasadena Poly 47: Rylee Bradley had 33 points to lead the host Vikings on Wednesday in a Division 4 quarterfinal.
Bradley converted 14 of 15 attempts from the free-throw line.
Marina (18-13) will travel to take on El Dorado (17-14) on Saturday at 7 p.m., as the Vikings return to the semifinal round for the first time since 2023.
Carleen Nguyen scored seven points, and Cheyenne Abrams added six points for Marina.
