MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA - The mood before the game was light and festive as St. Francis forward Lauren Johnson was honored on the Lancers' Senior Night, but the game itself was a sharp contrast.
In a tough, physical, and tight affair, St. Ignatius triumphed 58-50 over St. Francis in girls' basketball on Friday night.
Junior Sydney Raggio led the way for the Wildcats (12-3, 10-2) with 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting, and Addi Walters added 14 points. St. Ignatius fed Raggio down low for a number of baskets, breaking down St. Francis’ defense.
“I thought we had great patience offensively,” said Wildcats’ coach Michael Mulkerrins. “We made some big shots, we took care of the ball. Brian came out with a nice game plan with the zone defense, but we showed a lot of patience in our zone offense. We got to the free throw line and made good shots.”
The game was tied 21-21 at halftime, as St. Francis (14-10, 6-6) hung with first-place St. Ignatius. Point guard Kiana Tom had 11 points at halftime for the Lancers, including a spectacular three-point play near the end of the second quarter. She finished with a team-high 19 points, running the offense for much of the game.
But in a contest that was physical and tough, St. Ignatius had the upper hand in the second half, grabbing rebounds and getting many second-chance opportunities.
“We got out-rebounded,” St. Francis coach Brian Harrigan said. “We gave up too many second shots. If you give up second or third shots to a good team, you lose the game, so that was the key.”
The Wildcats took a 41-37 lead into the fourth quarter, and extended it to 52-42 with 2:11 remaining. St. Francis had one last gasp, down by five with the ball and under a minute to play, but turned it over.
However, it was a hard-fought game, the last one of the regular season for both teams.
Mulkerrins gave credit to the Lancers, saying, “We beat St. Francis up pretty good at home [61-35 on Jan. 25]. I told our team, ‘That wasn’t the real St. Francis. The real St. Francis team is going to show up tonight, and they did.’”
The Lancers appeared and gave it their all, but on this night, the Wildcats were still a little bit better.
St. Ignatius entered the day tied with Sacred Heart Cathedral for first place in the WCAL. Meanwhile, St. Francis finishes fourth.
