LOS ALTOS HILLS — As the final seconds ticked off the clock in No. 2 Pinewood’s CCS Open Division semifinal win over No. 3 Priory, the chants commenced.
“We want Mitty! We want Mitty!”
The Panthers will get their shot at the No. 1 Monarchs on Friday after pulling away from Priory in the second half en route to a 48-32 win. Now, the preparation begins in earnest for Pinewood, which has been working and building toward this opportunity all season long.
“They’ve been pointing to that all year, so that’s where we wanted to be,” Pinewood coach Doc Scheppler said. “We’re here.”
The Panthers (23-3) last knocked off Mitty in the Open final in 2021. The Monarchs have won nine of 12 titles since the Open Division was introduced in 2013.
Pinewood had some trouble putting away Priory (22-5) early on, scoring just eight points in the first quarter and leading 25-19 at the halftime break. But the Panthers turned it on in the third quarter, taking a commanding 38-24 lead and ensuring the final eight minutes were drama-free.
So will it be good enough to dethrone the mighty Monarchs on Friday night at Santa Clara University?
“They’ll step up,” Scheppler said. “We didn’t play a really fluid game offensively, but when you bank two 3s, that’s good luck. I’m really proud of the girls. Defensively, we took away all their stuff. We did a great job forcing them to take tough shots.”
Pinewood will have to make some improvements to match Mitty’s level of play. The Monarchs are too prolific offensively to be held to five points in a quarter, which Pinewood did to Priory in the first and third frames.
The Panthers also held Priory to four points in the fourth quarter before substituting all of their starters. But Scheppler knows the challenge ahead requires a stronger performance across the board, especially from Pinewood’s patented 3-point proficiency.
“We got clean looks, and we didn’t really shoot the Pinewood way,” Scheppler said of Wednesday’s effort. “When you bank a couple 3s, sometimes it helps to be lucky. Offensively, we weren’t flowing well. I mean, it was too splotchy out there. Credit to their defense and their game plan. I thought the shots we were getting were good shots at the rim and our 3s, and they weren’t falling.”
Scheppler said the Panthers will have an “NBA-style” light practice on Thursday and rest up for the challenge Friday’s game presents. They’ll need to be energized and play their best 32 minutes of the season to beat the top-seeded Monarchs at Leavey Center, even though Mitty superstar forward McKenna Woliczko is out with an ACL injury.
“Really happy for our girls,” Scheppler said. “They deserve it. We’re looking forward to Friday. That was the goal. We’ve been – not game planning for Mitty. But that was – if you’re in our section, that’s the game you want to get to, because you know they’re going to be there. And they’re so good. I want them to experience the CCS final at Santa Clara.”
Senior forward Katherine Garr was an individual standout for Pinewood, blocking five shots and grabbing 10 rebounds.
