SAN JOSE — Archbishop Mitty knew it wouldn’t have an easy road back to the CIF Open Division state championship game.
The Monarchs, without the services of superstar forward McKenna Woliczko, would have to scrap for every point to get back to Sacramento, especially against a team like 33-0 Clovis West.
And so Mitty scratched and clawed for 32 hard minutes on Tuesday night in San Jose in the CIF NorCal Open title game, locking horns with the Golden Eagles and refusing to disengage for even a moment. So tight was their battle that the largest lead until the final minute and 20 seconds was four points, which was a 6-2 Clovis West advantage in the opening minutes.
But down the stretch, it was the Monarchs who made the winning plays. Down 56-54 late in the game, Mitty scored 10 straight points to go up 64-56, then held on for a 64-60 win.
The Monarchs are back in the state championship game, and they’ll need every second between now and then to catch their breath.
“It was very intense,” said Mitty’s Tiera McCarthy, whose steal and ensuing fast-break layup tied the game 56-56 and kicked off the Monarchs’ game-changing run. “We started off slow. Couldn’t get into our sets. We let them speed us up. Slowing down and playing our game, we came through with it. Playing together. Even though we went down, we played as a team and we didn’t overreact in the situation.”
Mitty (27-3) showed the poise it has gained from so many high-stakes games over the years, taking control of what had been a game mostly led by Clovis West (33-1) when it wasn’t tied. Though the Golden Eagles rarely led by more than a few points, they were more often than not the team that held whatever slight lead was available.
But all that changed after McCarthy’s theft. The Monarchs suddenly were the team on top after Ze’Ni Patterson bottomed a 3-pointer from the right corner.
Then, with 1:20 to play, Devin Cosgriff lined up a 3 from the left corner and cashed it in. Suddenly, Mitty was up 62-56, a nearly insurmountable and almost unfathomable deficit in a game like this.
The two late triples were only the second and third Monarchs made 3-pointers of the entire contest.
“At the end of the game, Mitty made a couple big plays, and we needed a little more time,” Clovis West coach Craig Campbell said.
Maliya Hunter put the final touches on the Monarchs’ unassailable lead, sinking two bonus free throws with 31.7 seconds to go. With Mitty maintaining the defensive intensity that was its calling card all game, the Golden Eagles never seriously threatened again.
“Going down, it was hard,” said McCarthy, who flirted with double-digit steals on the night. “But us getting a stop and then getting that possession back, that’s what changed momentum and was able to give us that lead.”
It was the sort of game that came down to a few bounces of the ball late. But thanks to Mitty’s activity all over the floor, the Monarchs tilted the odds as far in their favor as possible by generating countless deflections and crucial turnovers.
“When we got tired, we started getting out of what we were supposed to be doing, and then they capitalized on it,” Campbell said.
Either team truly could have emerged victorious on Tuesday. Even a four-point final score grossly underestimates how close the matchup was.
“Next quarter is going to probably still be a two-point game and play to exhaustion,” Campbell said. “We had each other scouted so well. Neither one of us got much out of our stuff. I told our kids, ‘You’ve got to make plays. You’re going to try to run something, they’re going to take it away, and now you’ve got to make a play.’ That’s what happens in championship-level games.”
The Monarchs received a balanced offensive effort in a game where scoring any points at all required an exhaustive level of fortitude.
Maliya Hunter led Mitty with 15 points, followed by Emma Cook with 13. Patterson and Cosgriff each added 11, and McCarthy had six while orchestrating the Monarchs’ attack from the point guard position.
“We played with tremendous resolve,” Mitty coach Sue Phillips said. “Never stopped competing. Whether we had a turnover or missed a shot, we buckled down defensively and got the stop via steal or defensive board. And when they scored, we quickly counter-punched.”
Malohni Warren led Clovis West with 14 points, while Ramie Chatman scored 12. 6-foot-3 center Alexis Swillis scored 11 hard-fought points in the post but was largely neutralized down low by Mitty’s swarming defense.
Mitty will now continue its run in Sacramento at the state Open game. It’s a perch the Monarchs thought they could reach without Woliczko, even when doubt crept in at times.
The strength of Mitty’s remaining squad was just enough on a night the Monarchs were pushed to the brink mentally and physically.
“When McKenna went down, everybody said, ‘Oh, we’re down now,’” McCarthy said. “But we found ourselves as a team. With McKenna too. Even though she’s on the bench, she’s not playing, she’s still with us in her hearts. We’re not overlooked any more.”
