Monte Vista Falls to Westview in Girls Hoop Semis

Seeking only its second-ever berth in a CIF San Diego Section girls basketball championship game--and its first since 1985-86--Monte Vista High battled host Westview to the very end Tuesday night, with each school gaining one final opportunity to snap a tie heading into the final minute of regulation.

Unfortunately for the visiting Monarchs, their shot came up short, while on the other end, Wolverines guard Jamie Legaspi nailed a 3-point shot from the corner with 16 seconds remaining, the differece in Westview's 53-48 win in the CIF Division II semifinals.

While Monte Vista fell one game short in its quest to become the best team in school history, Westview will advance to the title contest in consecutive seasons. This time, the Wolverines will meet Rancho Penasquitos neighbor Mt. Carmel, which concurrently eliminated defending champion West Hills, 43-32. 

"What can you say? It was a great game and they made the big shot at the end," said Monarchs coach Michael Skibbe, who transformed a last-place team into a CIF contender in four short seasons. "Our girls played hard, so it's tough to take."

Many of Monte Vista's stars came through to build a six-point lead midway through the third period.

Deanna Bembry tossed in all of her 10 points in the second half, including a driving layin with the left hand to grab a 26-25 advantage.

Center Shamonqiue Boyd followed with a reverse layin off a Bembry assist as part of her 12 points, then guard Alex Ross, who registered a team-high 15 points, nailed one of her five 3-point shots to push the margin to 31-25.

However, Westview (23-7) rallied behind standout guard Melissa Peng, who recorded nine of her game-best 21 points in the fourth period. Included was a 3-pointer to grab a 40-39 lead with 5:31 remaining. She then went 4-for-4 from the foul line down the stretch.

The Monarchs eventually countered to get even on a steal by Tasha Brown, leading to her making 1 of 2 foul shots to tie it at 46-all with 1:13 left. That set .up each team's final major opportunity, which was capped by a Taylor Suggs pass to a wide-open Legaspi.

"I really don't know what the play was. My only job is to stand in the corner and wait until the ball comes to me," said Legaspi, who finished with 12 points, all on triples. "When I shot it, I thought I missed long because my legs cramped up--my calves got extremely tight and I fell to the floor after the shot."

Monte Vista finishes the season at 26-7.