For the third year in a row, Windward (Los Angeles) School girls basketball has won the Southern Section Open Division championship.
The Wildcats had to beat an undefeated foe to do so — one they had lost to just a month earlier.
When Sierra Canyon School (Chatsworth, Calif.) and Windward faced off Jan. 15, they were ranked No. 11 and 19 in the Super 25, respectively.
Sierra Canyon got the win. Windward dropped out of the Super 25, remaining near the bubble but just outside as the season progressed and they waited for a rematch.
On Saturday, the Wildcats avenged that loss, defeating No. 6 Sierra Canyon 73-58 and ending the Trailblazers’ winning streak at 29 games.
That championship feeling!
#PawsUp pic.twitter.com/3ppBc02kLg— Windward Athletics (@WWAthletics) February 24, 2019
As she so often does, Charisma Osborne played a huge role in the victory. After going just 3-of-9 in the first half with seven points, she put up 20 in the second half and finished with a team-high 27.
McKayla Williams scored 25 points and Kaiyah Corona added 17 of her own, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Tied at 48 heading into the fourth quarter, Windward went on an 11-2 run and outscored the Trailblazers 25-10 in the final quarter.
The Wildcats were able to hold off Sierra Canyon star Vanessa DeJesus, who put up 31 points in the January matchup. On Saturday, they held DeJesus to 4-of-15 shooting with 15 points. She only scored six in the second half.
This is the second year in Windward’s three-peat the team had to beat Sierra Canyon in the playoffs.
In 2017, the two teams matched up twice in the postseason. Windward defeated the Trailblazers in the Open Division quarterfinals and then again in the Elite Eight.
