The Aragon girls basketball team (17-10 overall, 11-1 Peninsula South League) fought against St. Francis (12-14 overall, 2-8 West Catholic League) on Feb. 27 in the semi-finals of the Central Coast Section championships, eventually facing a 56-43 defeat.
Senior point guard Lydia Manu, sophomore shooting guard Mabryn Manu and sophomore shooting and point guard Jordan Beaumont linked up plays for a successful offense during the second quarter. In the third minute, Lydia Manu passed to Mabryn Manu and immediately received the ball back and sank a two pointer from right outside the key. Less than a minute later, Beaumont picked the ball from a St. Francis player. With a quick give-and-go with Mabryn Manu, Beaumont picked the ball up again and charged down the right side of the court for a layup.
The Dons let up their 14-9 lead from the first quarter and went into the second half tied due to St. Francis’ ability to break down parts of Aragon’s defense in the center of the court. St. Francis players had easy bounce passes inside the paint, leading to layups. St. Francis was also aggressive with rebounds, getting 41 total.
“They had some very good posts for sure,” Lydia Manu said. “They were just like us. They were tenacious on the rebounds and they had some good girls that would crash every time. They did a really good job just crashing the boards.”
St. Francis took the lead in the second half. In the third minute, St. Francis intercepted a long pass by the Dons and dribbled down the court. They then switched their point of attack to the left where they sank a bank shot. Aragon’s man-to-man defense was also called for seven fouls in the third quarter alone, allowing St. Francis 10 points off of free throws and putting them in bonus going into the fourth.
“Man to man, you get to control a little bit more. You get to force players. You can force bad passes or make them go to their weak hand,” Lydia Manu said. “We always like to play more aggressive so that we can control what we have on defense. We don’t give them those open threes or time to relax.”
Beaumont, Lydia Manu and senior shooting guard Lala Lautaimi led the team offensively, scoring 95 percent of the team’s points. Lautaimi led the team with 16 points while Beaumont and Lydia Manu followed with 14 and 11 points respectively.
“Lydia has been carrying us all season,” said head coach Sam Manu. “Today [she] and Lala played really well.”
The team prepared by adding new things to their practice routine as well as carrying on pregame traditions that they’ve had for the whole season.
“We practiced yesterday and we did some yoga at the beginning, which is normally what we don’t do,” said senior small forward Nadia Hemmat. “And then during warmups we were also singing Disney songs. We always sing. Today was Ariel’s ‘Part of Your World’ and we got some Mulan in there. We always pray before all of our games just for safety and love and just the bonds that we have with each other.”
Most of the team has now played together for two seasons, so they’ve been able to strengthen their bonds even more.
“Our season has definitely been a whirlwind, but it’s gotten us closer than ever. Last year was basically the same team and the same group, but I feel like this year we’ve grown a bond that is definitely closer,” said senior small forward Nautalie Hemmat. “A lot of people don’t know how close our bond is with each other and a lot of us are best friends at school and wherever we go.”
This bond has not only helped the Dons dominate the court, only losing one league game of the season, but also helped them overcome the season’s challenges.
“We’ve had two major injuries: ACL tears. And then we’ve had more than a few minor injuries from ankle sprains to knee sprains to fractures,” Mabryn Manu said. “But even though we’ve gone through so much, we just keep overcoming it. I just think our outlook on basketball and on life in general just gets better every single time we face challenges and I think that shows just how resilient our team is.”
Although the Dons did not make it to the CCS finals, they still had a successful and memorable season.
“For me, this is all a blessing. It’s a gift,” Sam Manu said. “For me to have the health, and for the girls to have the health and have an opportunity to express that in sports, it’s all a gift. High school years, whether [they’re] good, bad or ugly, you’re going to remember them, and to be part of their lives in this very formative time I just consider such a great honor. Just all the memories we’ve created really humbles you and makes you very thankful.”
The Dons then lost 62-44 in the first round of the California Interscholastic Federation playoffs against St. Patrick-St. Vincent (22-12 overall, 6-4 Tri-County Rock League) on March 3.
They closed off the season winning 63 percent of their games. With six out of the 13 players graduating this year, the team will have to readjust in the 2020-2021 season.
