Ian Wang
On Feb. 28, the Aragon girls varsity basketball team suffered a 64-27 loss against the No. 1 seed Valley Christian Warriors in the Central Coast Section Division II championship game, closing out a memorable playoffs journey for the Dons that featured wins against rivals San Mateo and Hillsdale.
This also marks the conclusion of a largely successful season, which saw the team finish fourth in the Peninsula Bay League. In the process, they had clawed their way back up from a five-game losing streak, before igniting into a seven-game winning run in the latter half of the season.
“We started off the season in a really tough place,” said senior and team captain Ellie McGinty. “We were losing a lot of games by so few points … [but] I’m most proud of the fact that our team never gives up … [Regardless of the results] we always keep working harder and pushing forward.”
Having clinched the No. 3 seed in Division II, the team came into the playoffs with strong expectations, looking to end their season on a high note.
Aragon’s first challenge would come in the form of the No. 6 seed San Mateo Bearcats. The Dons, having beaten San Mateo in both league matchups, came into the game with confidence.
Against the odds, San Mateo initially succeeded in their efforts to keep Aragon at bay with a stubborn defense, stunning the favorites with a sequence of breakaway layups as Aragon struggled to respond on offense. As the first quarter concluded with the Bearcats seemingly in control, Aragon knew that if they wanted to win, they would have to press with the intensity they had been lacking, and in the second quarter, they did just that.
“The turning point was [when we started] applying a lot of pressure on them,” said senior and team captain Daisy Pantoja Beltran. “Their guards … weren’t that good at dribbling the ball … Once we pressured them, they kept turning over the ball … [and] it was [all] good from there.”
Aragon’s relentless aggression stopped San Mateo’s offensive threat for much of the game, leaving the door wide open for the Dons to cruise into a commanding 55-27 victory, allowing them to set their sights on their next roadblock, Hillsdale.
“We all hate Hillsdale, [and] we … take the rivalry very seriously,” McGinty said. “We definitely were expecting that it was gonna be a hard game, … [but] something that really fuels us is [when] you’re out there, you’re out there to win, to represent your school, … your community and your friends and [classmates].”
Winning against No. 2 seed Hillsdale would be no easy task, especially as their fiercest rivals. With both teams ready to fight their way to a place in the CCS Division II finals, the stakes could not have been higher for the season’s final “Battle of the Fleas”.
The sky-high anticipation and tension developed into 32 minutes of play which could have only been described as a breathtakingly fiery and relentless contest, with nonstop back-and-forth action marred by dirty fouls — it was a strenuous struggle of passion, pride and grit.
“When you’re out on the court [and] you feel … the motivation and the intensity [while] playing Hillsdale specifically, [it] just cannot [be] replicated,” McGinty said. “Every round, every point, … every single little thing really adds up. They are really tight games because of how similarly skilled we are, … [and] it makes the rivalry … even greater.”
As the clock ran down, both teams were seemingly inseparable. A late run by the Dons put them into a four-point lead, 38-34. Barely a single minute later, they had squandered the lead, and with five seconds to go, the spotlight fell on senior and center Jayda Parangan who, with the ball and an open layup, was granted the opportunity to win it all.
“Just five seconds before, … I had given them the game,” Parangan said. “We were up by two, and I basically threw [the ball] into [our opponent’s] hands, for a layup. I was mad at myself, [thinking,] ‘If we lose, it’s my fault. So I have to [make amends].’ … Then, [in that moment], it was a beautiful pass from Lauren [Pong], … and the ball [was] right in front of me, I just had to put it in the basket.”
And with that shot, the Dons had punched their tickets to a seventh CCS championship game in truly spectacular fashion, and under the most unfavorable of circumstances.
The Dons had little time to celebrate, however, as the final team standing between them and the CCS title, No. 1 seed Valley Christian, would be their most formidable adversary yet.
“Most private schools go to the open division, … but Valley Christian actually dropped down into our division to play us,” said McGinty. “That wasn’t expected, and we knew it was going to be a really hard game, but obviously we were still hoping to win.”
Unfortunately, the game would prove to be a mismatch, with Valley Christian overwhelming Aragon for much of the game and drifting to a 64-27 win.
While the score told a tale of a crushing loss, spectators and players alike would say otherwise. The game itself epitomized the team’s fighting spirit and the unwillingness to give up — something no scoreline could ever show.
“It was a testament to our season … [that] when you’re in the gym six days a week, grinding it out with the same people, you want to play hard … [and] work hard,” McGinty said. As the game closed out, so did a truly memorable season, full of ups and downs.
The team played their last game of the season on March 3, losing to University Prep, 65-60.
