A straight-line drive through traffic for a layup by Dos Pueblos sophomore Carly Letendre with 22 seconds remaining was the difference as the Chargers captured a 46-44 victory over rival San Marcos on Thursday night at the Thunderhut.
The teams went back and forth for most of the game and a layup by Natash Bender of San Marcos tied the score at 44 with 37 seconds remaining, which set the stage for Letendre’s heroics.
“Tonight was a big time game and in the past {Letendre} tended to kind of fade away from those moment a little bit maybe because she was younger than a lot of group, but tonight she seized that moment and she has been seizing those moments all year,” said Dos Pueblos coach Manny Murrillo. “I’m really proud of her because she has all the skill in the world and she is letting it show in those bigger moments.”
Coming off a program record 38 points as well as a program record 11 three-pointers on Tuesday against Santa Barbara, Justine Katz did not make any three-pointer against San Marcos, but still managed to pour in a game-high 17 points.
Bender led San Marcos with 16 points and Carly Nielsen chipped in 13 points.
San Marcos was able to turn the game into a grind it out slugfest despite missing two starters. Dos Pueblos has scored nearly 65 points per game this season, but did not come close to that total while converting only three three-pointers as a team.
“Both sides grew up playing basketball together. That’s a good thing and a bad thing,” said San Marcos coach Tiffany Simms. “They know that Dos Pueblos does not like pressure. They don’t like to be touched. They want things to come simple and for people to lay off of them and my team said not tonight.”
Oxnard, 58; Santa Barbara, 33
Oxnard’s Kayla Lumas led all scorers with 15 points. The Dons dropped to 2-9 in Channel League play.
St. Bonaventure, 54; Bishop Diego, 37
The Cardinals dropped a key Tri-Valley league contest to the rival Seraphs. Bishop Diego is now 19-5 overall and 3-3 in league play.