CERES — The fourth time was the charm for the Creekside Middle School varsity girls basketball team.
After losing three times this season to Mae Hensley Junior High, Creekside upset the host Warriors at the Mae Hensley Tournament, 34-32, in triple overtime Dec. 5 and went on to win the tournament’s title game Saturday.
Creekside and Mae Hensley battled through a three-minute overtime and a two-minute double overtime before the sudden-death format settled the game.
In the third and final overtime, 6-foot-1 sixth-grader Dani Hansen directed the sudden death tip-off to teammate Stephanie Cantu. Seeing no one in her path, Cantu raced down the court unimpeded for the game-winning layup.
“One of our players, Cherise Holloway, was covered,” Creekside coach Phil Hansen said, “so Dani tipped it over Cherise’s head, and she ran right toward our basket. We’ve won every jump ball with Dani.”
Creekside used that momentum to secure a 24-20 victory Friday over La Loma of Modesto to qualify for the title game against Blaker-Kinser.
Creekside trailed 12-9 at halftime but outscored Blaker-Kinser, 5-1, in the third quarter. Late in the fourth quarter, Emily Yin’s steal with 38 seconds left enabled Creekside to hold onto the ball and run out the clock.
“This was a big win, because all the top teams in our league were there,” coach Hansen said. “It was kind of like the playoffs of the league. The girls have started to realize what it takes to win in terms of team unity, being unselfish and never giving up.”
Marisabel Carrillo led Creekside with six points in the title-game victory, followed by Yin’s five points. Creekside sports a 10-4 overall record entering its final week.
The Creekside junior varsity team (8-6 overall) finished sixth at the Mae Hensley Tournament under the direction of coach Tenisha Thomas.
After opening the tournament with a loss, the Panthers beat Hanshaw, 51-13, before falling to Prescott, 38-31, on Saturday.
The JV squad features leading scorers Kai Roberts (10 points per game) and Giana Martin (10 points per game). Eva Cortez, a point guard who averages eight points per game, is complemented by post players Mele Tupouata and Jovanah Arington Bueno.
“This is a very athletic team speed-wise,” Thomas said. “We run a very aggressive man-to-man defense that is very tough. No team has gotten more than 30 points out of us.”
Creekside’s girls teams will wrap up their league season at home Thursday against Turlock Junior High at 3:30 p.m. They have added the Glick Middle School Tournament on Friday and Saturday in Modesto.
To reach Mike Vanden Bosch at the Irrigator, call 892-6187 or e-mail him at
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