When Bret Harte and Riverbank High varsity girls' basketball teams traded four consecutive three-point baskets in a matter of just one minute during the third period, Bruin coach Tim Carnes knew his first-ever playoff victory wasn't going to be easy.
"I knew we were in a battle and at one point I even said 'Oh my God we are trading them'," Carnes said.
Bret Harte trailed by just two points with less than two minutes to play, but missed most of their final shot attempts as Riverbank rallied to a 54-51 victory on Feb. 21.
The win propelled the sixth-seeded Lady Bruins to face No. 3 West Campus in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV quarterfinals on Thursday, where West Campus won in a 47-35 contest.
The game ended a 17-8 season for a Riverbank team that saw the program's first trip to the second round of the postseason since they won the Trans-Valley League and received a first round bye in 1984. Bret Harte ended Riverbank's season after a one-point victory that same season, but couldn't pull off a similar finish this year.
"I knew we had it in us," Riverbank freshman standout Olivia Luu said after the win over Bret Harte. "We just played our butts off and we won. I'm so happy right now."
Riverbank led Bret Harte 28-18 after a half, but faltered in the final 10 minutes of the game when Bret Harte seniors crashed the hoop for well-executed scores on repeated assaults.
Janelle Luu sunk a trey to put Riverbank ahead 38-28 with 2:20 remaining in the third, but watched Bret Harte match the shot with their own three-pointer just 25 seconds later. Olivia Luu added her own conversion beyond the arc with 1:30 to play in the period, but Bret Harte again matched shot with a Bullfrog trey at the 1:20 mark.
Olivia Luu free throws put Riverbank up by eight points with under six minutes to play, but Bret Harte stayed within five points during the final three minutes to make it interesting.
Riverbank turnovers and Bret Harte offensive rebounds gave the Bullfrogs some opportunities to close the gap in the final minute, but Bret Harte missed three of their final four shots.
Olivia Luu ended with 16 points, seven steals and three assists in the win. Tiffany Edgar added 16 points and 14 rebounds while Janelle Luu nabbed 12 points and 15 rebounds. Angel Harrell (six points) and Amy McDonald (four) also contributed scoring.
Harrell made a big impact during the loss to West Campus, but was removed from the game with an injury just 20 seconds into the second half. Her play kept Riverbank alive at a 22-21 first half deficit.
"We were in that game until Angel got hurt," Carnes said. "They had so many tall girls and Angel really turned into our X-factor."
Olivia Luu scored 17 points and nabbed a 10-for-12 effort from the foul line. Edgar chipped in 11 points, five rebounds and two blocks while Harrell, Janelle Luu (six rebounds) and Tori Sandoval each collected two points.
"Our thing was to go out and play every game independent of the last," Carnes said. "The most important thing was to play hard from tip to buzzer."
"I knew we were in a battle and at one point I even said 'Oh my God we are trading them'," Carnes said.
Bret Harte trailed by just two points with less than two minutes to play, but missed most of their final shot attempts as Riverbank rallied to a 54-51 victory on Feb. 21.
The win propelled the sixth-seeded Lady Bruins to face No. 3 West Campus in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV quarterfinals on Thursday, where West Campus won in a 47-35 contest.
The game ended a 17-8 season for a Riverbank team that saw the program's first trip to the second round of the postseason since they won the Trans-Valley League and received a first round bye in 1984. Bret Harte ended Riverbank's season after a one-point victory that same season, but couldn't pull off a similar finish this year.
"I knew we had it in us," Riverbank freshman standout Olivia Luu said after the win over Bret Harte. "We just played our butts off and we won. I'm so happy right now."
Riverbank led Bret Harte 28-18 after a half, but faltered in the final 10 minutes of the game when Bret Harte seniors crashed the hoop for well-executed scores on repeated assaults.
Janelle Luu sunk a trey to put Riverbank ahead 38-28 with 2:20 remaining in the third, but watched Bret Harte match the shot with their own three-pointer just 25 seconds later. Olivia Luu added her own conversion beyond the arc with 1:30 to play in the period, but Bret Harte again matched shot with a Bullfrog trey at the 1:20 mark.
Olivia Luu free throws put Riverbank up by eight points with under six minutes to play, but Bret Harte stayed within five points during the final three minutes to make it interesting.
Riverbank turnovers and Bret Harte offensive rebounds gave the Bullfrogs some opportunities to close the gap in the final minute, but Bret Harte missed three of their final four shots.
Olivia Luu ended with 16 points, seven steals and three assists in the win. Tiffany Edgar added 16 points and 14 rebounds while Janelle Luu nabbed 12 points and 15 rebounds. Angel Harrell (six points) and Amy McDonald (four) also contributed scoring.
Harrell made a big impact during the loss to West Campus, but was removed from the game with an injury just 20 seconds into the second half. Her play kept Riverbank alive at a 22-21 first half deficit.
"We were in that game until Angel got hurt," Carnes said. "They had so many tall girls and Angel really turned into our X-factor."
Olivia Luu scored 17 points and nabbed a 10-for-12 effort from the foul line. Edgar chipped in 11 points, five rebounds and two blocks while Harrell, Janelle Luu (six rebounds) and Tori Sandoval each collected two points.
"Our thing was to go out and play every game independent of the last," Carnes said. "The most important thing was to play hard from tip to buzzer."
