Foresthill falls short in bid for Sac-Joaquin Section Division 6 girls basketball title

Faith Christian held off a second-half comeback by Foresthill in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division VI championship game Friday morning at Golden 1 Center. Trailing 31-22 at halftime, the No. 2-seeded Wildfires began to chip away at the Lions' lead, outscoring the No. 1 seed 24-19 in the second half. However, a 22-10 run by Faith Christian in the second quarter proved too much to overcome in the 50-46 loss. "They hit some big shots and we missed some shots," Foresthill coach Lara Wicks said, as to the difference in the game. "We played them very well. We played them hard. We didn't get some calls to go our way, but that happens in a basketball game." Behind the shooting of McKenna Lechner and Addy Aldrich, the Wildfires claimed the first quarter 12-9. The Wildfires also matched Faith on the glass, made key steals and forced the Lions into multiple turnovers. However, Foresthill's freshman center, Amy Saxelby, got into early foul trouble and sat out most of the first half. In the second frame, Faith Christian's Lauren Harris and Audrey Harris came alive. The two combined for 20 points, draining five 3-pointers between them. Without Saxelby in the key, the Lions began driving the lane and feeding the ball into the frontcourt. "(Saxelby) was just struggling during that game and we had to go with a smaller lineup, a defensive lineup," Wicks said. Foresthill's defensive change helped hold Faith in check in the third quarter. Meanwhile, Lechner began driving into the paint to score eight of her 13 total points. Aldrich dropped in a three, plus a deuce, to give the Wildfires the edge. Aldrich was high point for the Wildfires with 17. Down by seven going into the final eight minutes, Foresthill battled but could not get their 3-point shots to fall. Aldrich and Alexis Kalb put up eight points with inside shots and two free throws. But when the Wildfires were forced to foul in the closing minutes, Faith Christian answered by making 4-of-5 charity tosses. "If we would have hit some shots and they would have contested a little bit more than they did," Wicks said, as to what could have changed the outcome. "(I'm) happy, they played a good game." Controlling the boards were Summer Stephens and McKenzie Anderson. The two juniors pulled down 24 of the Wildfires' 47 rebounds, which matched the Lions' total. Lauren Harris had a double-double for the Yuba City school with 23 points and 10 boards. Aubrey Harris also doubled up with 19 points and 14 caroms. Foresthill was seeded eighth in Division VI for the CIF NorCal Regional Tournament and was scheduled to play No. 1 Antioch-Cornerstone Christian on Tuesday.