Marina holds off Savanna for victory in CIF state girls basketball playoffs

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Rylee Bradley stepped to the free throw line for Marina’s girls basketball team with a one-point lead over Savanna with 12.4 seconds left in the CIF Southern California Regional on Thursday.

The senior carried the experience of a run to the CIF State championship game as a freshman to the line but that wasn’t the ingredient she turned to under pressure.

“What really helped was my teammates,” the guard said. “They uplift energy and they bring all they have and we have really good chemistry. So that’s what keeps me going and that’s what makes me confident.”

Bradley sank both foul shots and cheered moments later as teammate Cheyenne Abrams forced a turnover with her tight defense to help seal a 60-55 victory in a Division IV second round game at Marina High.

Top-seeded Marina (20-4) will play host to No. 4 Palisades on Saturday in the semifinals.

Bradley scored 19 of her 23 points in the second half to help the Vikings hold off Savanna’s duo of Camaila Carigma (25 points) and Dyanna Cruz (18 points).

During Bradley’s freshman season in 2023, Marina reached the Division V state final at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento and lost to Bret Harte.

“I’m so proud of the program,” said Marina coach Danny Roussel, whose team fell to El Dorado in the CIF-SS Division 4 semifinals. “Two times in four years (in regional) is really special. If we could make it all the way (to the finals), that would be sort of unheard for a public school in our area.

“We didn’t talk a lot about championships this year but as we’ve gone along, we’ve really just talked about each step of the way, how it intensifies, how it gets a little bigger each time.”

Marina raised its intensity to open the second half. After the teams headed to intermission tied 25-25, the Vikings opened with a 9-2 run to force a timeout by Savanna (19-14).

Abrams (10 points) banked in a 3-pointer to start the surge and Marina’s full-court, man press set the tone.

Carleen Nguyen (12 points) added a shot from beyond the arc for the Vikings before Bradley sank one for a 40-30 lead with 3:18 left in the third period.

Bradley scored 13 points in the third as Marina led by many as 12.

Savanna, the Division 6 champion, cut Marina’s lead to 56-55 on a contested 3-pointer from the top arc by Carigma with 14 seconds left in the fourth. The Rebels called their final timeout and were forced to foul to stop the clock.

Marina made 8 of 10 free throws in the fourth quarter.

“Super proud of them. They had an unbelievable year,” Savanna coach Ramez Michail said of his team, which won the first section title in school history. “Dyanna Cruz, Jazara Madrid, Camaila Carigma, the three best players that I’ve ever had the opportunity to coach at Savanna. … I’m going to miss them.”

Bradley raised her career point total to 2,682. Marina also received strong defense from Anaya Rivera and 12 rebounds from Vanessa La Mont.

In the other Division IV semifinal, Godinez will play host to Tulare Union on Saturday.

In other regional games Thursday:

In Division I:

Mater Dei 61, La Salle 48: Harmony Golightly scored 22 points and Stella Hoss added 20 to lead the host and top-seeded Monarchs, who play host to Centennial in the semifinals Saturday.

In Division II:

Rosary 55, Crescenta Valley 44: Riyanna Meaders scored 16 points as the visiting Royals finished on a 14-2 run to avenge a loss to Crescenta Valley in the CIF-SS Division 2 semifinals. No. 6 Rosary plays at No. 2 St. Joseph of Santa Maria in the semifinals Saturday.

More results to come.