SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Sophomore Brianna McGahan posted a double-double of 11 points and 14 rebounds but St. Francis could not protect a late 37-30 lead, falling by a 42-39 final to Cosumnes Oaks in Delta League girls' basketball action at the SFHS gym Wednesday night.

 

The Troubadours slip to 11-10 for the year and even their league record to 4-4. The Wolfpack improves to 17-6 overall and remains unbeaten in conference play at 9-0, clinching at least a tie for the Delta League championship with the victory.

 

St. Francis led for most of the first quarter before CO guard Emily Ko hit a pair of three-pointers to lift her team to an 11-10 edge with 1:15 to go. Then the Troubies poured in 12 unanswered in the second to reclaim the advantage, with McGahan hitting a pull-up jumper for the go-ahead at 2:14, setting the board at 16:14. Emily Dusel, McGahan and Chidera Okoye added additional buckets to extend that margin to 22-14 before Wolfpack point Isabel Tan knocked down a trey at the buzzer.

 

Junior Jo Jo Myers scored back-to-back threes and hit the front end of a two-shot opportunity at the line, helping SFHS pull away to a 33-20 lead in the third. But CO countered with eight unanswered to thin that gap to just 33-28.

 

Tan exploded for 12 points in the final quarter to put the Pack back on top. She hit consecutive three-pointers from 24 feet to pull her team to within a 37-36 deficit, then her midcourt steal and ensuing layup propelled CO to a 38-37, its first lead since the opening quarter.

 

McGahan grabbed an offensive board and completed the double-double with 57 ticks left in the game to briefly put the Troubies back to a one-point lead at 39-38. However, Tan scored her first two-point basket on an up-and-under with 28 seconds remaining, lifting CO back to a 40-39 edge. An errant pass on offense gave the Wolfpack possession soon after, forcing SF to foul. Tan hit both ends of a one-and-one trip to the stripe, all but sealing the win.

 

Overall, Cosumnes Oaks drained 10 three-pointers compared to five field goals from within the arc. In contrast, St. Francis managed just 4-for-23 for 17.4 percent from long range.

 

Earlier in the evening, freshman Sydney Teoh scored 12 points while Emma Karamanoukian added 10 to lead the Troubie junior varsity Gold to a crushing 59-8 win over the Wolfpack jayvees. St. Francis ran such an effective trap in the first quarter that CO only managed one field-goal attempt, which was blocked by freshman center Aubrey O'Donnell.

 

The Troubies led 27-2 after the first quarter and 42-2 at halftime. Eva Karamanoukian, Emma's twin sister, provided another eight points. O'Donnell led the boards with 10 rebounds.

 

Both SF varsity and JV Gold teams return to action at home on Friday against Franklin, while the JV Red will open the action against Folsom for a tripleheader starting at 4 p.m. The varsity contest will have postseason implications, with St. Francis, Franklin, Davis and Pleasant Grove jockeying for position behind CO in the Delta League standings.