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Troubie hoop clinches Delta League title

Troubie hoop clinches Delta League title

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Junior guard Brianna McGahan scored 16 points and sophomore point Sydney Teoh added 11, while freshman Lexi London and junior Chidera Okoye came off the bench for eight more tallies, helping St. Francis to a 63-25 win over Sheldon that clinched the Delta League girls' basketball team championship Wednesday night.

The Troubadours improve to 21-4 for the season and 11-0 in league play with only one game remaining on the regular-season slate. The next highest team in the Delta League standings is Cosumnes Oaks, which entered the night with two losses. Thus, the championship marks the 17th all-time league banner for St. Francis, and the first since the program captured three straight from 2016 to 2018.

The varsity win followed a 51-33 victory by the Troubies' JV Gold squad. Sophomore Mackenzie Tan scored 17 points behind a trio of three-pointers, while fellow 10th-grader Caitlyn Lee earned head coach John Bashore's "Hard Hat Award" for hustle on the strength of five defensive rebounds and a blocked shot.

Varsity led wire to wire in the nightcap, with senior Jadyn Weaver scoring the first five points of the game. Her defensive rebound then gave way for a Teoh fast break, extending the Troubie start to 7-0. McGahan scored 10 down the stretch of the first, draining two threes in the process, to forge a 24-7 lead. Emma Karamanoukian, who earned a starting nod, had the assists on both treys.

SF extended the lead to 37-11 at the halftime break, with London scoring a three-pointer as part of a 13-2 run. McGahan scored two more field goals, this time on assists from Emily Dusel, while providing the feed for an Okoye bucket at the 4:27 mark. Among the highlights of the second frame was a rare perimeter score for sophomore Aubrey O'Donnell. Normally a low post, O'Donnell found herself open on the right corner. She backed up to the three-point arc before burying the shot, but was only credited with a two-pointer.

Okoye, who also had a team-high nine rebounds despite just 12 minutes of actual court time, scored twice and assisted on a London field goal in an otherwise low-scoring third. Karamanoukian scored twice and assisted Teoh on a three in the fourth, as SF cruised to the win.

McGahan also had four of her team's 17 steals to go with her team-high offense. Dusel added seven rebounds and four assist, while Teoh and Weaver pulled down 11 defensive boards between them.

The 21 wins marks the highest win total for St. Francis varsity since the team went 22-9 in 2016-17. The program competes under the guidance of first-year head coach Brittany Woodard.

The JV Gold stormed to a 34-14 halftime lead before settling down to play nearly even ball with the Huskies in the second half. Freshman Colleen Medina added 10 points and three steals, while Lilian Vicio shot 4-for-7 for nine total points. Tan had 11 of her points before the break, then dropped in a trey in each of the final two periods en route to her 17. Another Troubie freshman, post Reese Walker, blocked three shots as part of the defensive effort.

Both JV Gold and varsity host Davis for the 2022-23 regular-season finale. The evening will also serve as Senior Night, honoring 2023 grads Dusel, Weaver, Sophie Harris, Kyla Escalante and team manager Jo Jo Myers. Friday's doubleheader also features the annual Booster-Q barbecue for fans and families from each school.