Crescenta Valley girls basketball defeats Saugus to win Division 2 title

ONTARIO – Crescenta Valley’s girls basketball team didn’t depart from its usual plan in the CIF Southern Section Division 2 championship game against Saugus on Friday night at Toyota Arena.

The Falcons played tough defense and responded every time that Saugus tried to make the game close.

The Falcons came away with a 51-43 victory for their first CIF-SS crown since 2016.

Crescenta Valley coach Michael Flot said his message to the team going into the game was simple.

“The mindset for them is enjoyment,” Flot said.

“We talk about joy. We talk about values, we talk about feelings, we talk about culture… And they’re gonna take this for the rest of their life.”

Saugus started the game with a 6-0 run before Crescenta Valley responded with a 16-3 spurt. The Falcons held a 16-9 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Crescenta Valley junior forward Ava Gharib, who finished with 10 points and six rebounds, led the way in the second quarter. She dominated in the paint on offense and defense as Crescenta Valley forced seven first-half turnovers and scored nine points off those.

Crescenta Valley held a 33-16 lead at halftime.

In the third quarter, Saugus put together a 5-0 run that included a 3-pointer from senior guard Jasmine Garcia, who had 16 points in the game.

The Falcons again found their stride and pushed the lead back to 14 points midway through the third quarter.

Saugus cut its deficit to just four points with five minutes remaining in the game. A layup by junior Anik Nortikyan extended Crescenta Valley’s lead to 44-38 with four minutes remaining.

Crescenta Valley’s defense held Saugus in check before a 3-pointer from Amelia Parmentier pushed their advantage to 47-39 with 2:35 left.

The Falcons held Saugus to 21 percent shooting. The Centurions were just 5 of 28 shooting in the first half.

Crescenta Valley and Saugus both advance to the CIF State playoffs that begin next week.

Crescenta Valley had last won a CIF-SS title in 2016 when it won Division 1AA.