SACRAMENTO - St. Bernard’s, with an enrollment of less than 250 students, made the trek south to the state capital from the far northwest reaches of the Golden State to take on a Grossmont team from a school with nearly 10 times the enrollment.
By the time the final buzzer sounded in the 10am game on Saturday morning that kicked off the 12-game CIF state championships, it was the girls from the tiny Catholic school from an area known as “Behind the Redwood Curtain” that came up big in winning the CIF Division IV state championship, 47-29, in their first-ever state title-game appearance, and in a game where they never trailed. With the victory the Crusaders finished with a 30-5 record.
Three St. Bernard’s players registered double-doubles. Junior Laila Florvilus finished with 18 points and 14 rebounds, though she did have 11 turnovers. Senior post Madelyn Shanahan added 15 points and 16 rebounds, and freshman Samantha Sundberg had 12 points and 12 rebounds.
Grossmont (27-9) got 10 points from senior Kellan Hayden, nine points from senior Amethyst Price and eight pound and eight rebounds from freshman Aakash Price.
“When we say we’re from Northern California people think of the Bay Area, but we’re from way farther north,” Shanahan said. “To be from the far north and be able to come here and play in an NBA arena and win a state championship, it’s insane.”
For Tomlin, known most as the St. Bernard’s football, this state championship makes him arguably one of the greatest multi-sport coaches in state history.
“I’m just an old football coach doing my best,” Tomlin remarked before the game.
Now, with the CIF state championship in girls basketball, Tomlin becomes the first head coach in California history to win a state championship in football and girls basketball. His 2015 Crusaders won the state CIF Division 5-A Game championship and his 2019 team won the 6-AA title.
Tomlin also coaches baseball at St. Bernard’s, and despite there not being state championships in baseball he has captured three Regional championships. In 2015 and 2016 his teams won the NorCal D6 championship, and in 2022 his Crusaders captured the CIF NorCal Division III championship.
