SAN JOSE, Calif. – When the Archbishop Mitty girls basketball team last lost to a West Catholic Athletic League opponent, some members of the current squad were pre-school toddlers.
Now, after an 89-39 victory by host Mitty over a pretty solid St. Francis-Mountain View team that has a win over Cal-Hi Sports No. 16 ranked and CIF Southern Section Open Division No. 7 seed Fairmont Prep-Anaheim on its resume, the current Monarchs extended their WCAL winning streak that began in 2014 to 103 games.
According to the Cal-Hi Sports Online Record Book the 103-game league winning streak is No. 11 all-time and currently No. 4 among active streaks.
With junior sensation and previous Cal-Hi Sports State Freshman and Sophomore Player of the Year McKenna Woliczko on crutches while recovering from a season-ending knee injury but sill cheering her teammates on, its apparent others will need to step up if Mitty is going to re-claim it CIF Northern Regional Open Division championship, a title Mitty has captured the past three seasons.
Against St. Francis not only was Woliczko out but junior Emma Cook was also out nursing an ankle, but Mitty didn’t miss a beat. Fourteen players made the stat sheet and 11 scored.
Junior transfer Devin Cosgriff seems to be finding her stride as a Monarch, and it couldn’t come at a better time with Mitty beginning its playoff drive by drawing the No. 1 seed on Wednesday in the CIF Central Coast Section Open Division playoffs.
Mitty (21-3, 12-0 WCAL) got 14 points from Cosgriff, plus four rebounds and four steals in three quarters of action.
“I’ve had to do a lot of work learning our system but every day in practice the girls help me to get in my own groove,” Cosgriff responded when asked if she feels she’s had to step up her game with Woliczko out. “Whether or not I’m scoring more I know I need to contribute more, getting more assists, getting more rebounds, blocking out, and playing good defense. Whatever it is I need to add more to the team.”
The scoring leader for Mitty was Niyati Bangalore. The senior guard nailed four three-pointers and finished with 17 points, all in three quarters.
Freshman 6-foot-2 post Maliya Hunter continues to show why she is one of the top if not the top freshman front line player in the state. Hunter also only played three quarters but finished with 13 points, including a three-pointer, eight rebounds and two steals. Sophomore Ze Patterson also had 13 points in three quarters of play.
With it being the last league game, Mitty head coach Sue Phillips started five seniors, but when the score was tied at 5-5, the starters came in and by the time the first quarter ended the Monarchs had a 28-13 lead they stretched to 57-27 at the half before coasting home in a fourth-quarter running clock.
St. Francis (18-7, 6-6) only had one player in double-figure scoring and it was sophomore Grace Curley with 11 points with five rebounds.
Mitty now hosts No. 8 seed Valley Christian-San Jose on Friday to begin the CIFCCS Open playoffs.
St. Francis drew the No. 6 seed and opens on Friday at third-seeded Priory-Portola Valley.