(GILBERT, Ariz.) Gilbert Christian girls basketball took down No. 5 Valley Christian 44-42 in front of a standing room only crowd on Saturday evening, proving that heart, coupled with a pair of clutch free throws, can serve as a veritable sling shot when the right personnel show up to battle.
"Our players knew they could do this. Not once did anyone talk or act like we couldn't win," Head Coach Mark Duitsman said. "I am just so happy for the girls to have that kind of moment in that kind of setting. It is one of those memories that will always stick with this team, not just because of the accomplishment, but because of the group of people we accomplished it with. These girls work hard for each other, they support each other, and they believe in each other. For them to be able to celebrate together in front of a packed gym was something they earned and deserved to experience."
The Knights were dogged from the beginning, harassing the Trojans on defense, and working on the offensive end to get solid looks at the basket.
At the break, however, Gilbert Christian found itself trailing 17-12, following narrow deficits in both the first (7-5) and second quarters (10-7).
It was a different story in the second half, as sophomores Addie Hansen and Lillie Duitsman showed their range, nailing a trio of contested shots from beyond the arc to log nine of the Knights' 19 third quarter points. Duitsman splashed from each wing, while Hansen drained one on the right side and took over down low, finishing in traffic on the break and grabbing an offensive board to set senior Kaila Aston up for a bucket at the high post.
Aston and Hansen's dominance persisted in the final period, with the duo combining to record nearly all of the Knights' points as they battled in the post with Trojans' defenders.
With two minutes remaining on the game clock and the Knights trailing 42-39, Aston drew a crucial fifth foul on Valley Christian's starting center Ariana Maurer, sinking one-of-two attempts from the charity stripe to bring the Knights within two at 42-40.
Valley called a timeout to set up its offense, but Gilbert Christian's defense answered, coming up with a stop and the ball heading into the final 1:38 of play.
A wild sequence of events ensued on the Knights' next trip, with a loose ball resulting in a brief Valley possession and subsequent turnover via a traveling call on the ground.
From there, GCHS inbounded and got a good look from three, just missing, with VCHS coming away with the rebound. Aston, however, tied up the ball before Valley knew what happened, and as luck would have it the jump ball arrow went in favor of the Knights.
Sophomore Alyssa Cervantez was next to make an impact, finding Hansen open on the block, where Hansen swiftly put away a left-handed lay-up to tie the contest at 42-all.
Valley came down the floor and got its own look from three on the next trip, also missing, before throwing the ball out of bounds on a wayward offensive rebound attempt.
Junior Tylee Fox capitalized on the subsequent trip, finding Hansen open in the post for a final try. Hansen went up strong on the left block again, but the stubborn ball rattled almost all of the way in, before popping out. While everyone else watched, Hansen stuck with it, grabbing her own rebound and trying again, on the right side, to draw the all-important foul as time ticked away.
With 16 seconds remaining, Hansen found herself at the charity stripe with the game on the line. In a jam-packed gym, full of her peers and rivals alike, Hansen made the moment count. She knocked down the first, sending the anxious crowd into hysterics. And then she nailed the second.
Valley brought the ball up for one final possession, getting a few passes in before Aston came up with a steal to end the game.
"Valley has an excellent team with some elite scorers in their lineup," Duitsman said. "They are very well-coached and present a lot of challenges for opponents. Tonight, we also presented some challenges. Addie had a breakout game on both ends. She was effective on offense from all over the floor, including those two big free-throws at the end, but she was also giving incredible effort with her defensive assignment. I also can't say enough about the defense from Alyssa Cervantez and Mila Russo. They had a challenging matchup in front of them and they went all in on it, which set the tone for the rest of the team. The group did not want to waste the defensive effort they were seeing from their teammates."
Hansen finished with 19 points, eight rebounds, and two assists. Aston notched a 14-point, 10-rebound double-double. Duitsman managed nine points, hitting three from deep, and posted a game high 11 rebounds. Fox and Cervantez played the point to perfection, with six and four assists, respectively.
With the win, the Knights improve to 8-5 overall.
Gilbert Christian has four regional games remaining on its 2024-25 schedule. Three of the four will be played on the road. Next up is a Wednesday, January 29th contest at Northwest Christian (5:30pm).
-GO KNIGHTS-
