SACRAMENTO, Calif. -   Fifth-seeded McClatchy jumped out to a 11-0 lead and never looked back to post a 57-33 victory over No. 12 seed St. Francis Tuesday night in Sac-Joaquin Section playoff action.

“I was hoping we could catch them off balance early on,” said Head Coach Vic Pitton. “But that did not happen and they took us off balance. We had a lot of adjustments we tried to make for their personnel because they have a very good team and there were some matchup issues.”         

McClatchy sophomore Gigi Garcia scored six points in the first period and three different players hit a three-pointer. The Lions closed the first quarter with a 19-4 advantage and kept it in double digits the rest of the game. 

St. Francis tried to get back in the game, hitting four three-pointers in the second half. But the Troubadours were unable to make any dent in the Lion lead.
“We started executing in the second half but by that time it was too late,” said Pitton.

Garcia scored a game-high 19 points for the Lions, who advance to play No. 4 seed Nevada Union, a 77-47 winner over No. 13 Sheldon.

St. Francis finishes the season with a 17-12 record, while McClatchy improves to 24-3. 

Sophomore Lauren Craig led St. Francis with eight points, while junior Susie Rogers contributed six points. Sophomores Angie Ortiz and Kyra Huffman both added four points in the loss.

For the Troubadours, it was the final game for six seniors.

“They have put the blood, sweat and tears in for the four years to get to this spot,” said Pitton. “With this team, I have never had a team with any greater character. It speaks as a testament to these young ladies and their parents. It was my privilege to coach them this year.”

St. Francis will return a talented group in 2014-15.

“We have some young ladies who are just coming into own right now and you can see the upside and they have not even tapped into their true potential,” said Pitton. “The future is very bright.”

SF – Craig 8, Rogers 6, Huffman 4, Ortiz 4, Fairbrook 3, Dow 3, Soloaga 3, Razo 2. M – Garcia 19, Lee 13, Wong 12, K. Wong 5, Shimizu 5, Nubla 2, Donald 1.