SUNRISE GIRLS: Foothill’s Nash has late prayer answered

There was just one option for Foothill High’s Christina Nash when a pass was tipped in her direction with two seconds left on the game clock Thursday.

With her team down by two points, the senior forward knew she had to put up a shot, so she launched a desperation 3-pointer from the left side. The ball skimmed off the glass and fell in as the buzzer sounded, lifting the top-seeded Falcons to a dramatic 63-62 over third-seeded Coronado in the Sunrise Region girls basketball semifinals at Foothill.

The Falcons (19-5) host two-time defending region champion Liberty (24-5) in the title game at 5 p.m. today.

“I wasn’t really even looking,” said Nash, who finished with 18 points, five assists and four steals. “I just grabbed it and threw it up.”

Foothill coach Mike Collins struggled to explain the game’s final seconds.

“It was looking pretty bleak,” said Collins, whose team trailed 62-60 with 11.5 seconds remaining. “But I told the girls it wasn’t over. I told them to leave it all out on the court, and they did.”

Bri Higgins had a chance to tie it for Foothill with eight seconds left when she took a pass unguarded in the paint. But Higgins kicked the ball back out to the perimeter, setting up Nash’s heroics.

“She thought we were down by three,” said Collins.

The win was surprisingly difficult for the Falcons considering they had a 42-25 lead after scoring the first 12 points of the second half.

But the Cougars (20-10) battled back and tied it at 57 on two free throws by Lexi Melone with 2:34 left in the fourth. Sofie Cruz followed with two more free throws moments later to give Coronado its first lead at 59-57.

“We didn’t play well tonight,” Collins said. “We were our own worst enemy.”

The teams exchanged foul shots in the final minute, with Cruz putting Coronado ahead 62-60 by hitting one of two with 11.5 seconds remaining.

“I told the girls before the game that it was going to come down to winning or losing on the final play,” said Collins. “As soon as I saw it leave her hand, I thought it was over, we weren’t going to win. Then I looked up and saw it kiss the glass.”

The shot, which prompted Foothill fans to pour onto the court as time expired, ruined a dominant performance by Cruz, who finished with 31 points, six rebounds and six steals.

Tanji Ajeto had 13 points, 10 rebounds and six assists to help the Falcons, and Higgins added 13 points and six boards.

Liberty 70, Canyon Springs 66 — Alena Evans had 31 points, 13 rebounds, and six steals to help the Patriots rally for an overtime win over the Pioneers in the late semifinal.

Sydney Clark’s layup for Liberty with three seconds left in regulation forced overtime.

Though his team trailed 56-53 with 30 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, Patriots coach Quintin Lester said he never lost faith.

“These girls are young, but I have the utmost belief in them,” Lester said. “As long as there was time on the clock, I believed we could take care of it.”

Liberty dominated the opening minutes of overtime, scoring the first eight points to go ahead 65-57 on a layup and a subsequent foul shot by Evans with two minutes remaining. But the Pioneers answered with a 9-1 scoring spurt and tied it at 66 on a rebound and layup by Pearl Paulo with 51 seconds to go.

“It’s a game of runs,” Lester said. “We knew they were going to make some runs, and we knew we had to answer them with our own runs.”

Evans nailed two free throws with 42.6 seconds left to put the Patriots ahead for good at 68-66, then she sealed it with a steal and a layup with 15 seconds to go.

“That kid does it all,” Lester said of Evans. “She’s the epitome of tough. She’s got to be one of the best kids in the state.”

Alyx Stiff added 10 points, four rebounds and four steals to help Liberty.

Paulo had 24 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Pioneers (20-3), who used a physical first quarter to establish an early lead before falling behind 27-25 at halftime. Cherise Beynon added 14 points, 10 rebounds and five steals for Canyon Springs.