Girls Basketball: China Jenkins' double-double lifts ECS to Private 8 Championship
It’s easy to win one game. It’s tougher to win two against the same team.
Beating a quality opponent three times? Very tough.
Despite that, ECS (18-2) built a double-digit halftime lead, limiting St. John Neumann to just 14 points and held on to win 45-32 in the Private 8 Championship game at Seacrest Country Day.
Defending the Celtics' Leah Martin-Gonzales and Sophia McCartney had been a tall order for ECS in the first two games. The Sentinels did half the job, and it was good enough.
McCartney (16.8 PPG, 13.7 RPG) was held to seven points and nine rebounds but did have five blocks defensively. Martin-Gonzales was close to spot on with her single-game averages (16.9 PPG, 4.4 RPG), finishing with 15 points and five rebounds.
“Defensively, I thought we did a phenomenal job against Leah and McCartney,” ECS coach Dwayne Donnell said. “They didn’t have very many good opportunities and if they did, they were challenged. Our kids stepped up to the challenge. Leah dominated us two times in both games. She got where we wanted, got to her spots, and got to the rim.
“I thought (Hailey) Figueroa, (Isabelle) Mitchell, and (Maddie) O’Berski did a fantabulous job staying in front of her and making it difficult for her.”
Neumann (15-4) pulled within 34-27 with 7 1/2 minutes remaining in the game, then Donnell deployed a scheme designed to bleed the clock.
With the win, ECS snapped an 11-game Neumann win streak dating back to Dec. 3. Three of the Celtics' four losses this season are to the Sentinels.
ECS' China Jenkins posted another double-double, finishing with 17 points and 11 rebounds, as Zaira Mitchell added 11 points and five rebounds.
Donnell and Neumann coach John Wholihan have mutual respect, as the two had a brief, humorous exchange before the start of the game. Knowing his team was going to lose with 30 seconds remaining, Wholihan had his arm around Donnell at midcourt.
“You’re out of the coaches’ box,” Wholihan joked as Donnell smiled.
The Sentinels will have another major test Monday when ECS travels to face Gulf Coast (18-3).
Donnell views it as a tune-up for the postseason, assuming they get out of districts, speculating on potential opponents.
“When we get to regionals, we’ll play Seffner (Christian) on Tuesday, and (Cardinal) Mooney on Thursday,” Donnell said. “Same thing here. We played Neumann today, and we turn around and play Mark (Woodruff) and Gulf Coast on Monday. We may play Brooks DeBartolo and Carrollwood back-to-back, so we’ve got to play these type of caliber teams and be ready to try and fight them.
“We won’t get any breaks. This is the worst region I’ve seen since I’ve been coaching. This is a really tough region.”
First Baptist 49, Community School of Naples 38
The Lions (7-7) limited star guard Kiara Cabrera (16.1 PPG) to five points and six rebounds in a double-digit win over the Seahawks (10-4) to capture third place in the Private 8 Tournament.
Grace Dean and Maleda Azunque finished with double-doubles for FBA. Dean had 17 points and 15 rebounds, while Azunque finished with 12 points and 15 rebounds. Dean is now averaging 13.2 points and 9.8 rebounds per game.
CSN had a relatively easy scoring distribution, but it ultimately wasn’t enough. Leading the charge was Leah Kershaw, who had 11 points and five rebounds. From there, Gracyn Crosby and Savannah Baker had seven points and two boards apiece.
Elly Beshears added five points and was on the bench for much of the second half with four fouls at halftime.
FBA played with the lead for virtually the entire game, leading 28-20 after 16 minutes. From there, they managed to break a Seahawk press that originally gave them fits, winning the second half 21-18.
First Baptist will play St. John Neumann on Saturday. CSN will play host to Oasis on Monday.
Other Scores
Fifth-place: Seacrest Country Day 60, Canterbury 40
Seventh-place: Bishop Verot def. SFCA
Follow Southwest Florida Sports Writer Alex Martin on Twitter: @NP_AlexMartin. For the best sports coverage in Southwest Florida, follow @newspresssports and @ndnprepzone on Instagram.
This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Girls Basketball: ECS wins Private 8 Championship, First Baptist third
