GIRLS BASKETBALL: Mills Can't Hold off Terra Nova

The Score: Terra Nova 62, Mills 45.

The Star: Mills High sophomore Kristen Lastokfa again showed poise well beyond her years in the Peninsula Athletic League tournament championship on Saturday night at Burlingame High. The guard, who directed her team’s offense and scored 11 points while also helping limit Terra Nova scoring machine Terilyn Moe until the late going, was the biggest reason the Vikings had legitimate hopes of an upset until the final period.

The Turning Point: The first three minutes of the fourth quarter. Mills entered the final period leading 42-41 and believing it could snap Terra Nova’s 16-game win streak, but then the Vikings promptly committed five turnovers and missed three straight shots. Terra Nova’s Terilyn Moe drilled a 3-pointer and then rolled in a floater while getting fouled to spark a 10-0 run that proved decisive.

The Quote: “They’re not a better team. They’re better athletes. … I don’t see a lot of (Terra Nova) plays. They do their job. They get the ball in the hoop.” – Mills senior post Lexi Chierici, when asked how the Vikings deal with the reality that Terra Nova is the better team after beating Mills for the third time in three meetings.

What’s Next? Mills (17-8) heads to the Central Coast Section playoffs. The Vikings have been a Division II regular – and have won their first postseason game before losing in the quarterfinals for five straight years.

The Bottom Line: Terra Nova (23-4) remains the class of the PAL. Mills, No. 6 in , looked poised to shock the No. 3 Tigers after a superb first half in which it shot 48.3 percent. But after leading 34-26 at the break, the Vikings lost any semblance of an offensive rhythm, shooting 2-of-17 the rest of the way and failing to make a field goal after the 4:58 mark of the third quarter. Mills did a great job defending Terilyn Moe (22 points, but on 6-of-23 shooting) but had no answer for Tigers wing Ivonne CookTaylor (season-high 24 points, 10 rebounds). An ugly fourth quarter washed away what was shaping up to be a thrilling finish.

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Terra Nova 62, Mills 45

M – 15 19 8 3 – 45

TN – 14 12 15 21 – 62

M: Lastofka 3 5-8 11, Sui 2 2-3 7, Chin 2 1-2 5, Delbianco 5 0-0 11, Chierici 4 2-6 11. Totals: 16 10-19 45.

TN: CookTaylor 10 4-7 24, Alapati 2 0-0 5, Elliot Tufuno 2 0-0 6, Moe 6 9-12 22, Afoa 1 0-0 2, Dawson 1 1-2 3. Totals: 22 14-21 62.

3-point goals: M: Sui, Delbianco, Chierici. TN: Elliot Tufuno 2, Alapati, Moe.

Records: Mills 17-8. Terra Nova 23-4.