MESA, Ariz. – A little more than 24 hours removed from her career performance for the Archbishop Mitty High girls basketball team, McKenna Woliczko spent the majority of the first 24 minutes Friday night against Mater Dei as a member of the supporting cast rather than the focal point of the offense and the junior standout just smiled and watched as her teammates all took turns in the spotlight at Skyline High.
Despite Woliczko making only one first-half field goal, Archbishop Mitty had more than enough depth in its lineup against Mater Dei to secure a 59-42 victory in the Vincent Cannizzaro Division semifinal of the Nike Tournament of Champions.
Woliczko contributed 15 of her team-high 18 points in the second half, but the efforts of Tiera McCarthy, Devin Cosgriff, Maliya Hunter, Emma Cook, Abigail James, Ze’Ni Patterson and Sofia Teresi had already provided enough support for last year’s most outstanding player in the tournament to help Archbishop Mitty (7-0) return to the Vincent Cannizzaro Division final.
Just like its 73-72 victory last season against Long Island Lutheran High of New York, it will be another showdown to likely determine the top-ranked team in the country for Archbishop Mitty, which squares off Saturday night against Ontario Christian (13-0) – a 73-65 semifinal winner against Bullis School from Maryland – at Skyline High.
Archbishop Mitty is attempting to become the first program to win the title in consecutive years in the top division at the Nike Tournament of Champions since Mater Dei achieved a three-peat from 2012-14.
Woliczko, who had 38 points and 17 rebounds in an 83-77 overtime victory against Clackamas High from Oregon in Thursday’s quarterfinals, has an opportunity to become the first athlete to secure back-to-back most outstanding player honors since Mater Dei’s Katie Lou Samuelson earned the recognition by herself in 2013-14 after sharing the award with sister Karlie Samuelson in 2012.
McKenna Woliczko of Archbishop Mitty | Jerome Reed photo
Cosgriff added 11 points and Hunter contributed nine points for Archbishop Mitty, which faced Mater Dei (11-2) for the first time since a 49-46 loss at the 2019 West Coast Jamboree.
Amaya Williams, a Grand Canyon University commit, led Mater Dei with 18 points, four rebounds and two steals, but it was an uphill battle from the outset, as Archbishop Mitty scored the first seven points of the contest and never trailed.
Kaeli Wynn achieved 15 points and 10 rebounds, but Mater Dei wasn’t able to receive the usual strong support from Addie Deal, who was limited to six points, seven rebounds and six assists.
Mater Dei cut the deficit to 17-13 in the second quarter, but Archbishop Mitty surged again to stretch the lead to a nine-point margin at halftime.
Cook produced seven points, McCarthy added six points and five assists, with James scoring five points for Archbishop Mitty, which stretched its advantage to 43-29 entering the fourth.
Tiera McCarthy of Archbishop Mitty | Jerome Reed photo
Mater Dei endured a 66-58 setback Dec. 7 to Ontario Christian in the final of the Troy Classic and was making its first appearance in a semifinal contest in any division at the Nike Tournament of Champions since 2018.
Archbishop Mitty and Ontario Christian are also scheduled to meet Jan. 4 in the SI20 Showcase at Carondelet High in Concord.
In other Vincent Cannizzaro Division games:
Ontario Christian 73, Bullis School (Maryland) 65: The Knights led 42-40 with five minutes remaining in the third quarter, but responded with seven unanswered points during a two-minute stretch and Bullis (4-3) never got closer than six the rest of the way in the semifinal victory at Skyline High.
Kaleena Smith had 26 points for Ontario Christian, which advanced to the final in the tournament’s top division for the first time in program history after finishing 13th in the Vincent Cannizzaro Division at last year’s event.
Freshmen Sydney Douglas and Tatianna Griffin scored 15 and 13 points, respectively, for the Knights, who excelled with their transition offense throughout the contest.
Tatianna Griffin of Ontario Christian | Jerome Reed photo
Ontario Christian only connected on a pair of 3-pointers in Friday’s victory after making 14 shots from behind the 3-point arc in an 88-70 quarterfinal win Thursday against Grandview High from Colorado.
Dani Robinson achieved 10 points and Alanna Neale had nine points for the Knights, who just missed having all five scorers in double figures for the third consecutive day.
Ivanna Wilson-Manyacka led Bullis with 17 points and Meghan Yarnevich contributed 16 points for the Bulldogs, who were tied at 22-22 following the first quarter.
Sanai Troutman had 12 points and Adora Nwude achieved 11 points for Bullis, which pulled to within 64-58 with 3:20 remaining.
Griffin connected on her lone 3-pointer of the contest with one minute left to increase Ontario Christian’s advantage to 71-61, surpassing the 70-point mark for the 12th time this season.
The Knights are competing Saturday against Archbishop Mitty for the first time in the championship game.
Princeton (Ohio) 60, Sage Hill 46: Despite 24 points from Amalia Holguin, the Lightning (7-6) were unable to keep pace with Princeton in the final quarter of the 13th-place semifinal setback.
Eve Fowler added six points for Sage Hill, which was outscored by a 22-10 margin in the fourth quarter.
Mari Gerton scored 14 points and Kiki Harris contributed 13 points for Princeton (6-2).
The Lightning are scheduled to compete Saturday for 15th place against Brookswood Secondary School from Canada, looking to halt a four-game losing streak.