Lady Bears Hold On to a 53-51 Victory over Santa Paula, to extend win streak to five

Lady Bears extend their winning streak to five games with the two point win over the Lady Cardinals

Two basketball coaches smiling for a photo in a gymnasium, with spectators sitting in the background.

A group of players and coaches from the Lady Bears basketball team huddle together in a gym, discussing strategy before the game.

The John Burroughs Lady Bears survive a 53-51 thriller over the Santa Paula Lady Cardinals as the Lady Bears extend their win streak to five games. Jessica Mena and Grace Barton combined for 44 points for Burroughs and Bella Rico led Santa Paula with 25 points. The Lady Cardinals had a 60-51 win over St. Genevieve and the Lady Bears easily blew out Heritage Christian 58-31 on Saturday night.

Lady Bears and Lady Cardinals basketball game in a gym, featuring players in motion during a game moment.

Game tip-off between the Lady Bears and Lady Cardinals in a high school basketball gym, with players and referees poised for action.

Barton and Mena began the first quarter with back-to-back three pointers to put Burroughs up by six. Bella Rico then scored back-to-back layups to get Santa Paula within two. Mena and Barton combined again as part of a Lady Bears scoring run with Natalie Sepulveda making a bank shot three pointer to give Burroughs a 14-point lead. Rico and Mena then traded baskets to close out the first quarter with Burroughs leading 21-6.

High school girls basketball game in progress with players running on the court. The Lady Bears in white jerseys are advancing the ball against the Lady Cardinals in maroon.

A girls basketball game in progress featuring the John Burroughs Lady Bears in white jerseys and Santa Paula Lady Cardinals in maroon jerseys, with players actively maneuvering on the court.

The Lady Cardinals went on a 14-0 run in the second quarter as they held the Lady Bears to only three points. Madilyn Stonebraker, Rico, Angie Aguilera, and Lorena Mendez all played a part in closing the gap which cut into the Lady Bears lead. Mena ended Santa Paula’s scoring run with a three-point basket to help Burroughs hold a four-point lead heading into intermission.

A basketball game in progress featuring a player from the Lady Bears dribbling the ball on the court, with teammates and spectators in the background.

Basketball game action featuring the Lady Bears and Lady Cardinals, with players in motion and a scoreboard visible in the gymnasium.

Following halftime, Rico hit a big three-point basket to put the Lady Cardinals within one. Barton responded with consecutive threes of her own to push the Lady Bears lead to seven. Barton then recorded an assist to Mena who scored the layup to make it a 32-23 lead over Santa Paula. Malise Maynard cut the Burroughs lead to six with a three-point basket in hopes of taking momentum away from the Lady Bears.

A basketball game in progress featuring players from the Lady Bears and Lady Cardinals. The scoreboard shows the Lady Bears leading. Players are actively engaged in a play near the basketball hoop.

A basketball game in progress featuring players from two teams, the Lady Bears in white and the Lady Cardinals in red, with spectators seated in the background.

Maynard and Mena both scored and-one baskets for their respective teams. Mena converted the four-point play after being fouled while making her three-point shot. Maynard converted her free throw for a three-point play with Burroughs still holding on to an eight-point lead.

Two basketball teams competing in a gym, with players in maroon and white uniforms. An American flag hangs in the background.

A basketball game in progress featuring players from the John Burroughs Lady Bears and Santa Paula Lady Cardinals on the court, with an American flag hanging in the background.

Following a traveling violation committed by Isabella Amayakyan, Rico scored back-to-back layups to cut the Lady Bears lead to four. Santa Paula was charged with a technical foul and Mena made one of her two free-throw attempts at the line with Burroughs leading 37-32 heading into the final quarter.

A basketball game in progress with the John Burroughs Lady Bears playing against the Santa Paula Lady Cardinals, featuring players in red and white uniforms on the court.

Players from Santa Paula and John Burroughs are on the basketball court during a game, with spectators and an American flag in the background.

Amayakyan and Rico scored points for their respective teams to start the fourth quarter, though Burroughs’ advantage was down to four points at 39-35. Rico then made both of her free throws to cut the Burroughs lead to two. Barton responded with a huge three to reestablish a five-point advantage for the Lady Bears.

A basketball game in progress with players from the John Burroughs Lady Bears and the Santa Paula Lady Cardinals on the court, scoreboard showing the home team leading 21-20 in the fourth quarter.

Santa Paula found themselves down by 10 in the final quarter, but gave themselves another shot at stealing a win from Burroughs with Rico making two clutch free throws to make it a two-point lead. Things got dicey with double technical fouls being called late in the game. Amayakyan and Rico each went one of two on their free throw attempts, and the lead stayed at two points.

A competitive high school basketball game between the Lady Bears and Lady Cardinals, showcasing players actively on the court with a scoreboard displaying the current time and score.

Girls basketball game featuring the John Burroughs Lady Bears and Santa Paula Lady Cardinals, with players in action on the court and benches visible in the background.

The Lady Cardinals got the final possession of the ball in hopes of forcing overtime or to win the game with a three-point basket. Angie Aguilera inbounded the ball with two seconds left and passed it to Rico who bobbled the basketball and was unable to get the last shot off as time expired.

A basketball game in progress featuring the Lady Bears in white and the Lady Cardinals in maroon, with spectators in the background.

Two high school girls' basketball players in white uniforms passing the ball during a game, with teammates seated on the bench in the background.

Burroughs improves to 7-6 and Santa Paula drops to 7-7. Santa Paula will take on Highland on the fourth day of the West Coast Holiday Tournament. Tip off between Highland and Santa Paula will take place at 6:00 p.m. Burroughs will take on Tracy at the Santa Monica Showcase on Friday, January 2nd at 4:00 p.m.