Liberty, Green Valley move into title game

Liberty's Daynice Cochran has always considered herself to be more of a rebounder than a scorer.

The senior forward was both Thursday, collecting 18 points and 13 rebounds, to lead the Patriots to a 55-36 home victory over Foothill in the Sunrise Region girls basketball semifinals.

The win lifted Liberty (24-4) into today's league championship game, where the Patriots will face Green Valley (24-4) at 5 p.m.

Cochran, whose team was unable to pull away in the first three quarters, said she was willing to help out in any way necessary.

"I just want to reach our goal," said Cochran, who has her eye on a regional championship. "I was willing to do whatever I had to do and leave it all on the court."

The Falcons, who were 0-3 against Liberty in regular-season play, took a 21-20 halftime lead on a 5-foot shot by Bri Higgins in the final minute.

"Every game we've played against them has been a good one," Liberty coach Quintin Lester said. "We knew coming in it was going to be a dogfight, and we knew they were going to try to slow us down."

The score remained tight throughout the third quarter, but the Patriots opened the fourth by scoring 12 consecutive points to go ahead 48-34 with 2:22 remaining. Foothill managed just one basket in the fourth quarter.

Foothill never came close to answering Liberty's surge. The Patriots outscored the Falcons 19-2 in the fourth quarter.

Amanda Delgado had 10 points and six rebounds for Liberty. Teammate Jade Washington had 11 points and three steals.

Cheryl Harless led the Falcons (18-4) with 15 points and six rebounds. Higgins added 12 points and six rebounds.

■ Green Valley 70, Silverado 56 -- Sarah Pickus and Jazmine Jarvis each scored 21 points to help the Gators claim a trip to the championship game.

The Skyhawks dominated early, closing the first quarter with a 10-0 run that gave them an 18-12 lead.

But Green Valley chipped away at the deficit, and Jarvis tied the score at 27 with a long 3-pointer late in the first half. The Gators led 32-29 at halftime.

The Skyhawks hit only 28 percent of their second-half field-goal attempts, and Green Valley capitalized. Jarvis' off-balance 6-foot shot with 5:37 left in the third quarter ignited a 13-3 run that broke open the game.

Danielle Christenson scored 15 for Green Valley.

Natalie Lainhart had 16 points, five rebounds and four assists for Silverado (19-9), and Kaitlin Keathley added 15 points and seven rebounds.