By Fred J. Robledo
he Bishop Amat and Bonita High School girls basketball teams will meet for the second time this season in the CIF-Southern Section Division 3A semifinals on Saturday night after advancing in Wednesday’s quarterfinals on the road. (To continue click thread).

Duarte finished: The best season in Duarte High School girls basketball history came to an end Wednesday. The fifth-seeded Falcons (25-2) made their first trip to the CIF-Southern Section Division 4A quarterfinals but dropped a 54-45 decision to fourth-seeded Valley Christian.

CIF-SS Girls Hoops
Tonight’s quarterfinal results
Division 1A
Troy 42, Chino Hills 34
Division 3AA
Diamond Ranch 40, Arroyo Grande 36
Division 3A
Bishop Amat 54, Temescal Canyon 48
Bonita 53, Palos Verdes 43
Division 4A
Cerritos Valley Christian 54, Duarte 45

Fourth-seed Bonita advanced to the semis for the second straight year with a 53-43 victory over Palos Verdes, receiving 19 points from freshman point guard Nikki Wheatley and 16 from junior center Brianna Kennedy.
Third-seed Bishop Amat (24-6) was tied with Temescal Canyon (25-3) with two minutes left, but the Lancers hit big free throws and senior guard Andrea Villanueva scored four points over the final seven seconds to seal the deal, giving the Lancers a 53-48 win.
The Lancers overcame Temescal Canyon’s Oregon State-bound senior Arica Nasssar, who scored a game-high 25 points.
Vianai Austin led Amat with 13 points, including six in the fourth quarter.
Michelle Yamamoto drained four 3-pointers to finish with 12 points and Leeah Powell chipped in with 11.
In the Southern California shootout at Azusa Pacific in January, Amat squeezed out a 57-55 win over Bonita on a buzzer-beater, setting the stage for Saturday’s rematch, which is Amat’s home game, though it will have to host at a neutral site.
“They’re really good and playing so well in the playoffs,” Amat coach Richard Wiard said of Bonita. “They clobbered their first two opponents while we were struggling.
“But I think it’s great for the Valley because a Valley team is going to play for the CIF championship. Obviously I would like it to be us, but if we’re going to lose then you would rather lose to Bonita than anyone else.”
Bonita coach Darrin Baumunk said his team has been looking forward to a rematch.
“It’s exciting,” Baumunk said. “After we lost to them (Amat) at the buzzer, I told our girls we would get another opportunity if we did our part.
“They’re so good and have been that team in the area for so long. We’re fortunate to get another crack at them.”
[SUB1]Diamond Ranch 40, Arroyo Grande 36
[BODY]The Panthers (18-10) overcame an 11-point halftime deficit and trailed by four entering the fourth quarter, but pulled out the victory behind a staggering performance from junior forward Chelsea Barnes, who scored 22 points and grabbed 18 rebounds in the Division 3AA quarterfinal win on the road against the fourth-seed Eagles (21-6).
Junior Erika Williams finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds as the Panthers advanced to the semifinals for the third straight year, where they will be on the road Saturday against second-seed Serra.
The Panthers held the Eagles to 10 points in the second half after trailing 26-17 at half.
“At halftime we talked about stepping up, putting some pressure on them and not giving them open shots,” Panthers coach Mike James said. “And that’s what we did, we just executed and got this win.”
Emma Weinrich finished with a team-high eight points to lead the Eagles, but they had no answer for Barnes.
“She (Barnes) was just in the second half,” James said. “She scored on a big coast-to-coast play late that sealed it.”