Valeria Munoz scores 20 to lead Lake Highland into 3A girls title game
· Yahoo Sports
JACKSONVILLE — Confidence was the word of the day for the Lake Highland Prep girls Monday during the Class 3A state basketball semifinals.
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Especially for senior point guard Valeria Munoz, who took over for the Highlanders, directing traffic while scoring 20 points to lead her team into the state championship game with a 64-52 victory over Bolles.
LHP, now 25-6, will take on Somerset Academy of Boynton Beach on Wednesday at 5:30 in the title game at UNF Arena.
Munoz was on her game from the jump, hitting a pair of 3-pointers in the first quarter to boost Lake Highland to a quick 14-7 lead and Bolles was playing catch-up the rest of the way. Munoz said she had a feeling about how things were going to go before the game.
“As soon as I started warming up and my shots were going in, I knew when it came game time I was going to keep shooting and keep shooting, no matter if I miss or make,” Munoz said.
She made a lot, hitting 7-of-14 field goals, including 6-of-12 3-pointers and her confidence was never more obvious than a pull-up 3-pointer she drilled on a fast-break in the fourth quarter that kind of symbolized her play for the day.
“It was just the momentum coming to me and I knew it was going in the moment I shot it,” Munoz said.
LHP coach Al Honor loved it.
“Oh my God … big-time players make big-time plays,” Honor said. “She has confidence because her coach has confidence in her. She has the freedom to do the things she needs to do. She shoots over 40% from 3, so why wouldn’t she. I trust her.
“She’s an unsigned senior and you can’t tell me that somebody, whether it’s Division II or NAIA, somebody doesn’t have a place for that kid. It’s unreal what’s going on with recruiting these days but that kid is big-time.”
Lake Highland did a nice job on offense of distributing the ball to the open players, and on defense, the Highlanders were able to limit touches for Bolle’s 6-foot-4 center Terrell McCoy. The Highlanders fronted McCoy well, and collapsed on her when she did catch an entry pass. McCoy was limited to just three field goals and 10 points.
“That’s tall order,” Honor said of defending McCoy. “She’s a very strong lady and I know her well because she plays on my travel team over the summer. I’m used to her and we knew what we had to deal with and I’m glad the girls stepped up.”
Munoz was also key in breaking a constant full-court Bolles’ press with her ball-handling skills, and she remained calm in all situations. LHP has a balanced offensive attack. Myanna Hatchette joined Munoz in double figures with 13 points and Aubrey Griffin grabbed 11 rebounds as Lake Highland outrebounded Bolles 34-22.
“It feels really good to come this far. We have played our hearts out and we’re gonna continue to do that on Wednesday night,” Munoz said. “I love my teammates. They also know who to pass it to when I pass it to them. We’re connected really well.”
Munoz shrugs off the lack or recruiting attention.
“It’s been hard but I believe in myself and God’s plan for me, so if not then I trust God,” Munoz said.
Lake Highland showed a lot more poise and cohesiveness Monday than it had shown earlier in the season, when Honor said his team was just starting to gel and put things together.
“It seems like it’s clicking now. As long as that ball is moving, we’re OK,” Honor said. “We were a little nervous with this being our first time in Jacksonville and for most of our girls this was the first time playing in a state final four.
“I know the jitters were there but they came out and they fought hard and I’m just so proud of them.”
Chris Hays can be found on X.com@OS_ChrisHays.