Placer clamps East Union for first section title since 1990

For the first time in 36 years, the Placer High School girls basketball team is bringing a Sac-Joaquin Section championship banner back to Auburn. The top-seeded Hillgals (30-2) used a dominant second-half run to pull away from No. 2 East Union for a 58-43 victory in the Division III title game Saturday at Golden 1 Center, securing the program's first section crown since its back-to-back championships in 1989 and 1990. Placer head coach Tony Camillucci, who has guided the program for nearly three decades, made the first section championship appearance of his career. He said the title is a testament to the work the Hillgals have put in since they stepped on campus as freshmen. "I'm super proud of this group of girls," Camillucci said. "They're not only great basketball players, but they're great humans and great friends. It's a pleasure and a joy to coach them. We had a rough start. We got in foul trouble early. We had some illness. But they battled through the entire game. I think they have faith in each other, and that's why we pulled away in the second half." The victory carried extra weight in that this is Camillucci's his first section title. "It was amazing, and it hasn't really sunk in yet," he said. "But when I look at their faces and they're just so excited, that makes it all worthwhile. I'm happy that we represent our school in a positive way. Not only just winning but in the classroom and in the community. I'm super proud." The turning point came after seed East Union (26-6) used an 8-0 run to take a 33-31 lead in the third quarter. Placer responded with a 15-0 run spanning the third and fourth periods. "We started trying to get the ball down to the post more and take care of the basketball," Camillucci said. "We turned it over the first five or six possessions of the half. Luckily, they did, too. We focused on getting it inside and letting Breely (Shriver) go to work. We moved Ginger (Biddle) down to the post to give us some size and agility. That was it." East Union coach Jim Agostini credited Placer's size for the run to end the third, noting the Lancers struggled down low after losing Jerney Luckett to a knee injury in the first quarter. "I thought our girls competed pretty darn well with that," said Agostini. "Defending them, that's where their height got is. They just pounded us down low." Shriver led all scorers with 17 points, while Brookelyn Dunkle scored 15 and Biddle 14. Lana Terrell grabbed eight rebounds and Paige Denniston had six. Dunkle dished out six assists. East Union was led in scoring by Zyondupree Beasley and Shebra Rezaye with 12 each. Camillucci also credited the maturity of a relatively young roster. "We had seven on varsity last year, and that was by design to get them some playoff experience," he said. "We took some lumps, and we told them it was going to pay off. They're a lot less nervous (at the end of games) than I am. For a really young group, I'm super impressed." For the players, the championship carried generational meaning. It was Placer's first section title since 1990, a team many of them grew up hearing about. "My dad was at Placer when the girls won that championship, and my mom was right after that," said junior forward Lana Terrell. "So honestly, it means a lot to bring that back. A ton of us have played together since we were little. It's not just representing the last team that was here. It's representing ourselves." That small-town pride is part of what makes Placer special, Camillucci said. "They show me pictures of them as third- and fourth-graders playing together," he said of his team. "That's the beauty of a small town. These kids grew up together. They're like sisters." While the section banner will soon hang in the Earl Crabbe Gym, the Hillgals aren't finished. Placer begins play in the state tournament on Tuesday. The Hillgals drew the top seed in Division III and will face No. 16 Belmont-Notre Dame in the first round. "We're not done yet," Camillucci said. "This was phase three of our season. We'll rest a little bit, but we'll be back at it."