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Laguna Hills girls basketball races past Schurr to get to state finals

March 11, 2026

Laguna Hills players celebrate with their CIF Southern California Regional Division V girls basketball championship plaque in Laguna Hills on Tuesday, March 10, 2026. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)

LAGUNA HILLS — The Laguna Hills girls basketball team nearly didn’t even qualify for the CIF Southern Section playoffs and needed a one-point win to continue its season.

Six weeks later, the Hawks are headed to Sacramento to play for a state championship.

Laguna Hills dominated Schurr 43-24 Tuesday in the CIF Southern California Regional Division V championship game at Laguna Hills High.

Laguna Hills forward Keira McDermott sees an opportunity to take a shot against Schurr in the CIF Southern California Regional Division V girls basketball championship in Laguna Hills on Tuesday, March 10, 2026. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)

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The Hawks (21-11) will play Woodland Christian on Friday at 10 a.m. for the Division V state championship at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.

“We barely made it in the playoffs but it just shows, if you get in, who knows?” Laguna Hills coach Jim Martin said. “I’m thrilled for the girls. It’s something they’re always going to remember. It’s the most unexpected run I’ve ever had in my 34 years of coaching.”

Martin was the coach at Laguna Hills the last time the Hawks played for a state championship in 2012. Laguna Hills won a state title in 1997.

Laguna Hills was tied with Tustin for third place in the Golden West League standings heading into its last regular season game against the Tillers. The Hawks escaped with a 43-42 win and earned the last automatic qualifier spot from the league.

Laguna Hills reached the CIF Southern Section Division 7 championship game and suffered a blowout loss to Golden West League foe Kennedy. The Hawks beat Banning, Foothill and top-seeded Rosamond in the regional playoffs.

“I really didn’t know how they were going to handle that,” Martin said of the Kennedy loss. “It was devastating for the girls. They bounced back, so kudos to them.”

“I think it was kind of good for us to get a loss out of our system,” Laguna Hills star Keira McDermott said. “They were definitely the best team in the division so we knew it would be easier from there and we just had to keep working.”

McDermott was outstanding offensively Tuesday for Laguna Hills with a game-high 22 points and six 3-pointers. She scored 10 points in the third quarter when the Hawks broke the game open.

“I felt really good,” McDermott said. “I think we just came out with a good energy. We moved the ball well and we played as a team.”

The Hawks shot 47 percent from 3-point range in the first half and led 22-10 at halftime. Laguna Hills kept the momentum going in the third quarter and outscored Schurr (19-15) 15-6 to take a 21-point lead into the fourth.

Laguna Hills defense ran a zone defense for much of the game and double-teamed the Schurr player that had the ball. The Hawks forced 23 turnovers and never allowed double-digit points in a quarter.

Valerie Sepulveda led Schurr with nine points before fouling out in the fourth quarter. Marley Diaz led the Spartans with eight rebounds and Natalie Contreras added seven.

Cameron McDermott nearly had a double-double for Laguna Hills with 11 points and nine rebounds. Lena Goodman led the Hawks’ defense and led the team in assists. Meghan Rehmeier and Amanda Yuson each had five points.

Schurr won its first CIF-SS championship in school-history when it beat Orange for the Division 8 title. The Spartans entered Tuesday on an 11-game winning streak after starting the season with a 3-12 record.

Keira McDermott is eager for the Hawks to travel to Sacramento to play in the state championship for the first time in 14 years.

“I’m so excited. It’s been so hyped lately and now we are missing school and we get to play in an NBA arena,” McDermott said. “We’ve been looking forward to this since round one of CIF so we are all really excited.”

Laguna Hills girls basketball races past Schurr to get to state finals Orange County Register

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