Tournament Most Valuable Player Renae Hofmann canned a pair of free throws with 3.1 seconds to play to seal undefeated Ventura College's third state crown in the past five years.
Hofmann finished with 26 points in the victory and averaged 18 points during the tournament as the Pirates, ranked first in the state all season, ran their record to 38-0. Shasta, seeded first fro Northern California, finished 33-4.
Ventura used a 10-5 run to close the first half with a 39-34 lead after trailing several times in the opening 20 minutes, then opened the second half with 11 consecutive points for a 50-34 lead before Danielle Ferris' three-pointer with 15:56 to play broke the spell. The Lady Knights fought back, closing the gap to 64-63 on a three-pointer by Melissa Holcomb with 2:51 left. But that was as close as Shasta would get. Kim Harrison's put-back with 4.1 seconds left again cut Ventura's advantage to one, 69-68, but Hofmann's two free throws solidified the victory as Shasta failed to get off a final shot.
Hofmann had four three-point baskets and seven assists for Ventura, who also got 13 points each from Shatasha Noble and Sandra Kaufhold.
Holcomb led Shasta in scoring with 17 points. Harrison tallied 14, Jennifer Kern scored 13 (with 11 rebounds) and Ferris added 10.
COMPLETE TOURNAMENT RESULTS
Semifinals (March 10)
North #1 Shasta 59, North #3 San Jose City 58
South #1 Ventura 62, North #2 Foothill 57
First Round (March 9)
North #2 Foothill 73, South #3 Cerritos 59
North #3 San Jose City 70, South #2 Santa Ana 45
South #1 Ventura 54, North #4 Solano 50
North #1 Shasta 89, South #4 Canyons 70
