The Panthers took the first game with a win over the host Tracy Bulldogs. The game was a back-and-forth battle that saw Antioch come back in the second half, led by Kelsey Cast's nine points and Shannon West's eight points, to seal the 25-21 victory.
The Panthers came out fast in the second game, building a double-digit lead against Los Banos and holding it late into the fourth quarter, only to see it evaporate to a two-point lead with 44 seconds left. Casey Blalock hit Cast in the final seconds for an old-fashioned three-point play to seal the victory, 42-37. Cast led all Panther scorers with 16 points and West followed with 15, advancing the Lady Panthers to the championship game.
The Lady Panthers jumped out to a quick four-point lead to start the championship game, capitalizing on two quick breakaway lay-ups by Blalock, but the lead was short lived. West High School stormed back to claim a 10-point lead at the end of the first half and built on that lead early in the second half. Antioch put on a run in the fourth quarter to get the lead back down to 10, but missed key free throws down the stretch, losing the game 29-39 and earning the team the second-place trophy. Cast again led the Panthers with 13 points, which earned her All-Tournament Team honors.
— Contributed by Jeff Cast
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