Girls’ basketball: St. Joseph wins state Division III title

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It took awhile for the offense to kick in, but Santa Maria St. Joseph eventually started hitting shots and pulled away in the fourth quarter to defeat Oakland Bishop O’Dowd 53-42 in the state Division III championship game at Power Balance Pavilion in Sacramento.

Junior center Alyson Beebe scored 21 points before fouling out with 1:12 left and the Knights ahead 49-37. Brianna Bognuda scored 15 points and fellow guard Kelsi English added 11 for St. Joseph (29-6), which won its first state championship since 1991.

Sophomore forward Oderah Chidom scored 17 points to lead the Dragons (24-8), which led 17-14 at halftime.

-- Steve Galluzzo