Ohio State commit Jaloni Cambridge backed up a 33-point semifinal outburst with a gutsy 17-point performance to lead No. 9 Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.) to its third consecutive Chipotle Nationals title. The Eagles defeated No. 4 IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.) 61-53 in the title game on Saturday at Brownsburg High School in Indiana.
A day after Cambridge beat No. 1 Long Island Lutheran (Brookville, N.Y.) 79-78 on a buzzer-beating runner, she hit 7 of 10 free throws down the stretch to help preserve its victory.
A hard fall early and a collision in the third quarter took their toll on the Montverde point guard, who was in obvious pain in her left shoulder shooting the freebies. But the Eagles also got big-time contributions from Vivian Iwuchukwu and Lourdes Da Silva Costa, who scored 17 and 13 points, respectively.
Iwuchukwu, a USC commit, scored eight in the final quarter, including a pair of and-ones as Montverde closed the game on a 12-2 run over the final three minutes.
IMG Academy, meanwhile, trailed 54-51 after an Iwuchukwu bucket with just over 2 minutes remaining. But the Ascenders’ next six possessions were fruitless, including three turnovers and three missed shots.
Montverde Academy jumped out to the early lead. Chloe Sotell and Holland Harris each drilled 3-pointers as Sotell ended the first quarter with another triple for a 16-9 Eagles lead.
But IMG Academy found its footing and used a 15-2 burst over the first six minutes of the second quarter to dig out of the hole and take a 24-20 lead. UConn commit Kelis Fisher led the charge with nine points, including 5 of 5 from the free throw line, while Tajianna Roberts added a pair of fast-break buckets. Roberts, a Louisville commit, drilled a 3-pointer, with less than a minute remaining before Iwuchukwu brought Montverde within a bucket near the end of the half.
Montverde led 43-38 heading into the final eight minutes, outscoring IMG 18-15 over that stretch for the final margin.
