There is no better feeling than playing on your home floor.

That holds true for the El Capitan High School girls basketball team.

“We have an attitude about us when we play here and I love our gym, I love our atmosphere, I love our fans,” Vaqueros coach Dylan Curtis said. “We’re very fortunate to play in this gym. We obviously take pride in playing here. So, the name on the floor of the gym and the name on our chest, it really means a lot to us.”

Despite being held scoreless over the game’s final 12 minutes, El Capitan survived and defeated Rocklin 46-45 to win the WNBA Silver Division championship in the SoCal Holiday Prep Classic. The Vaqueros went 3-0 at home in pool play, beating Dana Hills Poway and Clovis North, to set up Monday’s game.

El Capitan has now won 17 consecutive home games, a program record.

The Vaqueros had a 46-21 lead with four minutes left in the third quarter before the Thunder (8-5) went on a 10-0 run to close the quarter.

Rocklin had a chance to tie the game late. With 0.3 seconds remaining, Vaqueros junior Keira Heiricy fouled Rocklin’s Cara Murphy as she attempted a game-tying 3-pointer. Murphy made the first two shots but missed the third. Rocklin put the miss back in for what would have been the game-winning basket, but officials ruled that time had run out.

“I feel like (the fourth quarter) was a test for strength together as a team,” said El Capitan senior Paige Worthem, who was named tournament MVP and is signed to play at Cal State Los Angeles. “We’ve been playing together for so long; it makes it easy to hold down games like that when you have trust with your teammates.”

That 25-point lead was a testament to how well the Vaqueros played in the first half. Heinricy scored 20 points in the first 16 minutes. Her 3-pointer with 3:03 left in the first quarter marked her 1,000th career point and capped a 12-0 run.

“They gave me too much space that I saw the rim,” Heinricy said. “I shot it and took my opportunities that I was given.”

It’s more than Heinricy’s shooting that makes her lethal, Curtis said.

“She’s one of the best shooters I’ve ever coached,” he said. “She can shoot it inside. She can do it outside. But this year, her standout to me is offensive rebounding. She’s getting at least four boards and four putbacks a game, which is huge to get eight points. That type of production off the offensive glass is just a big stat.”

El Cap’s players and coaches believe their narrow victories — the Vaqueros beat Clovis North by three points on Saturday — will help the team when when Grossmont-Hill League action begins in two weeks.

“It gives us confidence that we know we’re a top team and that we can do it,” Heinricy said. “We can beat these teams that are supposed to beat us.”

Originally Published: December 30, 2024 at 1:48 PM PST