The disheartening sound of the buzzer signified the end of not only the fourth quarter, but also in of the 2024 winter sports season for the Foothill Technology High School (Foothill Tech) girls basketball team. After a 25-53 loss in the second round of the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) playoffs to Cantwell-Sacred Heart of Mary High School, the Dragons set their sights on a much needed break along with another season to look forward to. The 2025 season started with high spirits among the team and hopes of another deep run into the CIF playoffs. Unfortunately for Foothill Tech, the Dragons fell once again in the second round in a tough 38-60 loss to Tesoro High School (Tesoro) to end their 2025 season.
Foothill Tech defeats Pacifica Christian 48-31 in the first round of CIF
On Feb. 14, 2025, Foothill Tech spent their Valentine’s Day with a sweet victory over Pacifica Christian High School (Pacifica Christian). With a combined 37 points scored, Kiara Zavala ‘26, Lauren Kaller ‘25 and Bella Baum ‘26 led Foothill Tech past Pacifica Christian in a strong 48-31 win to advance to the second round of the CIF playoffs.
Both teams managed to stay within striking distance of each other throughout the first half. Foothill Tech, with robust ball movement and a moving offense, managed to have a 20-19 advantage going into halftime.
After the break, Foothill Tech played their best quarter in the third as they tallied 15 points on the board, fueled by three pointers from Zavala, Kaller and Emerie Heglund ‘28. Foothill Tech kept their lead into the fourth quarter to eventually earn themselves a victory.
Foothill Tech’s season comes to an end in a 60-38 loss to Tesoro
The task of keeping focus and performance dawned on the Dragons as they set to face Tesoro on Feb. 15, in the Buena High School Gymnasium. Sadly for Foothill Tech, a slow start led the Dragons to fall in a hole in the first half, leading to a 60-38 loss.
After winning the opening tipoff, neither team was able to put the ball in the basket for the first few minutes. After a timeout called by Foothill Tech, Tesoro was able to get their night going with a layup plus a foul. Shortly after, Zavala sunk a mid range jumper to put the Dragons on the board.
Foothill Tech could not find their footing on offense, however, as Tesoro went on an unanswered 26-2 run across the entire first half.
After Tesoro’s dreadful scoring run, it seemed as if all hope was lost for Foothill Tech. But, unwilling to give up, Foothill Tech finally found their rhythm on offense as the offensive trio of Zavala, Kaller and Heglund were able to score 16 points in the third quarter. Despite their efforts, the Dragons were still down 46-20 going into the fourth quarter.
In the fourth quarter, Foothill Tech carried their offensive momentum over as Zavala, Heglund and Jocelyn Morales ‘28 all scored three pointers to try and pull off the impossible. Foothill Tech’s 17 points in the fourth quarter was not enough to make the score competitive however, and the devastating sound of the buzzer rang in the ears of Foothill Tech.
Head Coach Chuck Ferris reflected on the loss, “They were extremely tough defensively, but I know that we didn’t quite play like us today. We could have handled that, but we just didn’t today.”
The Dragons’ 2025 season comes to an end
With a record of six wins and two losses in league play, and 12 wins and 12 losses overall, Foothill Tech’s 2025 season came to a close on a sad note despite having its moments to say the least.
Looking forward to the offseason, Ferris commented, “We’ll take a little break, [and] celebrate at the end of the season banquet. We’ll try to give our seniors, we’ve got three seniors this year, [Rihanna Samples ‘25, Vivian Ryan ‘25 and Kaller], we’ll try to give them a good send off.”
Zavala recalled all of her favorite memories from the season, “My favorite memory with the team this season definitely has to be our overnight tournaments. We got to bond more as a team, got to compete in a sport we all love and we created amazing memories that will stick with us forever.”
Foothill Tech looks to return stronger next year in hopes of making an even deeper push into the CIF playoffs.
