Matched up against McDonald's All-American and Kansas signee Cydnee Bryant, Clovis High fell to Centennial of Corona 73-66 on Friday.
In a postgame press conference, the team expressed gratitude for one another and for a season that pushed them to new heights.
Head coach Cooper Steele said the moment never felt too big for his players.
"We've played in Selland Arena, we've played in two of the top teams in the nation, we compete every single day. Doesn't surprise me one bit, I knew we'd be ready for the moment," Steele said.
Yasmin Aguilera set the tone early, making both the first and last 3-pointers of the game.
She finished 7 for 10 from the field and set a state record for most made shots in a Division I girls state final.
"We can battle with everyone and we'll play to the very end playing hard and give it our all," Aguilera said.
The Cougars stayed within reach late behind a fourth-quarter push from Sadie Sin, who scored 19 points and added seven assists.
Sin, a Long Beach State commit, kept her team in contention until the final seconds.
"Sadie is the most selfless superstar I've ever met, someone who scores 2,000 points doesn't share the ball like she does but she did it she sacrificed she could've gotten 3,000 if she wanted," Steele said.
For Sin, the loss marked the final game of her high school career.
"To make it to the very last game of my high school career - only game that anyone could really make it to so it's a good feeling," she said.
The Cougars faced a size disadvantage against the Centennial Huskies at nearly every position, something Steele said stood out well before the championship matchup.
"We saw them in Vegas in October, and we were like, look at those big girls, imagine if we had to play them," he said.
Despite the mismatch, the Cougars matched the Huskies' physicality throughout the game, including the closing moments when the seniors realized it would be the last time they shared the court.
"It's not about trying to replace a point guard, it's about trying to replace the kind of person Sadie Sin is, it's trying to simulate the work ethic that Yazmin Aguilera has," Steele said. The sacrifice that Jaylyn Jasso and Taylor Neal-Larkin have made. We're not replacing players, we're trying to fill the shoes of great people."
The Cougars finish the season as NorCal regional champions and state title game participants, achievements the program had never reached before.
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