District girls basketball: Boca Raton fights back to the top, 'The girls deserve this'

Boca Raton cruised over Park Vista, 57-34, in the Class 7A District 11 championship title game on Friday night.

This is the Bobcats' (20-7, 2-0 in district) first district title since head coach Roderick Johnson took charge two weeks before the 2021-22 season.

A well-deserved victory for a dominant Boca side, they dominated both sides of the court with high intensity, passion, and hype to win their first title.

“The girls deserve this,” Johnson said. “Since they lost (the final) last year against Coral Springs, they knew that feeling and took it into this season.”

Boca Raton are Class 7A District 11 Champions after defeating Park Vista
Boca Raton are Class 7A District 11 Champions after defeating Park Vista

Recent:Athlete of the Week winner: Suncoast volleyball star Zoe Zudans

This win guarantees Boca a spot in the Regional tournament later this month.

MVP Courtney Lowe steals the show

Junior guard Courtney Lowe has been the Bobcats star player all season, and it was no different Friday.

She scored 16 points, scoring four from the arc and two layups.

Lowe averaged 13.5 points per game, 3.0 steals, and 2.8 assists – the highest averages in the squad.

“This is my first district championship since I started my career in Boca High,” Lowe said after the game.

“We knew what we had to do, we started slow but me and Vanessa (Moore) had to pick it up for the team and keep us in the game.

Lowe couldn’t do it alone; she spoke highly of her team and their efforts all season.

“Everyone on the team is supportive and positive, we motivate each other and that’s how we made it through.”

Too hot to handle

No.2 seed Park Vista (15-6, 2-2 in District) could not handle the Bobcats as they struggled to take control in the second half.

At half time the Bobcats led 26-24. They showed an intense and back-and forth game, keeping Boca on their toes.

In the second half, it was a different ball game. Turnover after turnover, block after block. The Cobras were unlucky on the attack.

They only scored five points in the third quarter, while Boca scored 20.

As the No. 2 seed, they did not have a quarterfinal bye week compared to No. 1 Boca. They played Stoneman Douglas and Spanish River to make it to the final.

That’s three games in four days.

Boca’s bye week gave them a slight advantage as there wasn’t any match congestion.

The Cobra’s junior forward, Saniya Frazier, was the highest scorer with 13 points

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: District girls basketball: Boca Raton fights back to the top