Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com – The Arcata girls suffered their first conference loss on Friday night.

The St. Bernard’s girls are winning with defense.

On Friday night, the Crusaders traveled to Hoopa and came away with a 52-39 win over the Warriors to go to 2-0 in the Little 4 and 13-2 on the season.

And for the third straight game they held their opponents under 40 points.

Also in action on Friday night, the Eureka girls won 53-43 at Arcata to take over sole possession of top spot in the Big 5 standings.

At Fortuna, the Del Norte Warriors got their first conference win, beating the host Huskies 58-54, while at South Fork, the Ferndale Wildcats kept pace with St. Bernard’s in the Little 4 thanks to a 49-26 victory over the Cubs.

In boys action on Friday night, the Crusaders beat Upper Lake 79-42 at St. Bernard’s in a non-league game and improved to 12-2 on the season.

At Hoopa, the St. Bernard’s girls held a dangerous Hoopa offense to just two 3-pointers on the way to their second win in two conference games.

“It was incredible defense by the girls tonight,” SB head coach Matt Tomlin said. “We worked really hard to get Hoopa off the 3-point line and it was successful.”

Reigning conference MVPs Laila Florvilus and Madelyn Shanahan were once again instrumental in the win as they continued to set the tone for their teammates.

Florvilus finished with a game-high 21 points and Shanahan added 12 points.

However, this win was a team effort with several players contributing on the defensive end as the Warriors pushed them all night.

“I am so proud of the effort and toughness they showed as they battled for four quarters,” Tomlin said. 

The Sundberg sisters also had good nights in the win.

Junior Jocelyn Sundberg finished with six points, while freshman Samantha Sundberg added five points.

Aliyah Vigil, who has been one of the Crusaders’ most consistent defensive players all season, added five points, while Hannah Finck finished with three points.

No stats were immediately available for Hoopa.

The loss was the second in two conference games and third straight for the Warriors, who dropped to 0-2 in the Little 4 and 8-6 overall.

Next up, the Crusaders will travel to Sonoma Academy for a non-league Monday afternoon game (1:30 p.m.), while the Warriors will try to get back to winning ways when they host Northcoast Prep on Wednesday.

Ferndale 49, South Fork 26

Tinnley Pidgeon continued to shine with a team-high 20 points as the Wildcats improved to 2-0 in the Little 4 to remain in a tie with St. Bernard’s atop the standings.

Teammate Michaela Ellsmore also had a good night and finished with 11 points, while Madison Gossi added nine points.

Caidence Young led the Cubs in scoring, although no final stats were available, while Arianna Trigonis and Raevyn Reveles each also played well offensively.

With the win, the Cats improved to 11-3 on the season.

The loss was the second in conference play for the Cubs, who dropped to 0-2 and 8-7.

Next up, on Wednesday, the Ferndale girls will host St. Bernard’s with the Little 4 lead on the line, while South Fork plays Hoopa in Miranda.

Boys

St. Bernard’s 79, Upper Lake 42

Seth Dyer scored a team-high 24 points and also had three assists as the Crusaders beat Upper Lake in a non-league game at St. Bernard’s.

Aaiden Burris also had a good night and finished with 13 points and five rebounds, as the SB boys stretched their winning streak to six straight.

“We played good team basketball tonight,” St. Bernard’s interim head coach Pat Shanahan said. “Everyone contributed and played hard.”

Liam Dyer added 13 points, seven rebounds and three assists in the win, while teammate Rowan Cromwell finished with nine points and nine rebounds.

Zacch Bowen also had a good night and finished with nine points to round out a balanced offensive team performance, while Wyatt Simoni dished out five assists.

Upper Lake dropped to 5-10.

Next up, the Crusaders will host McKinleyville in on Saturday night at 7 for their third game win three days.