Photos by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com – The St. Bernard’s girls had reason to smile on Wednesday night as they advanced to Friday’s Dick Niclai tournament championship.

By Ray Hamill — The St. Bernard’s girls will play for a first-ever Dick Niclai championship on Friday night after a thrilling come-from-behind win over Arcata in Wednesday’s semifinal at College of the Redwoods.

The Crusaders trailed for much of the night but rallied in the fourth quarter, clawing their way back from a nine-point deficit to win 52-49.

The SB girls outscored their Big 5 opponents 20-9 in the fourth quarter with Laila Florvilus scoring what would be the winning basket with around 90 seconds remaining in the game.

Florvilus, who is enjoying an MVP caliber season, added two late free throws to help ice the win and finished with a game-high 25 points despite cramping up late in the game.

“What a game between two great basketball teams,” St. Bernard’s head coach Matt Tomlin said. “Arcata is so well coached and they have amazing players.

“I’m so proud of my team for having the heart and determination to keep battling and to find a way to win a big-time basketball game.”

Foul trouble didn’t help matters for the Tigers, who saw influential twin sisters Mae and Tae Wolford both foul out in the fourth quarter of what was an intense and physical game, as you would expect from two evenly matched teams who know each other well.

However, the Crusaders went to the foul line way more than their opponents and outscored the Tigers 19-6 in free throws.

The Tigers, who were looking to avenge an earlier loss at St. Bernard’s, outscored the Crusaders in each of the first three quarters and carried an eight-point lead heading into the fourth quarter.

But they were unable to pull away at any stage of the game and the Crusaders went on a 7-0 run to open the final period while holding the Tigers scoreless for the first four minutes of the quarter.

The final four minutes of the game saw the lead switch hands several times, but with the Wolfords both sidelined the Crusaders were able to maintain the late momentum.

“It was exciting, intense and there was a lot of emotion,” said Arcata head coach Charlie Espinoza, who added of his players, “I’m proud of them. They’re fighters. They’ve taken a lot of steps every day to get to where they are. They’ve grown and I hope we can keep growing. They’re a young team, with a young coach.”

Madelyn Shanahan also had a big game for the Crusaders and continued her outstanding senior season with 13 points, while teammate Aliyah Vigil finished with six points, all of them coming during a crucial one-minute spell late in the game to help keep the fourth-quarter rally going.

Arcata senior Nora Talty scored 15 points and helped settle her team into the game with a couple of key 3-pointers in the opening quarter.

“She made some big shots,” Espinoza said of the senior star. “I’m really proud of her.”

Mae Wolford also had 15 points for the Tigers, who dropped to 17-7 on the season, with four of their losses coming against Eureka and St. Bernard’s.

“They’re aggressive and they’re fast,” Espinoza said of the standout twins. “And we’re going to keep having them play aggressive. That’s the way we want them to play.”

Mayleah Jackson also continued to impress for the Tigers.

“I thought she played great,” Espinoza said of the junior guard. “She is just a corner piece for us all year and tonight. She controlled the ball well.”

With the win, which was their fourth straight and 14th in their last 15 games, the Crusaders improved to 23-3 on the season.

Friday’s Dick Niclai championship game appearance will be the team’s first since 2018.

The final, which will be played at Cal Poly Humboldt’s Lumberjack Arena, is set for 6 p.m. and will feature a rematch with Eureka after the Loggers defeated Hoopa 62-36 in the other semifinal on Wednesday.

St. Bernard’s beat Eureka 47-42 last month.

Friday’s game will be broadcast live on The Beat 95.1 FM.

The Tigers will now turn their attention toward next week’s North Coast Section playoffs, with the brackets set to be announced on Sunday.

The Arcata girls should get at least one home playoff game.