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Ladies second in home tourney
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For the second week in a row, the Ceres High varsity girls basketball team had to settle for second place.

With Kelly Martin leading the way, Bret Harte overcame a three-point deficit in the final two minutes and beat the Bulldogs 49-47 in the Ceres Tournament championship on Saturday.

"We made a couple turnovers and they hit the shot," said Ceres High assistant coach Phil de la Porte.

Martin scored the game's final five points, including the winning basket at the buzzer.

Kathleen Avrit finished with a game-high 20 points, including two 3-pointers, for Bret Harte, which improved to 9-1 overall.

Heather Mazza scored a team-high 16 points, Krystle Brown had 10 points and 14 rebounds, and Meghan Franksen added seven points for Ceres (8-3).

Each team scored 23 points in the first half.

Bret Harte outscored Ceres 26-24 in the second half.

The Bulldogs shot 75 percent (21-for-28) from the free-throw line for the game. The Bullfrogs shot 56 percent (9-for-16) from the foul line.

Ceres compiled a 2-1 record at its home tournament. Mazza and Brown made the all-tourney team.

Ceres beat Turlock 51-34 in the semifinals Friday night.

Mazza and Brown each scored eight points, and Franksen and Jennifer Arnold had seven points apiece.

Turlock's Maria Guzman, Whitney Ragsdale and Deanette Peterson had 10, eight and seven points, respectively.

The visiting Bulldogs trailed 37-10 at the break.

Ceres edged Patterson 62-57 in the first round of the tourney Thursday night.

The Bulldogs outscored the Tigers 6-0 in the final 22 seconds. Brown had four of Ceres' points, including two free throws and a short jumper as time expired. Mazza also made two free throws.

Mazza had a game-high 19 points, and Brown added 17 points for the Bulldogs. - By DALE BUTLER / Staff Reporter of The Ceres (Calif.) Courier