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Trailing 39-38 midway through the final quarter, the Bonita varsity girls closed on a 15-6 run to unplug the tough Agoura Chargers, 53-45, and go surging into the semi-finals this Saturday.

Again, it was Nikki Wheatley leading the charge for the Bearcats with 25 points, on a night when Bonita’s twin towers, Brianna Kennedy and Sarah Jackson, struggled offensively.

“Our post players had a tough time inside, but you know what when we had to find some time to grind it out, find the time to play some defense … making some free throws, that helped us out tonight,” Bonita coach Darren Baumunk said.

Indeed, it was defense that triggered the late surge for Bonita. With Agoura looking to add to its 39-38 lead with under five minutes to play, Kennedy altered a driving lay-up, which triggered an easy transition basket for Wheatley. The next time down the floor, Wheatley found Jackson for an easy hoop and then Wheatley rebounded her own miss, and put it back in to extend Bonita’s lead to 44-39 with 3:30 left on the clock.

“We found a way to get the job done,” Baumunk said. “Hopefully, we come back on Saturday [against Arroyo Grande at Damien High School] and put it altogether a little bit better than we did tonight.”

Against an Agoura team that scored 90 points in its CIF opener, Baumunk knew Bonita faced a tough task.

“We held our composure, we didn’t get rattled, and I think that was the key,” Baumunk said.

The game was close all the way. Bonita trailed 10-9 after the first quarter and clung to a 24-21 lead at half. Of those 24 points, Wheatley had 15. Bonita entered the final quarter leading 34-31, but after Agoura scored the final quarter’s first four points, the Chargers nudged ahead 35-34. The teams traded baskets until Bonita ratcheted up the defense and sank their foul shots.

Kennedy finished with nine points and Ariana Abo had eight, including a trio of foul shots when they were needed most.

Kylie Cunningham scored 23 points to lead the Chargers.

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