Marysville High School junior Abigail Pietz prepares to take a free throw against Rio Linda High on March 6.

MARYSVILLE, CA (MPG) - The Marysville High School girls’ basketball team’s season came to an end on March 6 with a close loss at Rio Linda High School in round two of the 2025 California Interscholastic Federation State Girls Basketball Championships.

Coming into the state playoffs as the No. 6 seed in Division IV, Marysville High proceeded to win their first-round game against the No. 11 seeded Prospect Panthers on March 4.

The win against the Panthers propelled Marysville High into the second round of the state playoffs and a matchup against the Rio Linda Knights on March 6, at Rio Linda High School.

The game against Rio Linda was anticipated to be a close contest as the Lady Knights came into the game averaging 56 points per game and Marysville High was averaging 57. The matchup did not disappoint as Marysville High fought hard but came up painfully short in an extremely close game, losing by a final score of 34-33.

Jorden Hill takes a three-point shot against Rio Linda High on March 6.

The game was a low scoring affair with the first two quarters seeing several missed shots and some hard play on the boards from both sides. The second quarter ended with a series of missed shots at both ends, culminating with Marysville High holding a slight halftime lead at 17-15.

The third quarter saw 3-point shots starting to fly and hard fouls going both ways. The tenacious third-quarter defense from Rio Linda High resulted in a rare shot clock violation on Marysville High and assisted the Lady Knights in moving into the lead with a score of 23-21 at the end of the third quarter, setting up a dramatic end.

The fourth quarter saw scoring heat up on both ends of the court and some thrilling shots that brough the fans of both schools to their feet with six minutes remaining to be played. Back-to-back three pointers made by Marysville High’s Abigail Pietz put Marysville up 29-28.

The Lady Knights fought back to take a 34-31 lead with 18 seconds remaining. Two missed shots by Marysville High ended with the ball being turned over to Rio Linda still holding onto a slight 3-point lead. The Lady Knights turned the ball right back over to Marysville High on the inbounds pass which led to a successful 2-point shot cutting Rio Linda’s lead to 34-33 with a fraction of a second remaining on the clock.

The Marysville High girls’ basketball team on offense in the fourth quarter of the playoff matchup against Rio Linda High on March 6.

Once again, the Lady Knights had a turnover on the inbound pass attempt, but Marysville High was not able to connect on a buzzer-beating shot attempt, preserving the win for Rio Linda High.

Junior Abigail Pietz led Marysville with 14 points, including four 3-pointers. Freshman Jorden Hill scored five, and Marysville High got four apiece from Collins, Demi Boykin and Lisette Partida.

The State Championships campaign was the culmination of an outstanding season for the Marysville High School girls’ basketball program which finished the season with a 24-9 overall record and an 11-3 record in the Pioneer Valley League, which earned Maryville High a second-place league finish.