On Jan, 8 2026, the Campolindo Varsity Girls’ basketball team faced off against their rivals, Miramonte. This game was an astounding 42-33 win for the Cougars, but it was not an easy success.
Historically, Miramonte has beaten the Campo girls' team every year for the past nine seasons except for the 2025 playoffs. The most recent victory against Miramonte before 2025 was in 2017, when the score was 49-44 in favor of the Cougars. After an 8-year losing streak, and with an entirely new team, Campo was able to knock Mira out of the playoffs with a 43-35 win.
Since that decisive victory, tensions between the two teams have been palpable. “They thought they were going to win easily,” said Junior Jeevan Dhaliwal. “We could hear them singing and dancing through the walls of the locker room before the game. They also sent snaps and messages about how excited they were to crush us.”
Even with the 2025 playoff win, the matchup between the two teams this year was uncertain going into it. “This victory was so important because the momentum feels like it has shifted in our favor for once,” stated Senior Captain Becca Tanner. The Cougars are currently leading the league 4-0.
The rivalry being intense only added to the game itself. Fouls were a constant, and free throws made up a majority of the score for both teams. Tanner and junior Jenna Chan both experienced the rougher hits. During one play, Chan had to come off the court due to a hit where she fell on her wrist. Luckily, she was able to re-enter later in the game.
Freshman Mackinsey Lee also highlighted how the team’s coaching staff prepared them well for this game, “It was the most detailed scouting report of the whole season, so we knew going into it [Miramonte] was going to foul us a lot”. Mack is the only freshman on varsity, and she played for the entire last quarter of an incredibly close rival game.
The Cougars have turned the tables on the Matadors after eight years of losing, and are looking to give them a taste of their own medicine. The team has voiced that their biggest goal is to work as a unit to accomplish as much as they can. They want to go even farther into the playoffs than last year, and beating Miramonte two years in a row has provided an optimistic outlook for 2026.
