LOOMIS, Calif. – Senior Lexi London posted a double-double of 17 points and 10 rebounds to help her team rally back from a 13-point deficit to a single-possession gap in the second half, but St. Francis ultimately fell by a 45-41 final to Del Oro in the varsity nightcap of a Sierra Foothill League girls' basketball doubleheader at Bonner Gym Monday night.

The Troubadours drop their fifth straight game to move to 8-12 overall and 2-6 in league play. The Golden Eagles, ranked fifth among all Sac-Joaquin Section teams and third in SJS Division II, improves to 18-3 for the year with a 6-1 SFL mark.

London had nine of her points in a span of 10 minutes, during which SF battled from a 37-24 hole at 4:13 in the third period to within a 44-41 margin with 2:11 left in the fourth. She also blocked an Ellie Rivera fast break attempt in that span. Freshman Elise Vipond added 10 points with a pair of three-pointers. Fellow ninth-grader Hassanah Ramsey-Gilbert narrowly missed out on a double-double of her own, finishing with nine points and nine boards to go with team highs of three blocks and four steals.

Senior Colleen Medina scored twice for another four points, including a spectacular reverse putback near the end of the opening period. She also grabbed eight rebounds overall.

The Troubies opened the game on a 7-2 run, with London scoring twice in the first 29 seconds before assisting Vipond's first trey at the 5:05 mark. DO answered with eight straight to take a 10-7 lead, only to have SF bounce right back. Medina's reverse, London's running jumper and Vipond's three-pointer brought the Troubies back to a 14-10 advantage.

Unfortunately, Eagle freshman Skylar Moffitt—previously on DO's junior varsity squad–exploded for 10 points in the second frame, with seven coming in the last 2:41 before the break. That brought the hosts to a 26-18 halftime lead, then junior Madeline Poe connected on consecutive shots down low to start the third frame. That stretched the Golden Eagle lead to 31-18.

St. Francis gained some traction soon after the second Poe bucket. Vipond's steal turned to a transition score, Ramsey-Gilbert banked in a shot from 18 feet, and London split two defenders on a fake-and-bake move with 5:26, all of which brought SF to a single-digit deficit of 33-24. Del Oro restored its lead to 13 for a second time when Francesca Steffes converted a second chance to make it 37-24 at the 4:40 mark.

Still, the Troubies closed the gap yet again to finish the third, mostly from the free-throw line. Ramsey-Gilbert and London made 3 of 4 at the stripe, and Natalia Zitelli made the back end of a bonus trip to end the period. The Troubies entered the fourth in a 39-32 hole, which closed even further when Zitelli assisted Medina for a second chance on a fast break at the 5:42 mark.

London's step-up three cut the lead to 42-37 with 4:30 remaining in the game, and Ramsey-Gilbert landed a reverse layup at 2:50 to keep the difference at five points, or 44-39. London drew contact in the lane and made both free throws, further whittling the DO lead to 44-41 with 2:11 left.

The Troubies held their hosts to no field goals the rest of the way, with Zitelli's interception at midcourt plus London's and Ramsey-Gilbert's work on the defensive boards helping the cause. However, St. Francis shot 0-for-3 on its offensive end during the final stretch. Credit DO senior Aubrey Romani for disrupting a London drive with 90 seconds left. Romani didn't steal the ball nor did she block it, but got enough of the ball to prevent London from making an easy finish at the right block.

St. Francis' performance stands as a significant improvement over the 63-37 loss sustained exactly three weeks earlier. Additionally, DO entered the game with an 8-1 record at home. Other than a 57-48 loss to Oak Ridge, the closest challenge the Eagles had faced at Bonner Gym in 2025-26 was a 53-42 victory over Granite Bay on January 23.

The varsity setback followed a 58-28 loss for the Troubie Gold junior varsity squad, although that team was in jeopardy of having to forfeit the contest. Leading scorer Audrey Bashore played with the varsity team, plus illnesses and absences reduced the active roster to just four players. Fortunately, Gold borrowed freshman Sadie Favreau from the JV Red team and pulled Hope Sperber from varsity to have enough personnel to play the game.

Sophomores Emmy Cheatham, Saihej Sekhon and Catherine Gustafson posted scoring totals of nine, seven and seven. Cheatham's first long-range make gave the Troubies a 7-5 lead, but it also began an almost seven-minute drought without a field goal, during which the Golden Eagles crafted a 20-8 lead for good. Sekhon also led SF with eight rebounds, Gustafson followed with seven, and Cheatham and Sperber grabbed six apiece.

St. Francis' JV Red opened the set with a 27-14 loss to the Golden Eagles, marking an improvement from its 30-point loss back on January 5. Lily Jimenez hit two three-pointers, with Maeva Mahlmann adding two buckets in the first period to lead the offense.

All three teams return to action for a home set against Granite Bay on Wednesday. JV Red leads off at 4:30 p.m., Gold follows at 6 p.m., with varsity finishing the night with a 7:30 p.m. tip.