The 2021-22 winter sports season was very kind to the
Monte Vista High School boys basketball team. The Monarchs
became the first boys basketball team at the Spring Valley school to return to the San Diego Section championship game since the 1992 season, and the first to win a CIF title since 1971 — a span of 51 years.
It was a time to celebrate and reflect on the moment after topseeded Monte Vista defeated second-seeded Victory Christian Academy, 54-36, in the section finals on Feb. 25 at Mira Mesa High School as well as prepare for the ensuing state championship tournament.
“We were all in the right place at the right time and able to get
it done,” Monte Vista head coach Michael Tully said.
The Division IV section championship qualified Monte Vista
for the Southern California Division IV regional championship
tournament.
The Monarchs (24-6) received the No. 4 seed in the 16-team
bracket but were unable to get past 13th-seeded Sunny Hills in
their opening game on March 1. The season ended abruptly with a 68-51 loss to the visiting Lancers (25-9).
Senior Dylan Lawson led Sunny Hills with 19 points. The
Lancers catapulted to the win with a ferocious 25-12 scoring
edge in the final quarter to expand on a tight 43-39 lead.
The early exit from the state playoffs did not dull the team’s
overall accomplishments this season.
“This year’s team really bought in and it started at the
end of last year,” the Monte Vista coach said. “The seniors took
that momentum through the offseason and really bought in on
sacrificing for each other to win.”
Key players included 6-foot-2 shooting guard Brandon Tully
(coach’s son), 6-foot-5 “big guy” Isaiah Hilke and point guard
Marco Balhin.
“They were the ‘big three’ behind the engine of our team,” the
elder Tully said. “Chris Lybarger and Armando Rasing rounded
out the starting five and were important pieces to our success.”
