Hours after the final whistle at Galen Center, fans were still lined up outside the arena doors. Kayla Padilla and Kayla Williams, even after a hard-fought loss to Utah on senior day, greeted the crowd with smiles. The USC guards eagerly signed autographs. They posed for selfies. This season, the former teammates at Torrance Bishop Montgomery High have played in front of sold-out crowds and helped lift the Trojans to their best season in their lifetimes.
Watching it all unfold is “a coach’s dream” to Noelle Quinn.
The former Bishop Montgomery coach never questioned the guards would advance to the Division I level, but what she wanted most was that once her players got there, they would leave an impact.