For the second year in a row, a team of White River High girls captured third-place honors at the prestigious San Diego Classic basketball tournament.

The tourney was staged July 16-19 at several sites in the San Diego area.

White River varsity coach Chris Gibson has taken a squad to the tournament the summer following each of the 18 seasons he has been in charge of the Hornet girls hoop program. The back-to-back No. 3 placings represent the best finishes for a Gibson-coached crew.

There were 96 teams in White River’s division.

The Hornets opened tourney play with five victories over California opponents before losing in the semifinals. Victories included a 55-16 rout of Del Norte, a 47-24 pasting of El Toro, a 51-43 decision over Notre Dame-Sherman Oaks, a 45-28 win over Cypress and a 47-33 win over Heritage High. The run ended with a 43-34 loss to Seton Catholic Prep.

The third-place White River team consisted of Darian Gore, Maci Goethals, Sidney Schultz, Kayla Howard, Dallas Bushaw, Lucy Rasmussen, Kendall Bird, Sofia Lavinder and Georgia Lavinder.

For the second time, Gibson took a junior varsity squad to San Diego to play in the tournament’s JV bracket. Making up that team were Kailee Bruner, Lily Tranquilo, Bailey Koch, Taylor Spooner, Taylee Goethals, Claire Lowe, Noelle Mills, Emma Cash, Megan Cash and Peyton Wallen.