Bethlehem Catholic High School's girls basketball team clinched its second consecutive district crown after defeating Allentown Central Catholic, 51-41, in the District XI Class AAA final on March 1 at Freedom High School.

"They definitely played us hard, but we wanted it more, and we shut them down and kept the lead," said Becahi junior, Maggie Melhem, who scored seven points and had five rebounds.

Melhem scored the first two points of the game, and the Hawks began to pull away from the Vikettes toward halftime.

"We were happy, but we wanted to bump it up a notch or two," Melhem said.

One of the Hawks' objectives was to control Central Catholic's Alyssa Mack, who ended up scoring 23 points for the Vikettes. Another was for Becahi senior, Janelle Robinson, who had seven points, to continue to step up as she has done all season.

"Janelle is one of the biggest parts of our team. She always pushes us," said Melhem.

Also a force for the Hawks was top scorer, Kalista Walters, who had 27 points and 10 rebounds, and Danielle Griffin, who scored six points and had five rebounds and three blocked shots.

By the end of the third quarter, Becahi led 35-21 after Melhem scored two points at the buzzer on a pass from Robinson.

"We hope to keep going. We want to keep playing. We've really grown as a team," Melhem said.

The Hawks will begin their quest for a state championship with a round one playoff game on Saturday at Freedom High School.