The Monarchs, of Santa Ana’s Mater Dei, beat the BHHS girls’ basketball team for the second year in a row, 80-63, in Saturday’s CIF-SS playoff game at Ocean View High.

Unlike last season, when the Monarchs defeated Beverly Hills by 39 points in the final, the Normans played a much better first half this time.

The Normans kept an up-tempo pace, shot well and were able to keep Mater Dei from effectively applying its full-court press.

Beverly trailed 19-15 at the end of the first quarter. Mater Dei was ahead 28-15 early in the second quarter and seemed on the verge of another rout, but the Normans tied the score at 35, with 2:45 remaining in the quarter, and trailed by two at the half.

The Monarchs again seemed poised to pull away, leading 52-43, in the third. The Normans, however, got to within four.

Lisa Kilman and Chelsea Austin scored 17 and 16 points, respectively, for Beverly Hills. Jaina Abdul-Mansour added 11 points, while her twin sister, Miranda contributed 10. Natalie Moy had eight points and eight assists for the Normans.

BHHS remains a contender for spot in the state playoffs, despite Saturday’s loss. The field will be announced Sunday, and first-round games are set to start Monday.