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  • Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson reaches to grab a...

    Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson reaches to grab a rebound against Alemany during Friday night's CIF-SS Open Division playoff semifinal at Mater Dei. Samuelson scored a game-high 30 points to help top-seeded Mater Dei to a 59-37 victory.

  • Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson, right, turns to put...

    Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson, right, turns to put up a shot past Alemany guard Kate Tokuhara during Friday night's CIF-SS Open Division semifinal at Mater Dei.

  • Mater Dei's Jayda Adams races to grab the ball against...

    Mater Dei's Jayda Adams races to grab the ball against an Alemany defender during Friday night's CIF-SS Open Division semifinal at Mater Dei.

  • Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson, center, takes the ball...

    Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson, center, takes the ball away from Alemany guard Kate Tokuhara, right, during Friday night's CIF-SS Open Division semifinal at Mater Dei.

  • Mater Dei guard Rianna Reimers, center, cheers as she watches...

    Mater Dei guard Rianna Reimers, center, cheers as she watches the ball go in for the score during Friday night's CIF-SS Open Division semifinal at Mater Dei.

  • Mater Dei guard Nicole Freeman is tripped up by Alemany...

    Mater Dei guard Nicole Freeman is tripped up by Alemany guard Alyssa Fisher during Friday night's CIF-SS Open Division semifinal at Mater Dei.

  • Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson drives to put up...

    Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson drives to put up a shot against Alemany during Friday night's CIF-SS Open Division semifinal at Mater Dei.

  • Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson watches to see if...

    Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson watches to see if her shot goes in as she falls to the floor after being fouled by an Alemany player during Friday night's CIF-SS Open Division semifinal at Mater Dei.

  • Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson watches to see if...

    Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson watches to see if her shot goes in as she falls to the floor after being fouled by an Alemany player during Friday night's CIF-SS Open Division semifinal at Mater Dei.

  • Mater Dei forward Jayda Adams, right, checks on her teammate...

    Mater Dei forward Jayda Adams, right, checks on her teammate Katie Lou Samuelson after Samuelson was fouled hard and knocked to the floor by Alemany players during Friday night's CIF-SS Open Division semifinal at Mater Dei.

  • Mater Dei cheerleaders watch the girls basketball team roll over...

    Mater Dei cheerleaders watch the girls basketball team roll over Alemany during Friday night's CIF-SS Open Division semifinal at Mater Dei.

  • Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson takes a shot as...

    Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson takes a shot as she warms up before Friday night's CIF-SS Open Division semifinal at Mater Dei.

  • Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson, center, gets the team...

    Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson, center, gets the team together before the start of Friday night's CIF-SS Open Division semifinal against visiting Alemany.

  • Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson, center, stands with teammates...

    Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson, center, stands with teammates Marina LaPuzza, left, and Ally Rosenblum, right, as the national anthem is played before the start of Friday night's CIF-SS Open Division semifinal against visiting Alemany.

  • Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson, left, gets some handshakes...

    Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson, left, gets some handshakes from teammates as she leaves the game late in the fourth quarter of Friday night's CIF-SS Open Division semifinal against visiting Alemany.

  • Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson, second from left, waits...

    Mater Dei forward Katie Lou Samuelson, second from left, waits her turn for a warm-up drill before Friday night's CIF-SS Open Division semifinal against visiting Alemany.

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Associate mug of Kenny Connolly, Anaheim reporter.

Date shot: 12/31/2012 . Photo by KATE LUCAS /  ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

SANTA ANA – When they made their way out of the locker room at the conclusion of Friday night’s contest, Mater Dei’s senior duo gave off an aura of exhaustion, but for good reason.

Katie Lou Samuelson hit the deck time after time over the course of four physical quarters, while Andee Velasco sported a fresh cut on the neck that she’d picked up at some point in the evening.

Fortunately for the Monarchs, they’ll have a week to recover before they suit up for another shot at the CIF-SS Open Division championship.

Behind Samuelson’s game-high 30 points Friday night, top-seeded Mater Dei knocked off Alemany of Mission Hills, 59-37, in a semifinal slugfest held at Mater Dei High.

The Monarchs (28-1) will play Chaminade of West Hills (24-3), the team responsible for Mater Dei’s lone loss of the season, in the Open Division finale.

“It’s another chance for us to redeem ourselves,” a determined Velasco said after the game. “It’s a chance to finish something we haven’t accomplished yet together, and it’s one of our dreams. We’re finally here, so we’ve got to finish some business.”

This will be Mater Dei’s second consecutive appearance in the Open championship, having lost to Winward of Los Angeles in last season’s inaugural finale.

“We’ve been in this position before so it’s not like we’re going to be nervous or anything,” Samuelson added. “We’ve just got to give it our all. We can’t leave anything else out there.”

The county’s top-ranked team played with that sense of effort and passion Friday night against the fourth-seeded Warriors.

After grabbing a 12-4 lead by the end of the first quarter, Samuelson got herself going from the free throw line in the second, much like she did against Brea Olinda earlier in the week. The 6-foot-3 wing sank 8 of 9 attempts in the second, tallying 15 points for the quarter to give her 20 at the half.

Samuelson finished 16-for-19 at the stripe.

The Monarchs went on to stretch their 30-19 halftime advantage to a 22-point lead by the end of the third. Alemany shot 1 for 9 from the floor in the third, turning the ball over five times while making one free throw for three points.

“Defense was great,” Mater Dei coach Kevin Kiernan said. “We got out of the press a little bit and just wanted to play some half-court man, maybe mix a little zone in there. We said if we held them under 40, we’d have a great chance of going to the finals.”

Velasco finished with 10, and Ally Rosenblum was spectacular down low with 11 points and 12 rebounds.

Mater Dei and Chaminade played on Nov. 29, with the Eagles winning, 60-59.

Contact the writer: kconnolly@ocregister.com