It has been 25 years... but San Pedro High girls basketball never had a moment like this where it could all be over and somehow, some way, what seemed like the impossible dream, finally became a reality.

The Lady Pirates finally got the monkey, er, gorilla off their backs.

After a struggle to score a single point in the third quarter against the famed full-court pressure defense that has provided CIF-Los Angeles City Section power Narbonne of Harbor City a dozen City titles, a few state championships, two national crowns in 2000 & 2001, and produced five future WNBA players, San Pedro was able to pass their way out of it with a spirited fourth quarter charge to shock the visiting Lady Gauchos, 36-33 in a Marine League battle.

And to think the Lady Pirates started off the 2015-2016 season at 2-7 overall... who would have written a script like this?

"Oh my God, I was so hyped," San Pedro junior guard Deanna Valverde said. "(Winning over Narbonne) felt so good."

Most of the many defeats Narbonne has handed San Pedro (10-7 overall, 2-1 league) have been of the blowout variety and the majority of them were absolutely ungodly, but the Lady Pirates somehow persevered and in the end got their biggest victory of their program in a long time, five years after finishing 1-20 in the 2010-2011 season.

San Pedro was able to maintain the lead throughout the entire first half, eventually taking a 21-16 halftime lead into the locker room, and Valverde's trio of three-pointers was a big part of it, along with the hustle and determination of the likes of senior forward Reyna Canchola, senior point guard Crystal Redd, junior forward Natalia Vasquez and others, even forcing a pair of shot clock violations on defense.

"(Having the halftime lead) was crucial," San Pedro senior forward Melannie Ortiz said. "Because at that time we had our confidence and knew we could defeat Narbonne."

Narbonne (5-9, 1-2) would return to form in the third quarter as their press caused havoc and outscored San Pedro 11-1 to take a 27-22 lead into the final stanza. San Pedro's only point came on a Valverde free throw.

Canchola would bury a three-pointer with 6:17 left in the fourth quarter to cut the Lady Gauchos' lead to 27-25, then a free throw by Ortiz would get San Pedro even closer at 27-26. After another crucial stop on defense, Redd nailed a three-pointer off an assist from Valverde to put San Pedro ahead, 29-27 with 3:33 to play.

The Lady Gauchos would tie it at 29-29 and would press again, but the Lady Pirates were able to beat it to set up an Ortiz layup, but it missed. However, the offensive rebound went back to her, and Ortiz would find Redd open on the right corner, and she would drill another trifecta to put San Pedro ahead, 32-29 with 2:06 remaining in the fourth quarter.

"I knew Crystal had it in her, and we believed in her," Ortiz said. "She really stepped up and I am proud of her."

Even with Redd's two big bombs, San Pedro wasn't in the clear yet as Narbonne quickly went ahead 33-32 then coach Cynthia Atencio called timeout for San Pedro, knowing full well what the Lady Gauchos were going to employ.

Once again, San Pedro would pass their way through the full court trap and this time, Ortiz would not miss on a layup off a nice feed from Canchola, and the Lady Pirates would never trail again with a 34-33 lead with 48 seconds left in the game.

There was no rhyme or reason to what San Pedro needed to do against the Gauchos' pressure.

"The key was continuous ball movement and communication," said Canchola, who had 9 points and 10 rebounds for San Pedro. "We targeted the weak spots in their press and used it to our advantage."

Valverde also had another description.

"We didn't dribble and I think that helped us a lot," Valverde said.

San Pedro's defense again would not allow Narbonne to score, and got the ball back with 25.7 seconds left. After one final timeout, the Lady Pirates would work the time down to where Valverde fed Ortiz for another layup for the game's final basket with 8.4 seconds to go. Narbonne hurriedly got down court but their desperation, game-tying three-pointer was well off the mark. Vasquez rebounded, the time expired, and the Lady Pirates celebrated their historic victory.

"We had a hard time during the third quarter but our strong defense kept us in the game," Canchola said. "Also we are all in tune with each other's body language and can anticipate each other's next move."

Valverde and Redd both scored 10 points to lead San Pedro, and Valverde also grabbed 10 rebounds to go along with 4 assists and 3 steals. Ortiz had 5 points and 8 rebounds, and Vasquez scored the only other 2 points for the Lady Pirates, who after winning the Legacy Tournament Gold Division championship have won eight in a row after their slow start. San Pedro will next play at Washington Prep next Friday.

"This definitely helps our confidence and showed what we can do as a team when we have the mindset and believe in ourselves," Ortiz said.