Pirates falter late to Gauchos, 66-57, in conference opener
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Saddleback (14-5, 1-0) | 14 | 14 | 14 | 24 | 66 |
|
Orange Coast (12-7, 0-1) | 15 | 9 | 17 | 16 | 57 |
COSTA MESA -- The Orange Coast College women's basketball team had the depth, but visiting Saddleback relied on quality over quantity as the Pirates fell to the Gauchos, 66-57, on Wednesday night in the Orange Empire Conference opener for both teams, played inside the Peterson Gym.
The Gauchos (14-5, 1-0 in OEC), whose starting five took every shot in the game, were led by the sophomore trio of Kiazha Ginwright (24 points, nine rebounds, six assists, seven steals), Janae Omusi (18 points, 13 rebounds) and Irma Ealy (16 points, eight rebounds) as the Saddleback trio combined for more points (58) the the entire Pirate squad (57).
Sydney Driggs had 20 points to lead the Pirates (12-7, 0-1), who struggled from beyond the 3-point arc and hit just 5-of-22 for 22.7 percent and 22-of-66 from the floor (33.3 percent). Michelle Wu added 10 points, but the rest of the Pirates combined for just 10-of-41 from the floor.
Despite the rough night of shooting, OCC trailed by just one point heading into the fourth quarter and with 6:18 left in the game, a Driggs 3-pointer gave Coast a 50-47 advantage.
Six straight points by the Gauchos pushed Saddleback back out in front before made layups by Chyann Pendergrass and Wu gave Coast a 54-53 lead with 3:29 left.
But that would be the end of the happy times for the Pirates as Saddleback ripped off nine straight points over the next three minutes and iced the game with a perfect 6-of-6 from the line in the game's final minute of play.
The Pirates will travel to Riverside City College on Friday night to take on the Tigers, before returning to the Peterson Gym on Wednesday night to host Cypress College. Both games will tip off at 5 p.m.
