Griffins short again; IVC over La Verne JV
- Updated: December 7, 2018
East County Sports staff report
IRVINE (12-8-2018) – It’s all about timing, which has come in short supply to the Grossmont College women’s basketball team.
It’s one thing to lose to the host of a tournament in the first round, as the Griffins did Thursday at the 14th annual Irvine Valley College Classic. At least they would
However, that timing factor came into play.
Following Grossmont’s first-round setback, Barstow capped Day 1 of the event by upsetting Cuesta College to gain a berth with the host Lasers in the semifinals.
As for Cuesta, they came out hard following Thursday’s embarrassment to down Grossmont, 75-49 to eliminate the Griffins (1-8) from the competition.
For the Cougars (8-3), guard Claire Garcia tallied a season-high 25 points, bettering her previous mark of 24 against Southwestern last month.
In addition, backcourt mate Maya Armenta added 16 points, 5 steals
For Grossmont, guard Chiara Mattern also registered a season-best with 24 points, going 8-for-9 from the foul line while forcing a pair of Cougars defenders into foul trouble. Meanwhile, Drew Mendoza added 15 points, while Leanna Watson marked her return from a 5-game absence by scoring 7 points in 7 minutes of action.
Imperial Valley 73, University of La Verne JV 65: The Lady Arabs entered the school’s holiday break on a high note, sweeping past the visiting Leopards in Friday’s (Dec. 7) non-conference contest at DePaoli Sports Complex in Imperial.
Sophomore forward Destiny Salgado (El Centro-Central) just missed establishing career bests in two categories, finishing with 27 points and 17 rebounds.
Meanwhile, sophomore guard Keren Hogue (Imperial HS) added 29 points, 6 boards
“With our school now on holiday break, we can take more time in the gym and get some additional shooting practice,” said second-year coach Viridiana Salas. “It should get us ready for our three games the following week at the MiraCosta Tournament.”
IVC will meet Porterville, Compton and the host Spartans at the Spartan Coast Classic event, slated for Dec. 17-10, at Crosswood Gymnasium in Oceanside.
