Simmons is MVP as Jaguars take tourney
- Updated: December 16, 2018
2018 COMMUNITY COLLEGE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
East County Sports.com
WILMINGTON (12-18-2018/UPDATED 12-19-2018) – Unlike the musical and book, “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the”… gymnasium, the Southwestern College women’s basketball team, fully expected to meet the host Seahawks in the Saturday’s (Dec. 15). championship of the L.A. Harbor College Tournament.
Or so they thought.
“We showed up and expected to play L.A. Harbor for the championship,” said Jaguars assistant coach Lance Hickman. “But when we got into the gym, Taft was warming up, so we played them. instead.”
The path to the finale seemed in order. Earlier, the Jaguars whipped winless Contra Costa College, 74-31, then the University of La Verne JV, 81-75, in the semifinal to gain their second championship appearance this season.
In the other half of the draw, according to the CCCAA state website, the tournament host Seahawks whipped Oxnard in Thursday’s first round, then nipped Taft, 76-75, in Friday’s semifinals to earn a finals berth, too. Or did they?
“I don’t know what happened,” added Hickman.”But we were prepared for Taft, too, since we had to scout both teams. And we went out there and won.”
In the Chaffey College Tournament title game, Southwestern fell behind early. But not against Taft,, grabbing an early lead in the wire-to-wire triumph to claim the trophy.
Freshman center Danielle Simmons (Helix) registered a double-double in all three contests, earning the MVP award to top the all-tournament team.
In addition, sophomore guard Satera Bates (Mount Miguel) was tabbed all-tournament, while freshman guard Malia Talavera (Olympian) was an honorable mention selection.
With the triumph, Southwestern (5-4 overall) is the lone school in the South Division of the Pqcific Coast Athletic Conference with an above-.500 record.
Meanwhile, the question remains: what happened to L.A. Harbor.
Orange Coast Classic
Palomar 97, Saddleback 71, At Basil Peterson Gym in Costa Mesa, the Comets stopped the Gauchos in Monday’s (Dec. 17) first-round contest. They advance to the semifinals against Irvine Valley, which dropped Cerritos, 71-63.
Taylor Williams tallied 9 of her game-high 28 points in the first period, propelling Palomar to a 31-9 cushion.
Also for the Comets (11-3), Julie Saelee added 19 points (11-for-13 at the foul line), while forward Lilly Crabtree grabbed a season-best 14 rebounds in just 19 minutes of action against the Gauchos (3-7).
In the other half of the draw, El Camino beat Chaffey, 71-63, while Long Beach downed host Orange Coast, 62-50, to keep the Pirates winless.
Spartan Coast Classic
In Oceanside, tournament host MiraCosta College (8-4) took a 71-47 decision over Imperial Valley College (3-7) in the first of three days of round-robin competition at Crosswoods Gymnasium.
However, the Spartans only reported the score, without any details, plus did not report the scores of the other two contests, which featured San Diego City vs. Compton, and San Diego Mesa vs. Porterville.
TUESDAY UPDATE Porterville 55, San Diego Mesa 45: The winless Pirates from the Central Valley snapped an 8-game losing streak, skating past the Olympians in Monday’s (Dec. 17) opening round of the Spartan Coast Classic at Crosswoods Gymnasium at MiraCosta College in Oceanside.
Porterville freshman Johana Reyes scored a team-high 16 points, as the Pirates held a narrow 26-23 lead at halftime, then outscored San Diego Mesa, 29-22, over the final two quarters to pull away.
Reyes doubled her previous season-high scoring game. She also aded 6 steals, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists.
Also for Porterville (1-8), sophomores Sierra Perez and Kathy Rodriguez both added 11 points, while freshman Juliet Garcia grabbed a team-best 9 rebounds to go with 4 points.
The stats for Mesa (3-7) were not reported by MiraCosta, the tournament host.
San Diego City vs. Compton: The score between the Knights, the 2017 PCAC South Division champions, and the winless Tartars from L.A. County was not reported by tournament host MiraCosta at the Spartan Coast Classic.
