TAFT, CA – In their last conference matchup of the season, Taft College Women's Basketball gave soon-to-be conference champions Fresno City College a run for their money. The Cougars were up by as many as three points in the second quarter and were down 34-37 going into halftime. Taft and Fresno claimed two quarter victories apiece, but Fresno eventually had too much scoring power in the 3rd quarter, outscoring Taft 26-3 and putting away the Black and Gold 77-55.
Taft College Head Women's Basketball Coach Romeo Lagmay, Jr. commented, "Though Fresno is undefeated in conference and #3 in the state, I was really proud of our team playing toe to toe with them. We showed great glimpses that we can hang with the best. We must play 40 minutes; we played for 30. That will not get us far against a hgigh-powered Fresno. Regardless of the outcome, we knew what we were capable of, and I'm confident we will show it in these last 4 games. It was so wonderful again to see the support of our on-campus and community fans. They definitely make a difference."
The Cougars converted more points off turnovers, scoring 27 points to Fresno's 21. They also had more second-chance points, 27-21. Fresno had more turnovers (25-23) and outrebounded Taft slightly, 57-51. The Lady Rams also scored more points in transition with 18, while Taft had 8. The Rams also had slight edges in team assists (15-11). The visitors had an advantage with points in the paint (42-32) and blocked shots (7-1).
With no other Cougar players in double scoring figures, sophomore Celicia Enos led the team with 20 points, along with 4 rebounds. Sophomore Yareli Gomez had a team high of both 4 steals and 9 rebounds.
Taft will be back on the road this week, starting with West Hills Lemoore on Wednesday, February 14, and against College of the Sequoias on Saturday, February 17.
The Cougars will return home to play in their first annual Play 4Kay National Women's Basketball Pink Game, supporting Breast Cancer Research and Awareness, on Wednesday, February 21 at 6:00 pm. Their last game of the season is Sophomore Night on Friday, February 23 at 6:00 pm.
(Photo courtesy of Doug Keeler. Pictured Amaya Payne)