TAFT, CA – After winning their season opener in the Al Baldock Cougars Sports Center last week, the Taft College Lady Cougars Basketball Team didn't skip a beat and protected their home court again by defeating the visiting Lady Seahawks of Los Angeles Harbor College 72-55.
Taft began the game outscoring their opponents 23-12 in the first quarter. The second quarter was fairly close with Taft having the slight edge 11-10. Leading into halftime 34-22, Taft continued its fastbreak attack winning the 3rd quarter 20-14. The Seahawks gained some momentum outscoring Taft 19-18 in the last quarter.
The rebounding between both teams was a battle with Taft a having one rebound difference edge 42-41. Taft scored 17 points off turnovers. The Black and Gold attacked thrived on their fastbreak system and scored 14 points to LA Harbor's 2. Taft also won in other categories in second chance points and steals. Impressively, Taft dished out 24 team assists, and LA Harbor had 8, and points in the paint was clearly the home's best team stat margin 50-22.
LA Harbor was led by one of the state's leading scorers with 25 points. As for the Lady Cougars, sophomore guard/forward Celicia Enos led the team with a career high 19 points, along with 6 rebounds and 2 steals. Freshman Alizah Lara was second in scoring with 12 points and collected 8 rebounds. Sophomore Brandy Edwards came off the bench to contribute 10 points and 2 rebounds. Freshman Mary Pahukoa and Sophomore Siera Bradford shared the same statistics with 8 points and game highs of 5 assists.
Taft College Women's Head Basketball Coach Romeo Lagmay, Jr. commented, "Our defense is getting better, as well as our confidence. We played really well against a very athletic team, and our team met the challenge. I asked the team I wanted to know what their 'fight' looked like, and they proved it tonight."
The Cougars will be on the road for a while, as they face their next opponent in Culver City, CA against Los Angeles Pierce College on Saturday, November 11 at 2:00 pm.