TAFT, CA – The issue of having a winning record and being one of the premier teams in the Central Valley Conference is that a target is created on your back. Taft College Women's Basketball experienced that firsthand with a lopsided loss vs. Fresno City College, and their victory with their recent opponent. On Saturday, January 21, last place team West Hills College Lemoore visited Cougar Country and nearly beat the Cougars losing 58-60.
West Hills Lemoore scored 24 points off 24 turnovers from Taft. The Cougars did not take care of the ball whatsoever and showed poor defense guarding the ball. Taft appeared to be out of control on both ends of the court. Every quarter was close and almost every statistical category was nearly evened up. Taft showed an overwhelming edge by outrebounding the Golden Falcons 49-30 and collecting more assists 21-11.
The deciding factor came in the last 30 seconds of the game. There were 5 second chance opportunities the Cougars allowed WH Lemoore to have in one possession, when Taft just needed to one possession to hold the ball to run out the clock. When Taft did get possession, they quickly turned it back over allowing another chance for the visitors to clinch the game. Luckily, a driving shot by the opposing player missed, and Taft secured a rebound and finished the game.
"Oh my goodness. This game was stressful. I cannot believe that our team is underachieving during this time of conference play. We have an outstanding opportunity to solidify us being in the upper echelon of the conference and making state playoffs. A win is a win, but it was ugly. We would rather be on that end of the stick than have no chances in the post season whatsoever. But if we are going to make a jab at playoffs, we must get it together quickly. I am a firm believer in our talent and willing to take on any opponent, but a sense of urgency must step up a few notches. And as always, it is always nice to see our fan attendance increasing cheering on the TC players. We are thankful for that," said Women's Head Basketball Coach Romeo Lagmay, Jr.
Brandy Edwards is keeping things consistent once again by leading all players in the game with 23 points. Alizah Lara scored 12 points, along with 7 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 defensive deflections. Siera Bradford led with a game high of 7 assists and pumped in 4 points. Yareliz Gomez scored 5 points, but had a game high of 16 rebounds, which makes her one of the top 3 leading rebounders in the Central Valley Conference.
Taft will host College of the Sequoias on Wednesday, January 24 at 6:00 pm. Sequoias is currently undefeated in 3-0 conference record and 13-6 overall. Taft is 1-2 in conference play and has the same overall record of 13-6.