Gauchos never trail in beating Fullerton

The Saddleback women ended a six-game losing streak with a 58-42 win at Fullerton College on Friday evening.  The Gauchos came out of the gate quickly and never looked back, putting together their best offensive output since December.

Saddleback sprinted to an 11-2 to lead in the opening minutes as Hannah Saliba (pictured) scored seven points against a Fullerton lineup that had no early answers for the 6-foot-2 forward from Lebanon.  Once the Hornets finally clamped down on Saliba, Teoncea Bennett took over and put the game out of reach.  Bennett finished with a game-high 21 points, scoring eight points in the second quarter as the Gauchos carried a 26-15 lead into the locker rooms. 

Fullerton had issues in the second quarter, making zero shots from the field and finishing with just three points for the quarter.  The Hornets missed all 12 shots from the field, further hurting themselves with five turnovers.

Bennett turned up the heat in the third quarter, making her first three shots from the field as the Gaucho lead increased to 33-18 with 7:18 remaining in the quarter.  They would later increase the lead to 17 when Rashawna Williams buried a jump shot with 2:11 remaining for a 39-22 lead. 

Saddleback largest lead of the game came in the fourth quarter when Kara Ito made a layup with 48 seconds remaining in the game to give the Gauchos a 57-38 lead. 

The Gaucho defense was solid throughout, holding Fullerton to 29% shooting while outrebounding the Hornets 46-39 for the game.  Saddleback forced 18 turnovers and never trailed from start to finish.

The Gauchos will play again on Wednesday when they travel to Orange Coast College to take on the Pirates.  Tip time is scheduled for 7:00 PM.