Streak hits five with latest win

The Saddleback women's basketball team ran its winning streak to five games with an 80-71 win over Santa Ana College on Friday night in Santa Ana.  Janae Omusi, Laura Tapia and Irma Ealy combined for 66 points in the win.

Saddleback started a bit slow, scoring just two points over the first 4:33 as Santa Ana bolted out to a 12-2 lead.  Tapia then sparked the Gauchos with a three-pointer as Saddleback went on a 13-0 run to take a lead.  The two squads would play fairly even the rest of the quarter as Santa Ana led 20-17 through the first 10 minutes.

The second quarter completely belonged to Saddleback.  The Gauchos went on a 14-4 run to start the quarter, led by Omusi.  After Ealy made two straight lay-ups to give Saddleback a 21-20 lead, Omusi proceeded to score 14 points in the quarter as Santa Ana had no answers.  The Gauchos would outscore the Dons 28-14 in the 10-minute span to take a 45-34 lead into the locker rooms.

The beginning of the second half belonged to Ealy, who scored the first seven points of the third quarter for Saddleback as the Gaucho lead held at 52-41.  She then made a jumper with 2:56 remaining in the third quarter as the lead grew to 58-42.  Santa Ana managed to slice into the lead by the end of the quarter behind Taylor Ivicevic, who scored six points down the stretch as the Gauchos led 63-51 after three quarters.

Santa Ana made a run to start the final quarter behind the hot hands of Ivicevic and Blaysen Varnadoe, who combined for 13 points as the Dons came storming back.  Santa Ana started the quarter with a 13-1 run, tying the game at 64-64 with 4:53 remaining.  Saddleback answered with Tapia and Omusi, who rattled off eight straight points to regain control.  Tapia buried a three-pointer with 3:59 remaining, and after an Omusi lay-up on the following possession buried another with 2:33 remaining for a 72-64 lead.  By the time Santa Ana woke up to stop the run, Saddleback had built an 11-point lead with under a minute remaining. 

Omusi and Tapia would finish with 24 points apiece while Saddleback enjoyed a 40-31 advantage in rebounds for the night.  Omusi was 7-of-15 from the field and 9-of-10 from the free throw line while collecting nine rebounds.  Tapia was 6-of-11 from beyond the arc.  Not to be overlooked, Ealy crept on the Dons to score 18 points with six rebounds of her own as Santa Ana had no answers inside.

Saddleback is now 18-5 overall and 5-0 in Orange Empire Conference play.  The Gauchos have won eight of their past nine games and seen their Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) climb all the way to No. 4 in Southern California and No. 7 in the state.

Saddleback will look to continue its hot streak when it travels to Fullerton College next Wednesday in the final game of the first half of the conference schedule.  Tip time against the Hornets (9-12, 1-4) is scheduled for 5:00 PM.