The Week Ahead for Hancock Athletics, Feb.6-11: Hancock Softball Hosts Pair of Games, Basketball Heads to Moorpark Wednesday and Hosts Santa Barbara Saturday
Here is a look at what's ahead for the sports teams at Allan Hancock College this week. Softball, which is off to a 5-0 start, hosts games on Thursday and Saturday.
Men's basketball, which is tied for first place in the conference, is ranked No. 16 in the state this week. Both basketball teams play at Moorpark Wednesday and host SBCC on Saturday.
MEN'S BASKETBALL (5-1, 18-8)
This Week:
Wednesday, Feb. 7, @ Moorpark*, 7 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 10 vs. Santa Barbara *, 5 p.m.
Coming off its overtime win over then-No. 17 Ventura, the Allan Hancock College men's basketball starts the week tied for first place in the Western State Conference standings with the Pirates. Hancock entered the state and regional polls this week. The Bulldogs are ranked No. 16 in the state and No. 8 in the Southern California Regional.
This week, the Bulldogs will play at Moorpark on Wednesday, February 7 at 7 p.m., before hosting Santa Barbara at 5 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 10. Hancock starts the week 5-1 in conference and 18-8 overall. Moorpark is 3-3 in league and 10-13 on the year.
Hancock entered a tie for first place with a 96-94 overtime win at home against Ventura. Sophomore guard Shane Carney (Narbonne HS) scored a career-high 31 points to go with seven assists. Spirit Ricks (Patterson HS) recorded his fifth double-double with 24 points and 11 rebounds. Glenn Jordan (Curtis HS) added 12 points, five assists and four rebounds. Devin Davis (El Centro HS) compiled 14 points, nine rebounds and three steals. Freshman Trenton Mitchell (El Diamante HS) chipped in seven points and nine boards. Hancock shot 54 percent overall in the game and went 6-for-11 from 3-point range.
Hancock will face Moorpark for the second time in one week. After scoring the first 17 points of the second half, the Bulldogs overcame a six-point halftime deficit to defeat Moorpark 73-61 last Wednesday. Davis recorded his third straight double-double and seventh of the season with 15 points, 13 rebounds and four assists. Mitchell earned his second double-double with 12 points and 15 rebounds. Carney added 13 points, all of which came in the second half. Ricks finished with 11 points and nine boards.
Moorpark's Cole Micek ranks fourth in the conference by averaging 16.5 points per game. Carney ranks fifth at 16.4 points. Davis (7.1), Ricks (6.8) and Mitchell (6.7) rank second through fourth in the conference in rebounds per game. Davis is averaging 11.1 points per game, while Jordan and Ricks are at 10.3.
Hancock will host Santa Barbara City College Saturday, Feb. 10. The Bulldogs topped SBCC on the road last month 75-61 behind 14 points, six rebounds and five assists from Jordan. Carney added 13 points, four boards, four assists and three steals in the win.
Riding an 11-game losing skid, the Vaqueros will host Oxnard on Wednesday before taking on Hancock. SBCC Is 0-6 in conference and 1-18 on the season. Drayten Howell is the team's leading scorer during conference play at 12.8 points per game, while Aaron Mejia ranks second at 11.7 points.
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL (4-2, 12-10)
This Week:
Wednesday, Feb. 7, @ Moorpark*, 5 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 10 vs. Santa Barbara *, 3 p.m.
The Hancock women's basketball team will look to get back on track this week with two key Western State Conference battles. Hancock will play at Moorpark on Wednesday, February 7, before hosting Santa Barbara on Saturday, February 10 at 3 p.m. Hancock starts the week at 4-2 in conference and 12-10 overall.
The Bulldogs are coming off a 70-42 loss at home to Ventura, the No.10 team in the state. The Pirates snapped Hancock's four-game winning streak. Taylor Lee-Hammer (Pagosa Springs HS) led the Bulldogs with 15 points, while Karly Beyers (Pioneer Valley HS) added 13 points and six rebounds in the loss. Hannah Walls (Valley Christian Academy) added eight points and seven boards.
Hancock and Moorpark will meet for the second time in one week. The Raiders are 4-2 in league and tied for second place, two games behind first place Ventura. Moorpark is 17-6 on the season. Last week, Hancock limited Moorpark to 19 percent shooting and a 1-for-14 effort from 3-point range. Kelsea Illengo led the Raiders with 12 points. Hancock held Moorpark's leading scorer, Barbara Rangel, to five points, eight rebounds and six blocked shots. Rangel averages 15.9 points, 13.2 rebounds and 4.0 blocks per game. Emily Herring averages 12 points per game. Grace Rosa (Paso Robles HS) recorded a double-double for the Bulldogs with 20 points and a career-high 17 rebounds. Sidney Aguilera (Nipomo HS) added five points for the Bulldogs off the bench.
After falling to Hancock, Moorpark bounced back with an 89-33 win over Oxnard last Saturday.
Last month, Hancock defeated the Vaqueros 52-39 at Santa Barbara. Beyers hit four 3-ponters to score a game-high 20 points. Hancock outscored SBCC 17-8 in the second quarter and again in the third quarter to earn the road win. Rosa added 15 points, six rebounds and three steals, while Lee-Hammer added 10 points, four steals and three assists.
Winners of three in a row, the Vaqueros host Oxnard on Wednesday before traveling to Hancock. SBCC begins the week 3-3 in league and 11-11 on the season. Aaliyah Pauling leads the Vaqueros with 13.7 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. Holly Barrera averages 10 points per game.
SOFTBALL (5-0)
This Week:
Thursday, Feb. 8 vs. L.A. Valley, 2:30 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 10 vs. Riverside, 1 p.m.
After winning three road games within three days by a combined score of 24-2, the Hancock softball team returns home to host L.A. Valley on Thursday, February 8 at 2:30 p.m. and Riverside at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 10. The Bulldogs are off to a 5-0 start for the second straight season.
The Bulldogs opened their road trip with a 10-0 win in five innings at College of the Canyons, a team that won 31 games and advanced to the Super Regional last year. Bailey Killough (Arroyo Grande HS) threw a no-hitter and hit a 3-run home run. Freshman shortstop Mallory Townsend (Cabrillo HS) went 3-for-4 with a double and 3 RBI. Mackenzie Baird (Cabrillo HS) and Alyssa Gonzalez (Pioneer Valley HS) collected two hits and an RBI.
Hannah Diaz (Pioneer Valley HS) threw a complete-game shutout, allowed three hits and struck out three in Hancock's 2-0 victory at L.A. Mission. Zaiden Bakke (Pleasant Valley HS) delivered a RBI-single and Townsend clubbed a RBI-double for the Bulldogs. Nikole Cody (Yucca Valley HS) went 2-for-2, while Crystal Gonzalez (Righetti HS) drew four walks.
Hancock wrapped up the road trip with a 12-2 win in five innings at Glendale. Cody hit a home run and triple and finished with 3 RBI in the win. Killough and Diaz combined to limit Glendale to two hits. Catcher Alyssa Gonzalez led the Bulldogs' 15-hit attack with three hits, while Cody, Nakaila Fuggs (Righetti HS) and Sierra Martinez (Orcutt Academy) had two apiece.
Five games into the season, Bakke leads the team with a .583 batting average, followed by Killough at .533, Townsend at .500, Cody at .429 and Alyssa Gonzalez at .417. Townsend leads the team with 10 RBI and three doubles.
L.A. Valley opens the 2018 season on Tuesday against West L.A. before traveling to Hancock. Riverside starts the week at 3-1. Riverside beat Canyons 7-5 last weekend.
BASEBALL (3-2)
This Week:
Thursday, Feb. 8 @ College of the Canyons, 2 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 9 @ San Diego Mesa, 1 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 10 @ Rio Hondo, 2 p.m.
The Hancock baseball team continues its five-game road trip with three games in three days starting Thursday, February 8 at College of the Canyons. Hancock travels to San Diego Mesa on Friday before heading to Rio Hondo on Saturday for a 1 p.m. game.
Hancock opened the road trip with two tough losses last week. Hancock built a 6-2 lead at Taft College last week behind three-run home runs by Daniel Curiel (Righetti HS) and Josh Tonascia (San Benito HS). The Bulldogs carried a 7-5 lead into the eighth inning when the Cougars erupted for six runs against three Hancock relievers to pull out the come-from-behind win. Freshman Ismael Hernandez (Cabrillo HS) went 4-for-4 for the Bulldogs, while Curiel added two hits. Nic Cardinal (Mesa CC) started for Hancock and allowed five runs in 3 2/3 innings. He struck out eight. Left-handed pitcher Jesse Gasca (Lompoc HS) struck out four in four innings of relief. He cruised through the first three before getting into trouble in the eighth.
The Brahmas scored twice in the bottom of the ninth against Hancock reliever Dylan Maiden (Cabrillo HS) to stun Hancock 13-12 on Saturday. Hancock scored eight times in the third inning to build an 8-2 lead. Zach Torra (Santa Ynez HS) struck out seven and allowed five runs over four innings in his second start for the Bulldogs. Curiel and Quinntin Perez (St. Joseph HS) had three hits apiece to lead Hancock's 14-hit attack. Cordell Bowie (Del Sol Academy), Hernandez and Nick Proffitt (Liberty HS) had two hits and 2 RBI apiece. Proffitt hit a two-run home run.
Canyons is off to a 2-2 start, while San Diego Mesa is 1-3 and Rio Hondo begins the week at 2-3.
Five games into the season, Curiel leads the Bulldogs with 11 hits and 7 RBI to go with a .550 batting average. Hernandez is hitting .563, while Perez is at a .471 clip with six walks.
WOMEN'S SWIMMING AND DIVING
This week:
Friday, Feb. 9 @ WSC Pentathlon, Ventura College
Fueled by three second-place finishes, the Allan Hancock College women's swimming and diving team finished fifth during the Northern California Community College Relays hosted by Santa Rosa Junior College on Saturday.
Hancock finished second in the 250-yard Bill Anttila Relay with a time of 3:14.82, about 25 seconds behind first-place Cosumnes River; and second in the 150-yard backstroke relay with a time of 1:37.85, about six seconds behind Sierra College. Hancock also finished second in the 1-meter diving relay with a total of 148 points.
The Bulldogs finished fifth in the 150-yard butterfly relay and 200-yard medley relay; seventh in the 800-yard freestyle relay; ninth in the 400-yard freestyle relay with a time of 4:47.03, nearly 60 seconds behind the winner, Santa Rosa.
In the team standings, the Bulldogs finished fifth out of six teams with 56 points. Santa Rosa won with a total of 130 points, followed by Sierra with 128 points, American River and Las Positas.
Hancock will return to action Friday, February 9, during the Western State Conference Pentathlon, hosted by Ventura College.