Hancock Women's Basketball Opens Conference Saturday at Home Against Ventura

The women's basketball team enters Western State Conference play this week on a two-game winning streak. The 11-5 Bulldogs open conference play at home against the most storied program, Ventura, on Saturday, January 14, at 5 p.m.

Last weekend, the Bulldogs earned two impressive home wins to finish the preseason. The Bulldogs started by overcoming an eight-point deficit to defeat Bakersfield 58-55 powered by a 15-0 run that spanned the third and fourth quarters. Sophomore Destinee Garcia (Golden West HS) led the way with 15 points, nine rebounds and three steals. Freshman forward Grace Rosa (Paso Robles HS) added 14 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots. Freshman forward Naomi Leopardi (Big Sandy HS) recorded her third double-double with 11points and 10 rebounds. Sophomore guard Syenna Ramirez (St. Joseph HS) had six points, eight rebounds, six assists and three steals for the Bulldogs. Hancock ended the weekend with a dominant 73-30 victory over L.A. Pierce. Rosa led the way with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Karly Beyers (Pioneer Valley HS) added 14 points off the bench after burying four 3-pointers. Ramirez added nine points, nine rebounds and two steals. Leopardi finished with six points and 10 rebounds. Eleven Bulldogs scored at least two points.

Sixteen games into the season, Rosa is Hancock's leading scorer at 11.8 points to go with 7.3 rebounds per game. Guard Taylor Lee-Hammer (Pagosa Springs HS) averages 11.5 points per game and shoots 47 percent from 3-point range. Garcia averages 9.4 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.3 rebounds per contest, while Ramirez averages 8.9 points, 4.8 assists and 4.4 rebounds.

Ventura finished non-conference play 15-5 and on a seven-game winning streak. The Pirates, who are ranked No. 6 in the Southern California Region this week, have won 26 consecutive Western State Conference titles under head coach Ned Mircetic, who ranks #1 in state history for most women's basketball wins at the community college level. Under Mircetic, the Pirates have a conference record of 282-6. The Pirates have won 44 straight conference games, including two over the Bulldogs last season. Freshman guard Katie Campbell is the team's leading scorer at 17.9 points per game, followed by Rhiana Dougan, who's averaging 14.2 points. Davina Del Castillo averages 8.8 points, 10.1 rebounds and 2.6 steals per game. Sienna Brown also averages 8.7 points and 9.1 boards.

Hancock will play at Moorpark on Wednesday, January 18, before hosting Santa Barbara on January 21.