Hancock Women's Basketball Loses 53-45 to American River in Semifinals at Cuesta Tournament

Taylor Lee-Hammer and Karly Beyers combined to score 28 points, but the Allan Hancock College women's basketball team lost 53-45 to American River College in the semifinals of Cuesta College's 34th annual Phillips 66 Invitational on Friday. The Bulldogs, who were the two-time defending tournament champions, fell to 3-3 overall. American River, ranked No. 9 in the Northern California Preseason Poll, improved to 6-2. Hancock will battle Las Positas for third place on Saturday at 3 p.m. American River will battle Cuesta in the title game.

Lee-Hammer led the Bulldogs with 15 points on 6-for-13 shooting. The sophomore went 3-for-4 from the free-throw line to go with six rebounds and three steals. Beyers hit five of her nine shots from the floor and sank three of her four free throws to finish with 13 points. The Pioneer Valley High School graduate added seven rebounds and three assists.

Grace Rosa led the Bulldogs with 12 rebounds, including three on the offensive end. The sophomore finished with eight points on 4-for-9 shooting. Hannah Walls added seven rebounds and three blocked shots.

Hancock trailed 24-21 at halftime, but was outscored 14-9 in the third quarter to enter the fourth quarter behind 38-30.

Hancock hit 19 of its 49 shots overall for a 39 percent mark. The Bulldogs went 7-for-10 from the line. Hancock committed 27 turnovers in the loss.