Women's Basketball Routs Taft in AHC Crossover Split

SANTA MARIA, Calif. - The Allan Hancock College women's basketball team set a new program scoring mark after competing in the annual AHC Crossover event, hosted inside of the Joe White Memorial Gymnasium on December 9th and 10th. The Bulldogs split the weekend with a loss against Glendale College on day one before pulling off a convincing victory over Taft College on day two. 

GAME ONE: GLENDALE 64, ALLAN HANCOCK 54 | BOX SCORE

Both teams were fairly even in the opening quarter until the Vaqueros hit three consecutive shots from distance en route to a seven point advantage at the end of the first. Hancock battled through a back-and-forth second quarter and entered the intermission facing a four point deficit after a last-second jumper from Giselle Calderon went through the net. 

Kayla Taylor, Mya Mendoza, and Calderon led the Bulldogs through a 9-0 rally, cutting the deficit to one, before landing with a three point deficit at the end of the third. The offensive effort stalled for the home squad in the final quarter after a smothering Glendale defense limited the Bulldogs to just three points, all from Taylor, through nine minutes of play. 

As a team, the Bulldogs struggled from distance after shooting a cold 11.8 percent from the three-point line but finished with a +14 scoring advantage in the paint. Taylor led the way in game one with a double-double that consisted of 15 points and 11 rebounds. Mendoza also finished the night in double figures with 11 tallies, while Alexandria Paquet led all performers with seven assists. 

GAME TWO: ALLAN HANCOCK 103, TAFT 37 | BOX SCORE

The Bulldogs bounced back in game two with a dominating victory over Taft while registering the highest scoring total on record for the program with 103 points. Alexandria Paquet registered the first basket of the contest after hitting a three-pointer with 8:09 remaining in the first, giving Coach Scott's crew a lead that they would ride through to the end. Hancock overcame the previous game's shooting woes from beyond the arc and finished the evening with a 37.1 percent effort after making 13 shots from distance. AHC also controlled the inside play by outrebounding the Cougars, 61-27, and registering 48 points in the paint. 

Six Bulldogs ended the game in double figures, led by a 21 point performance from Chloe Blankenship. Paquet was next after adding 15 points to the total, followed by Kayla Taylor and Mallory Branum who chipped in with 14 apiece. Indian Dowling-Green and Giselle Calderon rounded out the double-digit scorers with 12 points each, while Chyanna Tell snagged a career-high of 10 rebounds. 

Women's basketball is scheduled to return to action with a road trip to Gavilan College on Thursday, December 15th.