The Lady Huskies edge Santa Rosa 63-61

SAN FRANCISCO, CA —  After a 12-day layoff, the No.9 state-ranked East Los Angeles College women’s basketball won a nail biter, 63-61, against Santa Rosa Junior College in the Golden Gate Classic.

The Lady Huskies, 7-3 overall, meet No. 7 and host City College of San Francisco (10-1) in the tourney semifinals tomorrow in the 7 p.m. nightcap.  

The see-saw battle against Santa Rosa came after a difficult and long day of travel. 

“It was a good win,” said ELAC Head Coach Bruce Turner. “We didn’t open sharp, but settled down and played powered basketball. They (Santa Rosa) are good team.” Santa Rosa is a ranked in the Top 20 in the CCCWBCA North Region Poll.

Santa Rosa took an 18-7 lead with 1:29 remaining in the first quarter. The Lady Huskies closed the quarter with a 7-3 run, which included a 3-pointer from freshman forward Jaelynn Curley (AZ / Ganado High School).

Down 21-14 after one, ELAC scored second quarter runs of five and six straight points that each followed 3-point Bear Cub shots.

The score was tied 27-27 with 5:52 left in the half. Santa Rosa closed out the second quarter with an 8-6 run and led 35-33 at the break. ELAC was outscored 18-17 in the third and was down 53-50 entering the final frame.

The Huskies opened the fourth quarter with a 9-2 run and led 59-55 with 5:20 remaining in the game. After a Santa Rosa scored from a jump shot, the Huskies added a 3-ponter and led 62-57 with 1:22 left. In a wild finish, Santa Rosa closed the gap to one, down 62-61 with 21 seconds left.

Sophomore Dominique Godbolt (Fairfax HS) added a free throw with 13.4 seconds left and ELAC led 63-61. Santa Rosa forward Jenny Eggers attempted a 3-point shot, which ELAC sophomore forward Monica Garcia (Garfield HS) blocked. Garcia scrambled for the rebound, but was called out-of-bounds with 7.2 seconds left. A Santa Rosa jump shot attempt hit metal and Godbolt grabbed the rebound in traffic with 1.2 seconds left. She missed two shots at the free throw line.

Santa Rosa had its third shot attempt in the final eight seconds, which was an 80-foot shot at the buzzer. It was short and ELAC won the close game. The Lady Huskies held strong when it mattered most and outscored Santa Rosa 13-8 in the defense-oriented fourth quarter.

Curley scored a season-high 26 points. Garcia scored 16 points and finished with six rebounds, six assists and was 6-of-8 from the charity stripe. Godbolt had a game-high 12 rebounds and ELAC’s only blocked shot. Santa Rosa had eight blocked shots.

Sophomore guard Destinee Anaya (Irving, TX / MacArthur HS) scored eight points for ELAC and teammate freshman guard Jennifer Pool (Legacy HS) finished with a team-high five steals and a team-high four assists. Guard Kylie Ogden led Santa Rosa with 23 points that included six 3-point baskets.

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story submitted by Tadzio Garcia