Saiki guides Cats to a win

The Saddleback women's basketball team won its second straight game with a 71-60 victory over San Diego Mesa College on Friday night inside the gymnasium.  The Bobcats used a balanced attack in improving to 4-0 at home.

Saddleback had a huge first half, jumping out to a 44-20 lead at the break.  The Bobcats were 6-of-13 from long range in the opening 20 minutes while forcing 11 turnovers from the Olympians. 

San Diego Mesa mounted a huge comeback in the third quarter, outscoring Saddleback 20-4 over the first 9+ minutes of the quarter in cutting the Mesa deficit to 52-45 by the end of the quarter. 

San Diego Mesa whittled the Saddleback lead down to two with 6:20 left in the game when the Bobcats finally found their stride.  Saddleback managed to get to the free throw line 12 times over the final four minutes, making 10.  Nina Saiki (pictured) took control of the game, scoring seven points in the final quarter while making 4-of-4 from the charity stripe. 

Saddleback shot 88% from the free throw line for the game while outrebounding the Olympians 42-36.  The Bobcats had four players in double-figures, led by Saiki (21).  Makayla Rutledge scored 17 points and collected seven rebounds.  Kassidy Beach scored 15 points with eight rebounds before fouling out with 4:50 remaining in the game.  Kalena Akinaka added 12 points and seven rebounds.

Saddleback is now 4-2 to start the season.  It is the best start for the program since the 2016-17 season when the team went 5-1 to start in finishing 21-10 for the year. 

Saddleback will take a trip north next week, playing at Monterey Peninsula College on Monday (4:30 PM) and Laney College on Wednesday (12:00 PM).