Cats sweep through Charger Classic

The Saddleback women's basketball team won three straight games at the Cypress College Charger Classic this weekend.  The latest was a 69-46 win against Merced College on Sunday.

Saddleback only trailed for 50 seconds the entire game as Merced opened with a basket and the Bobcats quickly sped past them.  Saddleback ended up scoring 18 straight points, thanks in large part to Kalena Akinaka.  The sophomore had seven points in the quarter as the Bobcats led 20-6 after the opening frame.

Saddleback kept the gas on the pedal in the second quarter, opening up a 44-16 lead at the half.  Sienna Bani scored eight points in the second quarter alone, going 2-for-2 from long range while making a pair of free throws.

The second half was more of the same for Saddleback as Merced had trouble handling a Saddleback defense that forced 22 turnovers.  The Bobcats extended the lead to 32 points after Mariana Mina made a layup with 7:18 remaining in the game to extend the lead to 67-35. 

Mina finished with a team-high 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field while dishing out a team-high four assists.  Kassidy Beach finished a dominating weekend with a game-high 11 rebounds.

Saddleback is now 8-3 overall and has a three-game winning streak while winning six of its last seven games.  The Bobcats will attempt to continue the hot streak with a home game against Cuyamaca College on Wednesday.  The Bobcats and Coyotes are scheduled to start at 3:00 PM inside the gymnasium.