Cats open new year with a bang

The Saddleback women's basketball team opened the new year with an 81-49 victory at Cerritos College on Friday night in Norwalk.  The Bobcats jumped out to a big lead and never looked back in moving eight games above .500.

Saddleback came out hot, opening up a 16-point lead after the opening quarter.  The Bobcats were sizzling from long range, making 6-of-13 shots from beyond the arc in the opening quarter.

The second quarter was nearly a repeat performance as Saddleback outscored the Falcons 21-9 in the frame.  Kassidy Beach, Kalynne Mendez and Makayla Rutledge all had six points apiece in the quarter while the defense forced eight turnovers.

Saddleback had it in cruise control the rest of the game, leading by as many as 37 points at the midway point of the third quarter.  Beach had a big third frame when she scored nine points in the quarter on way to finishing with a team-high 19 points for the night. 

Saddleback finished 15-of-47 from three-point range for the game while forcing 21 turnovers in the defensive end.

Saddleback is now 12-4 overall heading into Orange Empire Conference (OEC) play this coming week.  It is the first time the program has been eight games above .500 since the 2016-17 season when the program made it to the second round of the regional tournament. 

Saddleback opens up OEC play on Wednesday at Fullerton College.  The Bobcats (12-4) and Hornets (8-8) are scheduled to tip off at 7:00 PM in Fullerton.