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Ventura 91,
Contra Costa 22
November 24, 2007
VC-Kiwanis
Tournament of Champions, Semi-Finals
Box
Score See
Photos
Starting
for injured teammate
Jessi Selleh,
Sara Nicholson made the most of her opportunity scoring
19 points to help lead Ventura to a 91-22 victory over
Contra Costa in the semi-finals of the
VC-Kiwanis Tournament of Champions.
Meanwhile,
Michelle Santizo came off
the bench to earn the Pirates' first double-double of the
season with 11 points and 12 rebounds. VC hosts Mt.
San Antonio in the finals Sunday at 4:00 pm.
Unlike in the past few games, Ventura (5-1) opened the game
up cold offensively. The Pirates missed four of their
first five shots in the first three minutes of the game, but
the defense kept Contra Costa (1-5) off balance, allowing
for the chill. When
Indira Kaljo hit the second
bucket of the contest with 16:56 remaining in the opening
period, the Comets were still scoreless, and would be for
another six minutes. In that time the Pirates built a
22-0 advantage en route to their 47-12 halftime lead.
Nicholson connected on three old-fashioned 3-point plays,
tallying 15 points in the half on perfect shooting, 5-5 from
the floor and 5-5 at the charity stripe.
The Pirates opened the second half with another eight
minutes of shut-out ball, using a 24-0 run to ice the game.
Jenelle Conklin led the
early charge with five assists on five consecutive
possessions to five different teammates. Santizo also
caught fire in the final period, nailing three 3-pointers
and scoring all 11 of her points in the stanza.
Nicholson closed out the scoring with 1:11 on the clock,
sealing the 91-22 victory.
Nicholson and Kaljo each had a team-high 19 points while
Santizo and
Randi
Hicks were also in double-figures with 11 and 10 points,
respectively. Santizo's 12 boards led the 53-25 Pirate
rebound advantage.
Julie Heurung contributed
nine caroms while Kaljo pulled down six and Conklin totaled
five. Conklin dished out nine assists while
Eja Wong
handed out five dimes. Nicholson led the team with
five steals and Santizo had four thefts.
Ventura, ranked fourth in the latest Southern California
coaches poll, will battle second-ranked Mt. San Antonio, the
two-time defending state champion, in the tournament finals.
Tip-off is scheduled for 4:00 pm at the VC Athletic Event
Center.
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