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Pirates Top LA Southwest in Season Opener

The 2008-09 season ended with Erika Ward and Chanelle Brennan pacing the offense in the Pirates' state semifinal loss. The 2009-10 began in similar fashion, but with a Ventura victory, as Ward netted 23 points and Brennan added 14 in VC's season premier. The Pirates were sharp at times, and sloppy during others, but they were able to follow their sophomore scorers to a 64-44 win over LA Southwest College in the opening round of the Vaquero Shootout at Glendale College. VC will take on Santa Ana College, 56-54 winners over Chaffey, in the tournament semifinals at 5:00 pm on Saturday Nov. 21.

Ventura (1-0) started the season quickly on the offensive end. Amanda Padilla hit Ward in the right corner for a 3-bomb on VC's opening possession, and that was followed by Gabrielle Conn's put-back bucket and a pair of free throw's by Brennan, giving Ventura an early 7-4 lead barely two minutes into the game. The Pirate offense sputtered as quickly as it started, however, remaining scoreless for the next seven minutes. With VC trailing 11-7, Kris King hit a 14-footer in the key at the 11:40 mark beginning a 19-0 Pirate run. Ward splashed a pair of 3-pointers and Padilla hit another long-ranger putting the Pirates ahead 18-11 with 7:04 left in the period. Conn's basket with 3:58 on the clock closed the run, making the score 26-11.

LA Southwest (2-4) managed a single field goal and a pair of charity tosses in the next few minutes, and the Pirates continued their long-range barrage, closing the half on a 11-4. Padilla, Conn, and Ward all connected for triples, and King hit a pair of free throws to make the halftime score 37-15 in favor of VC.

The Pirates began the second half as fast as they did the opening period, first with a backdoor lay-up from Padilla to Ward followed by a fast break from Padilla to Ward to Brennan. Jausecca Cockerel's 3-pointer from the right wing made the score 59-30 with 7:50 remaining in the contest before play got very sloppy on both ends of the floor. Ventura held on with the 64-44 victory.

There were many positives taken away from the game, including four different Pirates connecting on 3-point shot attempts and 19 assists as a team. The Pirate defense held the Cougars to 15 points in the first half and 29 percent shooting for the game. The Pirates turned the ball over 25 times, however, and were limited to 38 percent shooting from the floor and 50 percent at the foul line.

Ward and Brennan led the offense with 23 and 14 points, respectively, while Padilla and Conn added eight and seven points to the scoreboard. King had 10 rebounds for VC and Conn gathered six boards. Padilla dished out five assists, with Ward handing out four dimes, while Jordan Clegg led the team with three steals. Cockerel also played an excellent floor game on the defensive end for Ventura.

Ventura advances to the semifinal of the Vaquero Shootout against Santa Ana College on Saturday Nov. 21 at 5:00 pm. VC will open their home schedule in the VC-Kiwanis Tournament of Champions on Friday Nov. 27 at 6:00 pm against Laney College.