Women’s basketball earns home victory over Central

Kian Hagerman
Mesa Legend

MCC basketball players
(Photo: Tania Ritko / Mesa Legend)

In their closest game since they played against Arizona Western on Feb 1, the lady T-Bird basketball team took the win against Central Arizona College on Feb 11 in the Theo Heap Gymnasium.The home game began with an initial 3-point attempt by Vaquero guard Tate Tsingine that was unsuccessful, followed by about a minute of exchanges of possessions between the two teams before Quynne Huggins sunk a 3-point jump shot for MCC.
Huggins would see the most time on the court and score 11 points during the course of the game, though Tori Lloyd was the top scorer of the team with 15 points.

The first quarter was a fairly even exchange, the two teams scoring 11 points combined in a quick two minute succession. With 38 seconds left on the clock Jelani Huma completed a final 3-point shot, putting the Vaqueros behind by 2 to end the quarter 14-16. Huma again scored to open the second quarter, making a layup to even the score and cement for a short time control over the ball for Central.

The next few minutes would see Vaquero Juliet Currency land both free throws resulting from a foul by Sham Troupe, followed up by a 3-point shot by Tsingine that granted Central the lead for the first time in the game. Lloyd seized an opportunity to steal the ball and convert the play into a layup a few seconds later, breaking the Vaqueros’ short streak of luck. Though there was plenty of activity in the intervening time, neither team was able to score again for another minute of play, when Anessa Glenn made her first free throw attempt due to a foul by Tsingine.

The pace increased as the game neared the halfway mark, the score between the two teams increasing from 21-19 to 28-31. Robin Butler made a layup at the buzzer for the Vaqueros, making it a three point game. The third quarter was mostly a Central affair, as the team took an early lead and held onto it successfully, though Huggins made a jump shot for MCC to begin things.

Kaosarat Onikoyi of the Vaqueros found success throughout the quarter, adding a total of 7 points to the board, while Kiara Knox added 6 of her own that MCC would have to compensate for. The result of the third quarter was 49-44 in favor of Central on the scoreboard. With only the fourth quarter remaining, the lady T-Birds would need to be as competitive as Central was in the third, and MCC managed.

Pulling out the win was thanks to the efforts of Allie Fuller, who in the fourth quarter put 10 points on the board and a total of 14 in the game, only one less than lead scorer Lloyd. This lady T-Bird victory was the eighth in a row for the team, and a total record of 9-3 so far this season. MCC will host Scottsdale Community College on Feb. 18 at 7 p.m.; for more information about Mesa Community College athletic event dates and times, check www.mesatbirdsports.com.

  • Mesa Legend Staff

    These are archived stories from Mesa Legend editions before Fall 2018. See article for corresponding author.

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