Chargers Roll Tigers on Road

Thirteen Chargers score in 67-52 rout of Riverside College.

•  Box Score
  

Lynzie Numata

Riverside, Calif. - Almost every Charger scored at least one bucket for Cypress College (16-8, 6-1) in a 67-52 blowout victory over an overmatched Riverside Community College women's basketball squad in a game played at Cal Baptist on Friday.

Melissa Jensen led Cypress with 10 points. Lynzie Numata chipped in nine points after hitting three shots from beyond the arc. Samantha Soria and Jonell Bowers both added eight points each, while Sloan Turner finished with seven points and a game-high 11 rebounds, including seven on the offensive glass.

As a team, Cypress held Riverside to 28 percent shooting (18 of 64 field goals), while forcing 22 turnovers thanks to a solid defensive effort that earned the Chargers 13 steals in the game, led by Denshay Wallace's three, and a two apiece by Tera Salhus and Jonell Bowers.

Cypress has a tough couple of games coming up this week when they host Saddleback College on Wednesday, February 1, in the early game scheduled for 5:30 p.m. On Friday, Cypress goes on the road to face Fullerton College in a battle between the two top teams in the Orange Empire Conference standings.

Chargers Hold on to Beat Coast

Cypress got back in the win column with a 66-60 victory over Orange Coast at home.

• Box Score

Samantha Soria

Cypress, Calif. - Cypress College (15-8, 5-1) bounced back from its first conference loss of the season with an impressive 60-54 victory over a tough Orange Coast College squad at home.

The Chargers held the lead for much of the game and may have won by a larger margin, but the tenacious Pirates wouldn't give up until the final buzzer. A late couple of buckets by OCC made it a little closer than Cypress head coach Margaret Mohr would have liked, but the Chargers were able to hold off the Pirates to close out the first half of Orange Empire Conference play with a 5-1 mark in league play and share of first place in the standings.

Samantha Soria was the only Charger to score in double digits with her team-high 13 points. She also added a team-leading 4 steals for Cypress on the defensive side of the ball. Sloan Turner finished with nine points and nine boards, and Tera Salhus had one of her best scoring games of the year with eight points on 3 of 4 shooting from the floor, and pair of shots from the free throw line.

As a team, Cypress shot 46.8% from the field, while collecting 38 rebounds. Defensively, the Chargers held OCC to 30.9% shooting for the game, and forced 22 turnovers by the Pirates.

Cypress will open the second half of its Orange Empire Conference schedule with a road matchup against Riverside Community College. The game will be held at Cal Baptist with a the tip scheduled for 6:30 p.m.

Chargers Drop First Game in Conference

Irvine Valley pulled off a big road upset over the first place Chargers.

• Box Score
  

Jessica Romero

Cypress, Calif. - The Chargers were hoping to pull off a win on  a night when the player's and coach's honored their parents, but Irvine Valley crashed the party by pulling off a surprising 66-60 win over the Chargers (14-8, 4-1).

Cypress let the Lasers get off to a good start and were left playing catch up the rest of the game. A late run got the Chargers back in with only minutes left to play in regulation, but a few key buckets by IVC down the stretch, coupled with a few missed shot attempts by the Chargers, allowed the Lasers to hold on for the road upset.

Melissa Jensen led the Chargers with a team-high 15 points, that included a 9 for 11 effort from the free throw line. Jensen also had a team-high in rebounds with seven. Donna Ka' anoi and Tera Salhus led the Cypress defense with three steals apiece. Jessica Romero added eight points, while Jonell Bowers chipped in nine points on 4 of 8 shooting from the floor.

Cypress is now in a three-way tie for first place atop the Orange Empire Conference standing with Fullerton College and Irvine Valley.

The Chargers host Orange Coast next Wednesday in their final OEC league contest of the first half schedule.

Cypress Remains Undefeated in Conference

Women's Basketball Outlasts Santa Ana College in OT.

Sloan Turner

BOX SCORE

Santa Ana, Calif. - The Cypress College women's basketball (13-8, 4-0) team remained undefeated in Orange Empire Conference play this season after outlasting Santa Ana College (5-14, 0-5) 53-43 in a defensive battle at SAC.

Freshman Sloan Turner was a force in the paint for Cypress. Turner finished with the only double-double of the night after tossing up game-high's in points (20), and rebounds (10) and blocks(3). Eleven different Chargers scored in the contest, including Jessica Romero and her game-high six steals.

The Chargers jumped out to a 14-4 lead over the Dons midway through the first half and never looked back. Tera Salhus converted a Melissa Jensen pass into an easy layup a few minutes later to open up a 12 point lead for Cypress. A layup by Santa Ana's Janelle Flores brought the Dons back to within seven points, but a pair of Cypress free throws, and buzzer beater at halftime by Turner put the Chargers comfortably out in front 31-20.

Cypress came out of halftime locked-and-loaded. Less than three minutes into the second half, the Chargers turned an 11-point halftime advantage into a 19 point blowout on the road. Jonell Bowers' layup with 14:53 to go capped off a 14-4 Cypress run to open the half. Freshman Ivory Hallstein got the lead back to 20 points after getting a layup to fall with 9:42 to go.

The Dons made the most of Cypress' substitutions down the stretch by going on a 21-11 run to close out the game. Hallstein's jumper with 4:10 to go in the game would prove to be the be last points of the night for the Chargers, while the Dons finished the game with an 8-0 run that made the score a little more respectable in a 52-42 OEC victory for Cypress.

The Chargers return home on Friday when they host Irvine Valley College on Parent's Night at 7:30 p.m.

Chargers Swat Hornets in Overtime

Jensen and Walton combine for 37 to lead Cypress past Fullerton 64-59 in OT.


Box Score

Melissa Jensen

Cypress, Calif. - Cypress took over sole posession of first place in the Orange Empire Coference early season standings after dealing Fullerton College its first regular season OEC defeat since 2009 in wild come-from-behind 64-59 overtime victory at home on Wednesday.

Despite trailing for much of the game, the Chargers found themselves two free throws away from forcing overtime after Nikki Perkins drew a foul with just three seconds to go in the game. With the game on the line, Perkins drained both to make it a 53-53 contest heading into OT.

The Hornets never even stood a chance after in the extra frame. Perkins found Sloan Turner down low for a layup to give Cypress its first lead of the game with 3:43 left to play in the 5:00 overtime period. Turner came up with a huge block on the other end of the court on Fullerton's next posession, then hit one of two free throws to give the Chargers a three-point edge with 3:04 to go.

After a couple of missed three-point attempts by Fullerton, Chelsea Walton put the nail in the coffin when she drained a jumper that put Cypress ahead by five with only 58 seconds to play. Walton hit one of two free throws the next time down the court, then Melissa Jensen capped off an 8-0 run to open overtime when she sank both of her shots from the charity stripe.

The Hornets finally scored their first points in overtime with 14 seconds to go on a three pointer by Erica Jackson to make it a five-point game, but Walton hit two more free throws to stretch the Chargers' lead back to seven points at 63-56. Fullerton's Aunjanay Chambers finished 1 for 10 from beyond the arc after hitting a three to pull the Hornets to within four, but with only six ticks left on the clock, Donna Ka' anoi closed out the scoring with a free throw that sealed the Chargers 64-59 Orange Empire Conference victory over Fullerton College.

Chelsea Walton

Jensen finished with a double-double after scoring a game-high 23 points and pulling down a team-high 13 rebounds in 39 minutes of play. Chelsea Walton came up big when it counted most by scoring five of her 13 points in the overtime period. Ka' anoi and Turner both chipped in nine points and five rebounds apiece. Turner also had a game-high four blocks, while the Chargers defensive specialist Ivory Hallstein finished with three blocks and pair of steals.

Despite trailing by as much as 13 points in the first half, Cypress dug in on defense and went on a 16-5 run to get back to within a basket with a minute to go before halftime. After the break, Fullerton managed to stretch its lead back to 10 points at 44-34 with nine minutes left in regulation.

Walton's jumper with 4:15 to go made it a one-point game after a 12-3 run by the Chargers. A huge three by Jensen with three to go tied the game at 49-49, before Walton sank a pair of clutch free throws to make it a 51-51 contest. Fullerton went back on top 53-51with 22 seconds on the clock, but after Perkins' two free throws sent the game into overtime, Cypress never trailed again.

The Chargers have a bye this Friday, and will return to action on Wednesday, January 18 when they go on the road to take on Santa Ana College.

Chargers Down Gauchos to Remain Unbeaten in OEC Play

Melissa Jensen finished with a double-double in the Chargers 61-52 win over Saddleback.

Melissa Jensen

Mission Viejo, Calif. - Cypress College women's basketball won its second straight Orange Empire Conference matchup to begin this year's slate of league contests, with a big 61-52 road victory over seventh ranked Saddleback College in Mission Viejo on Friday.


Sophomore Melissa Jensen helped lead the Chargers (11-8, 2-0) past a Saddleback College (14-3, 1-1) squad that hadn't lost a game since the beginning of December. Cypress' suffocating defensive pressure held the Gauchos to 17 points under their season average.

Jensen finished with a double-double after scoring 12 points and pulling down 10 rebounds. Fellow sophomore Donna Ka'anoi matched Jensen with 12 points, while picking up a pair of steals and three boards. Freshman Chelsea Walton was the other Charger in double figures with 10 points and a game-high four assists.

Freshman Sloan Turner turned in a solid performance on both ends of the court - finishing with eight points, seven rebounds and a game-high four blocks. Sophomore Jessica Romero led the Chargers with three steals.

Cypress got off to a slow start against a confident Gaucho offense that scored eight straight points to open the game. A layup by Jensen with 17:32 to go in the half got the Chargers on the board, and sparked a 17-2 defensive clinic that put the Chargers out in front 17-10. Saddleback's only points during that span came on a pair of free throws by Rina Towne at the 16:22 mark.

With 11:24 to go in the half, Doreen Lopez hit a layup and converted a free throw to give Cypress a seven-point edge over the Gauchos. Saddleback finally ended their almost six-minute scoring drought when Raven Gammage got a jumper to drop to make it a 17-12 ballgame.

Saddleback still had a lot of fight left in it, and proceeded to go on an 8-2 run of its own, and reclaim a 20-19 lead . There were five lead changes over the next couple of minutes, before Denshay Wallace made both of her free throws with 3:30 left in the period to give Cypress a 25-24 advantage.

Layups by Walton, Ka'anoi and Jensen closed out the first half scoring and sent the Chargers into the locker room up by seven at 31-24.

After the break, Saddleback came out gunning, and hit on a pair of threes to make it a one-point contest, but Cypress answered right back with scores by Bowers and Ka'anoi to stretch the lead back to 35-30. A 7-2 run by the Gauchos tied the game at 37-37, but it wouldn't stay that way for long.

The Chargers jumped right back on top after they rolled off four straight points to take a 41-37 lead. The game continued to go back-and-forth game before Saddleback hit three-straight baskets to go up 44-41 with 10:23 to go in regulation.

That lead would turn out to be the Gauchos last. of the game.

A three-point play by Walton evened the game at 44-44, and began a 20-8 run by the Chargers that closed out the game. The closest the Gauchos would get the rest of the way came with 9:03 to go, when DonQuenae Townsend hit a layup for Saddleback to tie the game at 46-46.

Turner, Tera Salhus, Ka'anoi, Jensen, Walton and Samantha Soria all hit some big shots down the stretch to seal the deal, and secure the 61-52 Chargers victory in Orange Empire Conference action over Saddleback College in an early season road test.

The Chargers will return home to prepare for a solid early season test against one of the conference's top teams. The last time these two teams met, Cypress knocked Fullerton College out of the playoffs on its own court. This time, Cypress will take on the Hornets at home in a regular season league game scheduled for this coming Wednesday, January 11 at 7:30 p.m. in a battle for OEC supremacy.

Chargers Open Conference Play with Rout of Tigers

Chargers look good in conference opening win over Riverside.

Sloan Turner

Cypress, Calif. - Cypress College came out after halftime and put together a solid second half effort to pull away with a 62-46 victory over Riverside Community College in the Orange Empire Conference opener on Don Johnson Court on Wednesday.

Sloan Turner led the Chargers (10-8, 1-0) with game-highs in total points (14), and rebounds (12), on her way to a double-double against an over-matched Tigers (6-11, 0-1) squad that began the night severely shorthanded. RCC only started the game with seven players on the bench - and only six played.

Freshman Denshay Wallace finished with eight points, Samantha Soria had seven, and two others tied with six points apiece. Donna Ka' anoi sparked the Charger defense with five steals.

After a back-and-forth first half, Cypress headed into halftime clinging to a narrow 25-23 lead. The beginning of the second period would be a close battle as well, but the Chargers' press on defense began to wear Riverside down, while Cypress' offensive attack began to exploit holes in the Tigers zone.

With the second half winding down, Nikki Perkins hit back-to-back jumpers with 6:34 to go to give Cypress a 48-40 lead. A few minutes later, Soria closed out the scoring for the game when she hit both of her free throws to finish off a 9-2 Charger run, and secure the 61-46 Orange Empire Conference victory over Riverside Community College.

Cypress will go on the road to face off against seventh-ranked Saddleback College (14-2, 1-0) on Friday, January 6 at 7:40 p.m. in Mission Viejo, Calif.