Pirates pick up big road win over Glendale

The Orange Coast College women's basketball team is not afraid of taking on the top competition and on Wednesday, the Pirates knocked off host Glendale College, 67-59, in a nonconference matchup.

The Pirates (9-4) overcame a seven-point halftime deficit by outscoring the state's 17th-ranked Vaqueros (7-4) 38-23 over the final two quarters to pick up the impressive road win.

Alexis Legan continued her amazing play for the Pirates with 36 points and five rebounds. The lone OCC sophomore hit an impressive 12-of-16 shots, including 5-of-7 from 3-point range and also sank 7-of-9 from the free-throw line. 

Donyea Smith had a massive game off of the bench, scoring 10 points and grabbing a team-best 15 rebounds, while Karina Cabrera added 10 points with three assists. 

For Glendale, Kayla Wrobel led the way with 24 points and 10 rebounds, while Megan Delgado added 14 points.

Trailing 40-29 early in the third, Coast began chipping away at the deficit and outscored the Vaqueros 17-5 over a six-minute span to lead, 46-45 with just over a minute left in the third.

With 4:33 remaining in the game, a pair of Wrobel free throws gave Glendale a 59-57 lead, but from there, it was all OCC as the Vaqueros were kept off of the scoreboard the rest of the night.

Legan recorded seven straight points over the next two minutes, including a made-3-pointer on a foul, putting Coast up for good. Glendale went a combined 0-for-7 from the field over the final 4:33 of play with two turnovers. 

OCC will play at the Moorpark College tournament, beginning on Friday against L.A. Valley, beginning at 3 p.m. Coast's next home game will take place on Wednesday, Jan. 5 against Santa Ana, beginning at 7 p.m.

Release by Tony Altobelli