Photo by Bobby R. Hester
Photo by Bobby R. Hester

Women’s Basketball Edges Fullerton in Overtime

It was a must win for the Riverside City College women's basketball team on Tuesday night as they hit the road to take on the Fullerton College Hornets. With the Tigers eyeing a playoff berth, it took more than regulation to determine a winner. But when it all was said and done, it was Riverside who waltzed away with a victory.

The Tigers found themselves down by 10 points entering into the fourth quarter and responded by scoring a game-high 23 points in the final frame of regulation. Sophomores Shanon Jordan and Neveah manning got the ball rolling with consecutive buckets. Later in the quarter, Manning's aggressive play earned her a trip to the free throw line where she knocked down both opportunities. Freshman Maxine Najera followed by hitting a mid-range jumper to trim the Fullerton lead to 57-51.

Two more free throws from Manning near the six-minute mark kept the Tigers within six points. Sophomore guard Regenus gates pocketed a steal on the ensuing possession setting up a jumper from freshman forward Mya Clark. Freshman Neiya Hamilton followed on the next possession by flushing a jumper to bring the Tigers within one point at 63-62.

A pesky Fullerton offense kept the Tigers at bay, but a Riverside timeout gave them a fresh set of legs leading to the game-tying layup from Manning with under 30 seconds remaining, eventually leading to overtime after the Tigers missed the potential game-winning shot at the buzzer.

The Tigers began the overtime frame with Hamilton snapping the bottom of the net on a three pointer. Fullerton answered with a three ball on the following possession and the teams went back and forth with buckets up until the final 1:30 of the game.

The Tigers closed out overtime on a 10-5 run by hitting eight free throws. Sophomore point guard Alyssa Serna hit five of them leading to an 81-76 win.

Riverside was money from the floor shooting just under 50 percent on the night. They outrebounded the Hornets 4938 and scored 46 points in the paint.

All of the Tiger production came from the starting five with Manning scoring a game-high 24 points and 11 rebounds. It is her 10th double-double on the season.

Clark followed with 16 points and 10 rebounds for her fourth-consecutive double-double. She is averaging a double-double with 10.4 PPG and 12.5 RPG.

Hamilton dropped 13 points, while Serna and Gates flushed nine points each.