Lady Yellowjackets drop first league game to Bloomington, 31-23
Bloomington pulls away during the fourth quarter to deliver the girls’ basketball team a heartbreaking loss
Madison Barrera toughs out this drive to the hoop in the first half of the game against BHS, on her way to a team leading 13 points.
Colton, CA—With December 14’s game against Rim of the World postponed until January 4, Colton’s first Skyline league match happened last night against the crosstown Bloomington Bruins at Hubbs Gym. The game was a classic back and forth game, with the Bruins coming out on top, 31-23.
Madison Barrera had 13 points and 22 rebounds to lead the Yellowjackets. Desiree Cadena scored 6 points and added 2 steals. The rest of the team struggled all night from the field, shooting 9 of 41 despite having many clean looks.
“Heart,” head coach Keisha Owens said after the disappointing loss. “The girls tonight lacked a little bit of heart. I feel like we had the better talent, but they had the most heart, and that’s what won it in the end.”
Both teams came out ragged in the first quarter, turning the ball over on multiple possessions as each struggled against the other’s pressure defense at half court. The quarter ended in an 8-8 tie.
In the second quarter, the Lady Yellowjackets were slow to the ball, took wild, desperate shots, and showed hesitance on the defensive end. Bloomington took advantage, going on an 11-0 run, ending the half up 22-13.
After the break, the Yellowjackets showed that heart their coach spoke about, and held Bloomington to three third quarter points with a balanced attack. Barrera dropped five points in the quarter, and Desiree Cadena and Brianna Chacon added two to the tally, bringing Colton to within three heading into the fourth, 25-22.
The fourth quarter belonged to Bloomington. Their star, Makayla Rhone, scored four of her 12 points in the quarter to extend the Bruins’ lead. The Yellowjackets struggled to get shots to fall, and only scored one point in the quarter on a free throw by Emely Rodriguez.
When asked about where the team goes from here now that they lost their first league game, and fallen to 3-7 overall, senior forward Itaty Morales said they need to improve “definitely on our shooting and our ball handling.”
The Yellowjackets now look forward to some practice time over the holiday break, and return to the court on January 4 up in Lake Arrowhead to square off against Rim of the World in their rescheduled league match.
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