Ventura overcame a sluggish start to defeat Reedley 68-54 on Thursday afternoon to advance past the first round of the Gilcrest Invitational at the College of the Sequoias in Visalia for the 20th straight year. Micaela Pericone-Kapp hit four 3-pointers en route to a team-high 16 points to lead VC (5-2) in victory. Sandra Ortiz captured nine rebounds to lead the Pirates.
The Pirates seemingly were still on the vans in the early going. They managed a 13-5 lead at the 15:05 mark of the opening period on Brooke Zamora's 3-pointer, but the offense went cold soon thereafter. VC did not score for the next five-plus minutes, and the Tigers tied the score at 13-13 at the 10:01 mark. Makenna Murray broke the drought with a driving bucket to put VC back on top, 15-13, but another triple put Reedley on top on the next possession.
The Tigers augmented their advantage to 21-15 with 7:35 on the clock before VC began a comeback. Erin Ross converted a bucket inside off of a Aubri Smith assist, and Ortiz netted an inside deuce on the next trip down the floor. Carly Maciel came in and sandwiched a two and a three around a trey from Pericone-Kapp, making the score 27-21 with 2:25 remaining. Reedley scored the final five points of the period to make the halftime score 27-26.
Ventura took control of the game early in the second half, scoring the first six points of the period, a Pericone-Kapp three, a free throw by Aubri Smith, and a bucket by Carolyn Ruffino. The Pirates led 41-32 at the 12:30 mark, and extended that advantage to 19 points, 58-39, following back-to-back treys by Felicia Magana and Murray with 6:06 left to play. Reedley managed a couple of 3-pointers down the stretch, but never threatened as VC posted the 68-54 win.
Pericone-Kapp led the offense with 16 points while Aubri Smith netted nine. Magana, Murray, and Maciel each scored eight while Zamora added seven. Ortiz led the Pirates on the glass with nine, and Zamora pulled in eight boards. Madison O'Donnell had six rebounds and Aubri Smith pulled in five caroms. Murray handed out six assists and Aubri Smith had four.
The Pirates advance to the championship semifinal of the tournament against NorCal No. 2 Sierra College. The teams will tip off at 6:00 pm in Visalia at Sequoias' Porter Fieldhouse.