The Pirates had bursts of brilliance interspersed with struggle Thursday in their 77-48 victory over Mission College in the opening round of the Tom Gilcrest Invitational at College of the Sequoias in Visalia. Rhiana Dougan netted 21 points to lead the way and Davina Del Castillo had a double-double of 12 points and 14 rebounds as VC moved to Friday's quarterfinal round of the 16-team tournament. VC (4-2) used a decisive 21-3 run over a 4:39 stretch around the third quarter break to put the game away.
Ventura led wire-to-wire, as Katie Campbell nailed a 3-pointer on an assist from Dougan on Ventura's opening possession. Del Castillo followed that up with a lay-up from Sienna Brown's helper on the next trip down the court and VC led 5-0 early. Dougan connected from long range at the 2:52 mark beginning an 8-2 VC run to close the opening period. Ventura led 19-9 at the quarter break.
The Pirates continued the run, expanding the lead to 27-11 when Del Castillo assisted Dougan's lay-up with 7:57 left in the half. The fast-breaking Saints continued the fight, however, closing to within 31-22 at the 2:29 mark before Avery Brunk's 3-pointer restored the margin to double-figures. VC led 37-23 at halftime.
Early in the second half, Dougan, Del Castillo and Campbell combined to lead a 11-5 run, expanding the VC advantage to 47-28 with 4:56 remaining in the third quarter. Mission closed to within 16 points, 49-33 two minutes later before the Pirates' decisive run. Ventura registered its largest lead of the day, 34 points, twice in the fourth quarter before posting the 77-48 final score.
Campbell filled the stat sheet with 12 points, nine rebounds, three assists, two blocks and a steal. Del Castillo added four dimes and three thefts to her double-double and Simone Lewis added 12 points off the bench.Brown recorded eight points and 11 boards in the game.
Ventura moves to the tournament quarterfinals for the 22nd straight year. The Pirates will take on Riverside Friday Dec. 2 at 5:00 pm.