The VC women's basketball team took a while to get going, but they used a solid final 15 minutes of play to pull away from Oxnard 68-46 Saturday afternoon. Alexa Coubal posted her 13th double-double of the season with a team-high 21 points with 14 rebounds and Elena Ferrara continued her strong play off the bench with 10 points. Alexis Howery totaled nine points with five steals and Daphné LeBrun handed out seven assists, scored seven points and grabbed three steals for Ventura (15-8, 6-1).
The Pirates' offense had a difficult time getting started as Sam McKenzie netted VC's first bucket nearly four minutes into play. McKenzie went coast-to-coast at the 3:15 mark of the first quarter to give Ventura an 8-3 lead and Leslie Salazar scored a bucket a minute later. The Pirates led at the end of the opening period, 14-7.
Ferrara grabbed a defensive rebounds and went end-to-end for a lay-up at the 8:40 mark of the second stanza for a 17-7 VC margin. Ferrara scored again a minute later to extend the advantage. Buckets by Tiernan Phillips and Ferrara gave Ventura a 25-10 lead with 5:09 left in the half before the Condors gained some momentum, scoring 10 straight points. Coubal ended the skid with a score at the 3:45 mark and LeBrun hit Olivia Huynh for a lay-up to put VC up 29-23. The Pirates managed just two more points for the remainder of the quarter and held a slim 31-27 halftime edge.
The Condors continued their surge in the second half, outscoring the Pirates 8-4 over the first four-plus minutes of the third quarter, tying the game with a 3-pointer with 5:45 left in the period. Coubal scored inside on the next possession however, and Howery's steal and lay-up on the next trip down the floor spurred a 15-2 run to the end of the period. McKenzie scored a lay-up and LeBrun hit a three for a 44-35 margin. Coubal answered an Oxnard score with a back-to-back field goals and Howery had another steal and ley-up for a 50-37 Pirate lead at the quarter break.
Ventura continued to distance themselves from Oxnard scoring the first nine points of the final stanza. Coubal and Phillips each hit a pair of free throws and Mykah Johnson nailed a long-range bomb at the 7:52 mark. LeBrun hit two foul shots for a 59-37 lead with 7:38 left to play. VC continued to pull away for the 68-46 triumph.
Phillips and Salazar each pulled in 13 boards as the Pirates outrebounded the Condors 59-30 in the game. Johnson added five points.
Ventura returns home on Wednesday Feb. 7, hosting Cuesta in the program's annual Ribbons of Life Breast Cancer game. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 pm at the Athletic Event Center.