Pirate reserve Carolyn Ruffino was forced into extra duty. With an injury to point guard Aubri Smith, Ruffino played heavy minutes, leading a late rally with eight consecutive points during one stretch, as VC scored the final eight points in regulation to send the game to overtime, where they defeated visiting Moorpark 62-54 in the regular season finale for both teams. Ruffino led VC (25-5, 12-0) with 18 points in 40 minutes of play while Makenna Murray scored 16, including the first five for the Pirates in overtime in the win.
Moorpark, who played VC to three points in the team's first meeting on Jan. 28, took charge early, scoring the game's first seven points. When Aubri Smith hit the Pirates' first bucket at the 17:35 mark, the raiders had set the tone for the tough, physical battle that lay ahead. Moorpark maintained their lead, hitting a 3-pointer at the 13:56 mark to stretch the advantage to 18-9.
At that point, VC seemed to get untracked as Madison O'Donnell converted an Aubri Smith assist to begin a 10-0 Pirate run. O'Donnell hit a pair of free throws, followed by a Brooke Zamora bucket and scores from Aubri Smith and Ruffino. VC took a 19-18 advantage with 10:18 left in the first half.
Neither team could put the ball in the hoop for the next three minutes until the raiders re-found their touch. The reestablished their advantage with 7-0 run, posting a 25-19 lead on a 3-pointer at the 6:26 mark. Murray finally broke the Pirate drought with a pair of buckets, but VC trailed at halftime 31-28.
THe Pirate defense held Moorpark without a field goal for the first 7:28 of the second half. But although the Raiders could only muster a pair of free throws during that time, VC also found it difficulty to score without point guard Aubri Smith, who left the game at halftime due to an injury. Ventura did manage buckets from Ruffino and O'Donnell, and a pair of charity tosses from Zamora to take a 35-33 advantage with 12:51 remaining in the game.
The Raiders countered, however, hitting a 9-0 run, scoring on four straight possessions to take a 42-35 advantage with 11:15 left. MC led 46-40 with 6:37 on the clock when Ruffino nailed a 3-pointer from the left wing, the first of her three consecutive buckets for the Pirates. Moorpark countered with a trey, but Ruffino answered with a mid-range jumper from the left baseline. Moorpark led 53-45 at the 3:55 mark when Ruffino hit another triple, beginning the Pirates' final comeback.
The Pirate defense held the Raiders scoreless for the final 4:46 of the game, as they slowly, but steadily worked back into the game. O'Donnell hit a free throw, and Murray hit a runner in the paint with 2:04 on the clock to make it a two point game. In the final minute, the shot clock was ticking down as Murray let the ball fly. As it bounced away from the rim, Zamora tipped the rebound to Micaela Pericone-Kapp, who froze her defender, then drove left for the game-tying bucket with 31.1 seconds remaining. The Pirate defense held fast on Moorpark's final possession of regulation time, and the teams headed to overtime tied at 53-53.
Murray squeezed a deuce and a triple around a Raider free throw as VC took a58-54 lead with 2:53 left in the extra time. a Ruffino bucket at the 1:56 mark and free throws from Zamora and Murray sealed the victory, 62-54.
It was an exciting win for the Pirates, their 53rd straight triumph over the Raiders since 1991, coach Ned Mircetic's first year as head coach. It was witnessed by a large crowd of 1,500 fans who were at the game to celebrate sophomore night and attend the team's annual barbeque fundraiser. The fans certainly got value for their price of admission as Ventura closed out its 19th undefeated Western State Conference season under Mircetiic, the program's 20th overall. The conference title, clinched last week, is the team's 25th straight and 28th in program history.
The Pirates now await their seeding for the CCCAA SoCal Regional Playoffs. The pairings will be announced Monday with Ventura hosting at least one playoff game on Friday or Saturday, Feb. 27 or 28 at 7:00 pm.
The Pirates' class of 2015 with their parents, family members, and mentors before Saturday's game on sophomore night. (Photo by Richard Dean)