Sophomore guard Giovanna Aplin scored SBCC’s first 11 points Saturday night, thanks to a trio of 3-pointers in the first two minutes, and the Vaqueros rolled past Cuesta 77-48 in their regular-season women’s basketball finale at the Sports Pavilion.
Aplin tallied 15 of her career-high 17 points in the opening half on 5-7 shooting, including 4-5 from downtown. The Vaqueros made 8-11 from long range in the first half while building a 47-24 lead.
“Gigi came ready to play tonight,” said coach Sandrine Krul. “She capable of doing that a lot. I’m so proud of her to do it in her last regular-season game.”
Two more sophomores, Jake Kelly and Francesca DeAngelis, scored 18 apiece for the Vaqueros (18-11, 10-2), who won their third straight and finished second in the WSC North. Kelly hit 4-5 from 3-point range with five assists and seven steals. DeAngelis had eight of her team’s 24 steals.
SBCC shot 53 percent in the first half and broke the game open with a 22-7 run. Aplin’s fourth trey of the half made it 33-17 with eight minutes remaining.
The Vaqueros forced 37 turnovers while only making 10.
“Our defense was stellar,” added Krul. “If we got beat up top, then the frontline player would set up. They beat us a little on the pick-and-rolls and rebounding, so we have to work on those.”
Krul, whose team has won eight of its last nine, expects the Vaqueros to be seeded 15th for the 18-team Southern Cal Regional. If that happens, SBCC would host a first-round game on Wednesday at 7 p.m. The 15th through 18th seeds play each other to determine the final two spots.
