Amber Melgoza scored 37 points, and Santa Barbara High’s girls basketball team rebounded from its loss to Ventura by beating Rio Mesa, 61-45, in a non-league game on Thursday night.
The Dons (15-4) broke the game open in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Spartans 21-13. Santa Barbara led 25-23 at halftime.
Melgoza grabbed 11 rebounds to go with her scoring. Jada Howard scored nine points and led the team with six steals. The Dons had 13 steals as a team.
Kimberly Gebhardt played a solid game, with seven rebounds, two steals and five assists to go with her two points. Jocelin Petatan added eight points and Cassandra Gordon scored five.
Santa Barbara returns to Channel League play on Tuesday at Buena.
