The Chase is On: Women's Basketball Contending For Conference Lead With Big Win

Citrus Women's Basketball made a big move in the WSC East Saturday with a big win over visiting Victor Valley. The Owls beat the Rams in a hotly contested game, 69-65, and moved to 4-1 in conference. As the first round of conference wraps up, the Owls are just one game out of the lead behind Glendale, who remained unbeaten through round one.  

Citrus came out strong on the visitors, taking clear control of the 1st quarter on both ends of the floor and establishing a 22-9 lead by the beginning of the 2nd quarter. But the Rams responded, putting Citrus on their heels on the defensive end and tying the game up at 32 going into the locker room at halftime. From that point, the game became a dead heat. The two teams would be tied 7 times and play through 9 lead changes on the night. 

Having battled back and forth throughout the 4th quarter, the teams were tied up at 65 with just a minute to play. The Owls would go up 67-65 on a layup by Diana Navarro at the 30 second mark, and Navarro would get herself to the charity stripe with seconds to play, hitting two clutch free throws and locking in the 69-65 win for Citrus. 

The Owls eclipsed their season best three point shooting percentage, hitting 44% of their long range jumpers, a major factor in the win. The Owls also out-rebounded the Rams by a large margin of 41-27, and scored 16 points on second chance plays, to the Rams' 8. 

Individually, Kyannie Brown once again led the way offensively, scoring 21 points. Brown also grabbed 13 rebounds, 6 of them on the offensive glass, dished 4 assists and a blocked a couple of shots. Diana Navarro put in 16 points on the night and hit 3 three pointers. Malia Rocha scored 12, drained 4 threes and dished 5 assists. Perhaps most impressive was Keely Wall who went 6 for 8 from the field, scoring 13 points and grabbing 12 rebounds for her conference high 9th double double of the year. Wall is one of the top rebounders in the state and in the top ten in double doubles. 

Citrus improves to 15-8 overall and 4-1 in conference play. Round two of conference kicks off next Saturday at home when the Owls take on LA Valley at 5:00 in the Owls Nest. 

For the latest scores, highlights, photos and more, visit www.citrusowls.com  and follow us on Twitter: @ccfightingowls