Lady Hornets prove they are queens of the nest

The Lady Hornets basketball squad set the pace early on Wednesday night, making easy work of Riverside College in a 79-64 victory at home.

Fullerton's defense and ability to break the full-court press was all they needed to extend their winning streak to 20 games.

Sophomore guard Taiyande Huskey led all Hornet scorers with 13 points. Huskey also added 5 assists and a steal while shooting 2-for-2 from beyond the arc.

Rachel Hatch had another solid game, scoring 10 points in the first half and snagged five rebounds to go along with her four assists.

"I decided to drive to the basket instead of settling for outside shots," Hatch said about her mentality going into the game.

Although the Hornet's offense was its usual consistent self, other factors played into Wednesday night's outcome.

Going into the game Fullerton Head Coach Debi Woelke insisted that her team would need to protect the glass a lot better against Riverside this time around after getting outrebounded in their last meeting. The Hornets (25-1, 9-0) looked more comfortable in the paint and held the Tigers to 14 offensive rebounds compared to last meeting's 29. Although Fullerton still lost in the rebounds column, the Hornets did a lot better job boxing out.

Riverside (19-8, 7-3) attempted to implement a full-court press in the second half but Fullerton's ability to break the press made it possible for them to extend their lead and have five players finish with eight points each. On three consecutive possessions, the Hornets run-and-gun offense supplied easy fast break points.

"[Riverside] had five players up in the backcourt," Woelke said. "All we had to do was get somebody open and look deep and we got a lot of layups out of that."

The Hornet's crowd, complete with live band, also played a huge part in the victory. Not only were they cheering on their team but they seemed to be getting into the mind of Riverside's Shonique Williams. At one point in the game Williams gestured to the crowd and showed obvious signs of frustration.

"It's fun to play in that kind of environment," Woelke said. "This type of environment is what we're going to play in during playoffs and it's good that we packed the gym."

Players noticed the crowd's effort and enjoyed the support.

"It was very helpful," Huskey said. "Having the full stands made us more motivated to play an even better ball game."

Fullerton took a 20-point lead, its largest of the night, in the second half with 7:30 left on the clock. By this time the Tigers seemed ready to hop back on the bus and head back to Riverside.

Fullerton's tough defense forced 25 turnovers against a worthy Riverside opponent. With the win, the Hornets remained undefeated in conference and guaranteed themselves a piece of the conference title.

"[Riverside and Irvine Valley] are now tied in second but we just want to win it all out," Woelke said. "We want to go undefeated in conference."

The Lady Hornet's basketball team avoided a near upset Friday night, overcoming a first half deficit to earn a 60-48 victory over the visiting Dons.

Fullerton's offense couldn't seem to find the basket in the first half, starting the game 0-14 from the field against a Santa Ana squad that was winless in conference heading into the game.

"We can't take any game lightly," said Debi Woelke, Fullerton head coach. "We came in today and expected to win without putting any effort into it. We need to use this as a learning lesson."

Luckily for the Hornets, the defense stepped up by grabbing 23 steals and forcing 34 turnovers. Jhakia McDonald, Ashley Jsames, and Sarah Jackson each had 4 steals for Fullerton.

"We tried to trap and rotate," said Taiyande Huskey, Hornet guard, about the defensive scheme in the second half. "I think they got a little scared and didn't know how to handle it. We just caught them off guard."

Although the Hornets (26-1, 10-0) believe this game was their worst offensive outing to date, Santa Ana (6-18, 0-10) played the game of their lives. The Dons shot 47 percent from the field while hitting nine shots from behind the arc, but it still wasn't enough to earn their first conference win.

Ashleigh Adams carried the scoring load for the Hornets, scoring a team high 12 points while grabbing 4 offensive rebounds.

Fullerton's Ebony McClain proved to be a force under the basket in the second half as she continually set up shop in the paint scoring seven points while grabbing six rebounds and three steals.

Fullerton will next travel to Irvine Valley on Wednesday for a 5:30 tip-off.