Vaquero rally falls short in third-place game

After trailing by 22 points in the first half, SBCC rallied to within three on Saturday before dropping a 72-56 decision to the Santa Maria All-Stars at Hancock College.

The Vaqueros (3-8) fell behind 13-2, 26-8 and 37-15 in the opening half of the third-place game in the Lady Bulldog Classic. The All-Stars led 39-22 at intermission.

Andrea Morales scored 15 of her career-high 20 points in the second half. She was 7-11 from the field and tied her career best with nine rebounds. Stella Dulay scored 15 off the bench and Darla Morales had 10 points and six rebounds.

SBCC made just 24.1 percent of its first-half shots and finished at 32.3 percent. Devin Riezebos, a former St. Joseph High standout and Cal State L.A. player, led the All-Stars with 21 points and 15 rebounds.

Darla Morales hit a bucket to ignite a 24-8 run that pulled the Vaqueros within three, 49-46, with 9:45 to play. The Stars, who shot 50 percent, responded with a 14-4 run to built the lead back to 13 points with four minutes left.

"We're trying to find our identity," said SBCC coach Sandrine Krul. "If you can't put the ball in the hoop, you're not going to win many games. We showed a lot of courage to come back from 22 down."

The Vaqueros will compete in the Antelope Valley Holiday Tournament on Friday with a first-round matchup against No. 2-ranked Sequoias at 5 p.m.