Lion Squads Secure Wins Homecoming Night

The Vanguard men’s and women’s basketball teams both tasted victory last night with big wins over nationally ranked men’s and women’s Westmont teams. The Lady Lions notched an impressive win by the score of 67-57. While the men squeaked out a much closer win, beating Westmont 73-69.

The Lady Lions knocked off the #2 ranked Westmont Lady Warriors 67-57 last night, with stellar performances by three Vanguard upperclassmen, Melissa Norman (SR/Elk Grove, CA), Samantha Doucette (SR/ Irvine, CA) and Maya Kennedy (JR/ Huntington Beach, CA). Each pouring in points in the double digits.

The Lions definitely had revenge on the brain, as the Warriors had defeated Vanguard in their last meeting on Dec. 8th. Senior Mellissa Norman had plenty to say about their enthusiasm for this game day, ” We’ve been talking about beating them since! We have become such a better team since then and it showed tonight.” Norman recounts. The enthusiasm surely showed, and the Lady Lions prevailed with a fantastic win.

In the second matchup of the GSAC doubleheader, the Lions dominated for the better part of the 40 minute matchup against the Warriors. The Lions came out hot in the first half getting out to a 10-3 lead by the 16 minute mark. Westmont continued to push and fight, but the Lions tenacious defense and offensive efficiency proved to be too much for the Warriors to handle. Going into the half, the game was all Vanguard, with a score of 38-27.

At the beginning of the second half, the Lions continued their hot streak, hitting big shots and playing solid defense. However, the Warriors fought back hard, proving to be a great second half team, cutting the Lion’s lead down to 3 points at its closest. After a few close calls, made free throws and well executed plays, the Lions pulled ahead and secured the victory over the #15 ranked Warriors.

Lions coach Rhett Soliday, “I have ultimate respect for Westmont and their entire program. They are a flat out hard-nosed, winning team that knows what it takes. That is why I’m most proud of our guys for our win tonight.”

The Lions were led by Junior forward Zach Allmon (San Luis Obispo, CA) who scored a big 19 points, and freshman forward Brandon Brothers (Glendora, CA)  who poured in 14 points hitting 4-5 from the field and draining two big three-pointers for the Lions.

The Lions next matchup comes this Saturday at home against The Master’s College at 5:30pm for the Women and 7:30pm for the Men. A great way to cap off an incredible homecoming week. Be sure to come out and show some Gold Pride!