Mustang women roll over Chabot

STOCKTON - After a more than forgettable start, the Delta College women's basketball team opened its playoff campaign with a memorable finish and beat Chabot in the California Community College Athletic Association Northern Regional on Saturday at Joe Blanchard Gymnasium.

The top-seeded Mustangs beat the No. 17-seeded Gladiators 85-47 and will play Merced in the semifinals at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Blanchard Gym. The Blue Devils (21-9) beat Siskiyous 56-52. On Dec. 19, Delta defeated Merced 52-45.

Sophomore Kelci Haueter and freshman Selina Moore each had 14 points to pace Delta to its 13th consecutive victory, and Teylor McMiller added 12 points and 10 rebounds.

"This isn't much to celebrate because we still have a lot of work to do," Haueter said. "We got off to a slow start and probably underestimated them. We can't do that, especially in the playoffs."

The Mustangs (25-5) found themselves trailing 11-5, as the Gladiators (11-18) had an 8-0 run in the first 6 minutes of the game.

At the time, the Mustangs were 1 of 10 from the field, including 0 for 6 from 3-point range, and had committed three turnovers.

"I don't know what that was for the first 15 minutes," Delta coach Gina Johnson said.

"Overall, we were able to get into the flow and score some points off transition. Nikki (Gleason) and Victoria (Schallberger) gave us a spark right before halftime, so it's nice to know we have players who can come off the bench and score like that."

Leading 18-17 with 7 minutes remaining in the half, Delta went on a 17-2 run and led 37-22 at halftime.

Delta's 22-3 run midway through the second half gave it 66-31 lead, all but sealing the victory.

"I think they're the best team in Northern California," said Chabot coach Mark Anger, who had eight players in uniform. "They're a very, very good team, and they're much deeper than we are."

Briale McCoy led Chabot with 12 points, and Melissa Gant added 11 points.

The Gladiators shot 28percent from the floor, and missed their final 11 3-point attempts after making four of their first 10.

Delta shot 39 percent from the floor, and was 10 of 39 from 3-point range. Chabot committed 28 turnovers, compared to 12 by the Mustangs.