The Brahmas played a home game against Ventura College on Valentine’s Day, and what started as a promising game for Pierce ended in victory for the Pirates with the final score at 54-74.
The home team ended the first period with a comfortable lead of 16-10, but multiple rebounds plagued the second, giving the visitors a good turnaround at 28-34.
Point Guard Chassen Gutierrez, who held the team together—scoring the most points in the first half—credited the team for keeping things neck-to-neck at the start.
“It’s a team sport,” Gutierrez said. “Everyone played a part in the outcome we had in the first quarter. But then we didn’t have the best defensive game, which put us in the hole, and we weren’t able to get back out of that.”
The Pirates were able to expand their lead with their three-point shots in the third quarter, with a 30% average overall.
Power Forward Tijera Henry, who scored the most points the entire game, reflected how the team wanted to get even with the Pirates for their previous loss back in January.
“We lost around by 20 the first time around and walked away with some injuries,” Henry said. “All of us tried to come together as a collective to do better our second time around.”
Though the Brahmas made an effort to make a comeback with 34 rebounds, they could not keep pace with the Pirates.
Head Coach Thara Innocent reflected on trying to keep the team together as the defense faltered.
“I felt like we were trying to find our rhythm back in the second half,” Innocent said. “We tried to come back, but the hurt from the last three losses was there. All you can do is learn from this and keep moving forward.”
