Bakersfield College women’s basketball beat Santa Monica despite an injury to a starter and a player losing a contact lens during the game.

BC beat Santa Monica 79-65 on Jan. 28, in order to stay tied for first in the Western State Conference.

BC coach Paula Dahl commented on the game

“I thought we did great because we had a lot of adversity. Gabi [Morales] got hurt and Jausecca [Cockeral] lost her contact lens, so she was pretty blind. We’ve had many troubles and tribulations this year, but we never quit and today was a good example of that,” said Dahl.

BC got a great performance from freshman forward Brittany Smith, who put up 30 points and 13 rebounds. BC also got 15 points and 14 rebounds from freshman guard Andrea Harris and sophomore guard Jausecca Cockeral chipped in with 11 points. Sophomore forward Gabi Morales also had 16 points before getting injured in the beginning of the second half.

Both teams were evenly matched to start of the game, and with BC just up 14-12, the Renegades were able to go on a 13-4 run to build a 27-16 lead. BC continued to add to that lead as they went into the half with a 39-26 lead.

BC started the second half slow as Santa Monica went on an eight to three run.

“We came out flat in the second half. That’s always a coach’s biggest fear,” said Dahl.

With BC losing Morales to an injury, the Lady Renegades weren’t able to score as efficient as they did in the first half. They were just hanging onto a 59-55 lead, but Smith was able to give BC a boost with them missing two of their starting post players.

“She’s been practicing really hard. I think she’s starting to get in her groove after coming back from volleyball,” said Dahl.

Behind Smith, BC was able to build a comfortable lead, and were able to outscore Santa Monica 20-10 for the rest of the game.

Dahl added that Morales has a high-ankle sprain, but doesn’t think it’s anything serious.

BC’s next game is scheduled to be at Glendale on Feb. 1.