Vaqueros drop home opener, 64-57

Paige Nealy had 19 points and nine rebounds on Friday night but SBCC couldn't overcome 35 percent shooting and Fullerton spoiled the women's basketball home debut with a 64-57 victory in the SBCC Crossover Tournament.

The Vaqueros (0-2) made just 56 percent from the free-throw line (10-18) and had 26 turnovers.

Santa Barbara jumped ahead 14-0 on buckets by Alyssa Cosio and Andrea Morales. Fullerton chipped away at the lead and pulled within two at halftime, 28-26.

"We've been starting strong and finishing strong, we've just got to figure out the middle part," said Vaquero coach Sandrine Krul. "We showed great improvement from our first game two weeks ago."

Victoria Jackson had 12 points, five rebounds, six assists and six steals. Andrea Morales added 10 points and eight rebounds.

Fullerton (1-0) broke open a tie game with a 21-4 second-half run that boosted the lead to 56-39 with 6:12 to play.

"We were about to get blown out, then we put on the press and staged a comeback," said Krul, whose team closed with an 18-8 run. "We played hard and if we keep doing that, good things will happen."

SBCC will host San Diego on Saturday at 5 p.m.