OCC’s 12th Straight Win Comes With Championship

The Orange Coast women’s basketball team pushed its winning streak to 12 games with a 77-68 victory over Cerritos in the championship of the OCC Tournament Sunday.

The Pirates (14-1) hit one flat spot midway in the first half, fell behind briefly, then pulled away.

OCC, ranked second in the state, led by as many as 16 points in the second half and 11th-ranked Cerritos (9-4) didn’t get it back under 10 until the closing seconds.

Orange Coast sophomore forward Sara Middlebrooke provided the early offense.

She scored 16 of her season-high 26 points in the first half as OCC opened a 38-26 lead. Middlebrooke was 13 of 17 from the field and also had a team-high nine rebounds.

Freshman guard Karyn Fierst and sophomore guard Shauna Steward led OCC in the second half.

Fierst, selected the tournament’s most valuable player, scored 13 of her 20 and Steward had 10 of her 17 after halftime.

Fierst, who scored 51 points in three tournament games, was the second consecutive top reserve player to win the tournament MVP award for OCC.

Leah Wilde, who is a starting forward for OCC this season, won the award last year.

“Karyn always gives a good spark off the bench,” OCC Coach Mike Thornton said.

Fierst scored 10 of OCC’s 12 points during one second-half stretch, including a pair of three-pointers. Her second three gave OCC its biggest lead, 60-44, with 10 minutes left.

Monet Andrews, who made five of 13 three-point attempts, scored 27 for Cerritos, which lost to OCC for the second time this season.