Bella Blum, El Camino College Warriors guard, shoots the ball close from the foul line as Nyah Belton, LA Harbor College Seahawks forward, jumps toward her to block the shot during the women’s basketball game on Wednesday, Feb. 19 in the ECC Gym Complex. Blum was the Warriors’ highest-scoring player with 13 points and had three assists. The Warriors defeated the Seahawks 40-37 in their final home game of the 2024-2025 regular season. (Eddy Cermeno | The Union)
After a close game with back-and-forth lead changes, the El Camino College Warriors women’s basketball team clinched the win 40-37, overcoming the LA Harbor College Seahawks’ late lead on Wednesday, Feb. 19.
The Warriors came out in the second half on a huge run, going up ten points, but the Seahawks persevered and took the lead midway through the fourth quarter.
Despite the Seahawks’ comeback, Warriors’ freshman forward Keloa Tauala scored a layup to regain their lead late in the fourth quarter.
Warriors fans in the crowd rallied their team, and the Warriors pulled through for the win in the final minutes of the game.
Bella Blum, El Camino College Warriors guard, contests to rebound the ball after a missed shot against two LA Harbor College Seahawks players in the second quarter of the women’s basketball game on Wednesday, Feb. 19 in the ECC Gym Complex. Blum was the Warriors’ highest-scoring player with 13 points and had three assists. The Warriors defeated the Seahawks 40-37 in their final home game of the 2024-2025 regular season. (Eddy Cermeno | The Union)
Warriors’ sophomore guard Bella Blum led the team with 13 points and nine rebounds.
Steve Shaw, Warriors coach, said their strategy was to give Blum more open looks and more different looks during the game.
“All season teams have been keying on her, we wanted to move her around in the high post and the wing,” Shaw said.
Freshman guard Marley Zermeno finished with eight points and five rebounds.
Heaven Haliburton, LA Harbor College Seahawks guard, shoots a three-point shot as Marley Zermeno, El Camino College Warriors guard, contests the shot in the final minutes of the women’s basketball game on Wednesday, Feb. 19 in the ECC Gym Complex. Haliburton scored four points, had three rebounds and assists in the game for the Seahawks. The Warriors defeated the Seahawks 40-37 in their final home game of the 2024-2025 regular season. (Eddy Cermeno | The Union)Nyah Belton, LA Harbor College Seahawks forward, dribbles the ball around El Camino College Warriors guards Presley Tanaka and Ay'Mia Smith-Malone as the game was close during the final minutes of the fourth quarter of the women’s basketball game on Wednesday, Feb. 19 in the ECC Gym Complex. Belton scored 19 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for the Seahawks. The Warriors defeated the Seahawks 40-37 in their final home game of the 2024-2025 regular season. (Eddy Cermeno | The Union)
The Seahawks’ biggest contributors were sophomore forward Nyah Belton, who scored a double-double with 19 points and 12 rebounds, and freshman forward Destiny Halliburton, who scored 12 points and grabbed eight rebounds.
Both teams struggled throughout the game and played tough defense.
The Warriors shot 25% from the field and 16% from the 3-point range, while the Seahawks shot 24.1% from the field and didn’t make a 3-point basket throughout the game.
Ay'Mia Smith-Malone, El Camino College Warriors guard, dribbles the ball past Daniesha Oliver, LA Harbor College Seahawks forward, toward the basket during the second half of the women’s basketball game on Wednesday, Feb. 19 in the ECC Gym Complex. Smith-Malone had three rebounds and assists for the game. The Warriors defeated the Seahawks 40-37 in their final home game of the 2024-2025 regular season. (Eddy Cermeno | The Union)
Seahawks coach Jason Jaramillo said the Seahawks wanted to disrupt the Warrior’s halfcourt offense.
“We wanted to create chaos and fly at them in our half-court trap and put them in situations that they are not used to,” Jaramillo said.
Jason Jaramillo, LA Harbor College women’s basketball coach, draws on his clipboard while speaking to players on the Seahawks' bench during a timeout in the first half of the game against the El Camino College Warriors on Wednesday, Feb. 19 in the ECC Gym Complex. Jaramillo is in his first season as a coach for LA Harbor. The Warriors defeated the Seahawks 40-37 in their final home game of the 2024-2025 regular season. (Eddy Cermeno | The Union)
From the free-throw line, the Seahawks shot 11-16, or 68.8%, from the free-throw line, and the Warriors shot 4-8, or 50%.
Although the Warriors had some trouble shooting the ball, they were prepared for what the Seahawks would throw at them.
Steve Shaw, El Camino College women’s basketball coach, speaks to players on the Warriors' bench during a timeout in the second half of the game against the LA Harbor College Seahawks on Wednesday, Feb. 19 in the ECC Gym Complex. Shaw has coached at ECC for 26 seasons. The Warriors defeated the Seahawks 40-37 in their final home game of the 2024-2025 regular season. (Eddy Cermeno | The Union)
“We game plan for the halfcourt trap and we expected it from the last game. I felt like we did a good job of being patient and moving the ball,” Shaw said.
The Warriors will play their next game on the road on Friday, Feb. 21 against the Compton College Tartars.
