Elks At Vanguard

Costa Mesa, CA - The Stanton Elks (0-2) displayed promising offensive bursts but ultimately fell to the Vanguard Lions (2-1), 80-53, on Tuesday night at the Freed Center. While the final score shows a significant gap, the Elks, still finding their rhythm early in the season, saw some individual performances shine.

Stanton's offense was spearheaded by forward Rafael Gomez (#09), who poured in a team-high 15 points on an efficient 6-of-9 shooting from the field, including his only three-point attempt. Gomez also contributed two blocks and a steal for the Elks.

Key Player Highlights for Stanton:

• Rafael Gomez (#09): Led the scoring with 15 points (6-9 FG, 1-1 3PT) in 20 minutes, showcasing a strong presence in the paint.

• Jermaine Patton Jr. (#02): Provided a lift off the bench with 11 points (4-11 FG) and led the team in defensive rebounding with 6.

• Nigel McKay (#05): Contributed 10 points in his 29 minutes as a starter, connecting on a three-pointer in the second half.

• Alex Stein (#11): Showed good court vision, leading the team with 4 assists to go with his 6 points.

Team Takeaways:

The Elks struggled with ball control, committing 17 turnovers throughout the game. However, they demonstrated grit in the second half, improving their scoring from 22 points to 31 points and their free-throw shooting significantly, hitting 8-of-12 attempts (66.7%) after going 0-for-4 in the first half. The team also managed to convert 10 second-chance points thanks to 9 offensive rebounds.