La Verne women cruise past Occidental in SCIAC title game

By Michelle Gardner

Staff Writer

Last time the women’s basketball teams from La Verne and Occidental squared off, Tigers junior Brianne Brown torched the Leopards for 33 points.

The two teams met again Saturday, this time with the SCIAC championship and a postseason playoff berth on the line. La Verne neutralized its biggest threat and was rewarded with a 79-51 win at Rush Gymnasium.

The Leos (20-7) advance to face Puget Sound Friday in a first round NCAA Tournament game.

Brown, a transfer from Division I Western Kentucky, went just 3-of-11 from the field with seven points and fouled out with 6:33 to play and the Leos comfortably ahead 63-42. She twisted an ankle the last week of the regular season, but Tigers coach Jaime Hoffman said the injury was not a factor and credited the Leos’ defense.

Junior forward Treneeca Jones, a product of Chaffey High School, took the challenge personally.

“We had to stop the one person that beat us last time because it was that one player that beat us,” La Verne junior forward Trenecca Jones said. “I heard she had an injured ankle, but I had diarrhea and that’s worse.”

The first half was an even battle that featured four ties and eight lead changes. It ended with La Verne up 28-25 after La Verne’s Marissa Raya heaved one in from half-court at the buzzer.

“That’s her range,” Hoffman said.

La Verne outscored Occidental 51-26 in the second half. The Leos led 35-32, then chalked up the next nine points, highlighted by a 3-pointer from Raya that gave La Verne its first double-digit lead of the contest at 44-32.

The Tigers (21-6), seeded first and riding an 11-game win streak, got within eight at 48-40 on a 3-pointer by lone senior Stacie Roshon whose 21 points included five 3’s.

But Occidental could get no closer. Raya hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key on the Leos next possession. Then after a Tigers miss, Charleen Guerrero scored inside off a nifty pass from Lindsey Shiomi to make it 53-40. The host team was not in striking distance again.

“We just started pushing the ball up the floor quicker,” Kline said. “That’s our game and we just needed to get back to doing that. It made all the difference.”

La Verne shot 49.1 percent (27-for-55) for the game but was a sizzling 61.5 percent (16-for-26) in the second half thanks to many point blank shots in the paint that came off the fast break. The Leos also sank 17 of 21 free throws.

Raya, who tied the school record for games played, finished with 22 points while Jones tallied 20 with a game-high 12 rebounds. Ashley Paul finished with 13 and Shiomi dished out 11 assists to establish a new career record in that department.

Occidental shot 29.6 percent (16-for-54). It also played without 5-11 freshman center Stephanie Babij, who is out with a hand injury that required surgery. But Hoffman didn’t use that as an excuse either.

“They just beat us. They were the better team,” she said.