Grin and Bury It
By MIKEY HIRANO CULROSS
RAFU SPORTS EDITOR
Saturday, Dec. 1, 2007

Lauren Kamiyama shrugs off injury and comes out shooting, leading Chapman to an action-packed win over Occidental.

Photos by MIKEY HIRANO CULROSS/Rafu Shimpo
Chapman’s Lauren Kamiyama puts a move on Occidental’s Britinee Yasukochi, during the second half of Chapman’s 80-72 win Monday at Occidental.

Lauren’s father, Ed Kamiyama, liked what he saw Monday night at Oxy.

EAGLE ROCK.–It figured to be one of the best local college games you’ll see all season, and the large crowd at Occidental’s Rush Gymnasium Monday didn’t go home short-changed.

Neither did Lauren Kamiyama.

The Chapman junior guard, who has been suffering from a dislocated shoulder, charged out from the opening tip-off and led all scorers with 33 points, as the Panthers (4-1) handed Oxy’s Tigers their first loss of the season, 80-72.

Kamiyama hit three straight 3-pointers in the opening minutes and finished the game with five from beyond the arc, to go with five assists and a steal. She shot 8 for 15 from the field and hit 12 out of 13 free throws.

“She came ready to play tonight,” said Lauren’s father, Ed Kamiyama, who attended the game with several friends and family members. “She knows a lot of these players very well and she always likes to play here,” he said.

Kamiyama’s second three-pointer, sunk about four and a half minutes into the first half, gave Chapman an 8-6 lead, which they held for the rest of the game.

Oxy, however, kept close and tied the contest at 67 with 3:57 left in the game. Kamiyama put the Panthers ahead to stay with two free throws, after a foul by Britinee Yasukochi, who was given the task of guarding Kamiyama throughout the game.

Yasukochi was held to just one point and finished the night with four assists in her 18 minutes.

It was an earlier foul by Yasukochi that sent Kamiyama sprawling across the floor, twisting her left ankle in the process. After sitting up and stretching for several moments, she was helped to her feet by teammates, did her best to conceal the pain as she walked to the free throw line, and sank two shots.

“It hurt pretty bad,” Kamiyama said later. “I was cramping also, in my side, but it wasn’t that bad.”

Chapman extended its lead to 14 early in the second half, but Oxy climbed back into it and tied the game at 67 with just under four minutes remaining in regulation, but an 8-2 run by Chapman kept the Tigers at bay.

After Kamiyama hit her final three-pointer of the night, to put Chapman ahead 73-67 with 1:51 left, Oxy decided it was best not to let her shoot any more. She was fouled each time she got the ball and made five of six free throws in the final minute.

Kamiyama sealed the deal for Chapman with 0:15 left and the Panthers leading by six, stealing the ball from speedy guard Laura Mohler. That put the brakes on Oxy’s last chance and they wouldn’t score for the remainder.

Freshman guard Stephanie Babij was a bright spot for Oxy, recording her first collegiate double-double, leading the Tigers with 22 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks.

For Chapman, high-scoring sophomore guard Linda Ly had 13 points, two assists and a steal. Younger sister Christina Ly, also out of San Gabriel High, tallied three points and four assists.

Chapman head coach Carol Jue, who recently reached the 100-win milestone as a coach, figures to have her team at the forefront of the SCIAC in the coming years. Her squad boasts a formidable compliment of sharp-shooting underclassmen, including North Torrance grad Jenna Nakasu and former Peninsula star Kelli Yamamoto.

Chapman moves on to host Cal Lutheran tonight at 7 p.m., while Occidental will be back in action on Saturday when they entertain Menlo College at 5 p.m. in Rush Gymnasium.