by Damien Alarcon
Sports Editor
Tuesday’s final of the women’s basketball game against Claremont-Mudd-Scripps ended in defeat when the Leopards fell short, 53-41, in the Supertents.
“Tuesday’s game was not one of our better games,” said head coach Julie Kline. “I thought defensively we kept the score down, but we could have controlled the boards a bit more.”
The loss concluded the season for the Leopards who finished with an overall record of 8-17, 3-9 in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC).
“Our plays were working but our shots just were not falling and that is why the game went the way it did,” said junior guard Robin Moore. “We were a hard working team but it just didn’t pull together in the end.”
CMS (13-11, 5-6 SCIAC) had firm control throughout the entire game. At the end of the first half, the Athenas had a 34-19 lead.
La Verne had a difficult night offensively, having hit only 18 field goals out of 68 attempts. Senior forward Jennifer Spring contributed a team high of 12 points and nine rebounds. Spring finished the season as one of the top rebounders in the conference averaging nine rebounds a game. Senior center Darcy Burton and sophomore guard Felicia Davis led the Athenas with 13 points a piece. Burton also compiled 15 rebound on the night.
The Leopards finished in sixth place, ahead of 1-9 Occidental. In Thousand Oaks on Tuesday, Cal Lutheran defeated Pomona-Pitzer in the game that would decide the SCIAC Champion. Both teams entered the competition with a 9-1 conference record.
Although the Leopards endured a rough season, many individuals had set great accomplishments. Aside from the rebounding, Spring also had the top free throw percentage with .791 (72 of 91).
Senior guard Heather Johnson ended her career as one of the top players in the conference with points per game (16.8). She also averaged 2.8 three pointers per game.
“This year we were more of a team unlike last year when we consisted of individuals and little clicks,” said junior guard Michelle Ballard. “We were also at a disadvantage because we had only eight players. We had no bench.”
Kline said, “I am very proud of this team. This team has been knocked down over and over again and gotten back up even stronger. They worked extremely hard day in and day out. In my eyes they are winners, as a team and as people.”
