by Antonette Manabat
Staff Writer
The University of La Verne women’s basketball team saw its season end as the buzzer sounded, but it is not their final loss that will be remembered when the Leopards look back.
The Leopards were defeated Wednesday night by Chapman University 70-46, ending the season with a record of 17-9.
“The whole season is not just about tonight,” head coach Julie Kline said.
ULV came into the first-round playoff inexperienced. None of the players has ever been in a Division III playoff game. They still came into the game knowing that they are the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference champions, and that accomplishment has not been done in 13 years.
“The loss is really hard because we had such a great season, but unless we went all the way, our year is going to end with a loss,” senior Julie Kolhof said.
The Leopards had trouble defending the Panthers top two scorers. Chapman’s leading scorer, junior Melody Bongiorno, had a game-high 22 points. Sophomore Caroline Jensen ended the game with 18 points and a team-high nine rebounds.
ULV also had trouble shooting over the aggressive defense of the Panthers, as ULV ended the game with a field goal percentage of 28.6. Chapman ended with 44.6 percent.
The Panthers came into the game with an advantage of experience over the Leopards. This is Chapman’s third consecutive tournament bid, and last year, they reached the Division III “sweet 16” for the first time.
With that experience, Chapman was able to capitalize on La Verne mistakes. ULV had a total of 15 turnovers, while Chapman only had 9.
“It just came down to who played harder and who wanted it more, and in the end, they proved that they did,” said senior captain Augie Torres.
Senior Tanisha Buckley made a name for herself around the league, as she led her team in rebounds per game. Buckley, who was named all-conference, showed why she is nationally ranked No. 14 in rebounds per game as she had a game-high 13 rebounds.
Sydni Myrick, junior, dominated the league and was named SCIAC Most Valuable Player. She led her team in the fight against Chapman with 14 points. Senior Julie Kolhof was also honored with second-team all conference.
“Chapman was the better team today, and they deserved to win, but I’m extremely proud of my team and what they have accomplished,” Kline said.
“This season was a great way to end my senior year, and this loss doesn’t change that,” Torres said.
“I told them to keep their heads high,” Kline said.
The effort and ability to overcome obstacles has made and will make this team memorable.
Next year, even with four seniors leaving, there is still much promise with sophomore Sally Marroquin returning, along with Myrick and junior Denae Howell. The defending SCIAC champs will be a force.
