The first meeting with Chapman in almost five
years turned disappointing for the Occidental women's
basketball team which lost 74-62 Sunday, Dec. 31 in the
Tiger-Panther Classic tournament championship in Orange,
Calif. Occidental falls to 5-3 overall on the season.
Chapman, an NCAA Division III Championship qualifier in 2005-06,
improved to 8-5.
Amelia Abernathy '07, a Second Team-All-SCIAC selection last
season, tallied 14 points and dished two assists, helping
the Tigers secure a brief lead midway through the first
half. After a three-pointer by Gillian Nugent
'10, Abernathy scored the Tigers' next seven points, hitting a
turnaround jumper that gave Occidental a 30-25 lead with
4:34 remaining. The Panthers held a 36-32
advantage at halftime.
Stacie Roshon '08 hit a three to cut Chapman's lead to 49-46 with
11:54 remaining in the second half but the Tigers never regained
the lead.
Nicole Hayman poured in 26 points on 10 of 24 shooting from the
floor while Amelia Perez added 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Roshon finished with 17 points and earned a selection to
the All-Tournament team. Chapman point guard Lauren
Kamiyama recorded ten assists and was named the
tournament's Most Valuable Player.
Occidental travels north for a rematch with the UC-Santa
Cruz Banana Slugs at the UCSC Tournament Jan. 6.
The Tigers get another crack at Chapman Jan. 9 at Rush Gym, the
final non-conference contest of the season.
