Wednesday, February 21, 2001

From Stripes and special reports

It was a good day to be the champ.

The defending champions of the four Far East High School Basketball Tournaments were a combined 5-0 on opening day, but a handful of upstarts stole a bit of the spotlight.

The weeklong Pacificwide hoopfest got under way at four sites: at Taegu and at Pusan, South Korea; Okinawa and Guam.

The E.J. King Cobras ran out to a 3-0 start in the Boys Class A (small schools) Tournament, which returned to Taegu for the first time since 1994.

They were joined by the 1999 champion Morrison Christian Academy Mustangs and one upstart team from Guam, the St. Paul Christian Warriors.

Not invited to play in the Class AA (large schools) tournament on Guam, St. Paul took out its frustration on two outmatched opponents.

The Class A girls tournament at Pusan’s Camp Hialeah saw a three-way tie for first place at 2-0 after opening day. The Osan American Cougars and Taegu American Warriors were tied with the surprising Matthew C. Perry Samurai of Japan, who had won only once in 16 games this season.

Another surprise team led its round-robin division with two victories after the first day of the Girls Class AA tournament.

The Kadena Panthers, after going 6-13 this season, earned two double-digit wins at Camp Foster, joining the Nile C. Kinnick Red Devils and Christian Academy Knights of Japan at 2-0.

A slew of unbeaten teams made it through Day 1 of the boys large schools tournament on Guam, including four-time defending champion Faith Academy Vanguards of Manila also began with a 31-point win in its first Far East tournament game since 1996.

But perched atop their pools with two wins were defending runner-up Kadena and the surprising Father Duenas Memorial Friars of Guam, who had lost three straight to close the regular season.

Contributing to this story were: Akash Shringi on Guam and Olga Bograd, Rachel LaFerney, Jonathan Edwards, Clifford Alexander, Charles Sumner, Helen Berkley, Annie Das and Ryan Kang in Pusan.

Monday's game summaries

Class AA boys

At Andersen Air Force Base and Naval Computer and Telecommunications Station, Guam

Father Duenas 70, Robert D. Edgren 28: Edgren was the third-place team in this tournament the past two years.

Father Duenas 52, St. John’s 33: The Friars avenged a late-season loss to the St. John’s Knights, getting 15 points from Jia Wang and 14 from Vince Estella. Gabe Lombard had 23 for St. John’s.

Faith Academy 63, St. John's 56: Defending champion Faith Academy got 20 points from Darren Meisel. Steve Krueger added 18 as only four Faith players scored.

Nile C. Kinnick 69, Robert D. Edgren 23: Kinnick remained unbeaten in seven tries against Edgren this season.

Kadena 66, Southern 34: The defending runner-up and 1999 champion used speed and quickness to sink Southern. Jason Acfalle had 16 points in a losing cause.

Kadena 52, American School In Japan 34: Victory for the Panthers kept them unbeaten and atop Pool B after one day of play.

American School In Japan 44, St. Mary's International 43: It took the Mustangs three tries, but they scored a one-point victory against their Kanto Plain arch-rival.

Southern 28, John F. Kennedy 23: In a game of stall ball, Acfalle’s eight points helped the Dolphins outlast the Islanders. Jay Mercado of JFK led all scorers with 10 points.

Seoul American 77, George Washington 51: Jason Perez of the Geckos had 10 points and 13 boards in a losing effort.

Simon Sanchez 74, Hong Kong International 41: Marlon Simbulan’s 32 points helped the Sharks throttle the Dragons.

Zama American 38, George Washington 29: The Geckos tried a slowdown style against the Trojans, who still prevailed. Herbert Calilung led the Geckos with 17 points.

Yokota 59, Saipan 50: Yokota welcomed Saipan to its first Class AA tournament by handing it a nine-point loss.

Kubasaki 43, Christian Academy In Japan 40: The Dragons survived the Knights to keep up a late-season surge, in which they’ve won seven of their past eight games.

Guam High 43, Saipan 32: Jason Black scored 14 points to pace the Panthers, Guam’s only DOD team. Ross Allen added 12 points.

Class AA girls

At Camp Foster, Okinawa

Christian Academy In Japan 52, Guam High 10: Kirsten Nelson scored 12 points and Jennifer Boyle added eight to keep the Knights in front from the start. Ashley Wiggin paced the Panthers with four rebounds.

Robert D. Edgren 41, Hong Kong International 26: Edgren got 14 points and 10 boards from Desirae Riddick. Ya Chin Chang led Hong Kong with seven points.

Christian Academy In Japan 42, Hong Kong International 22: Nelson led the Knights with 21 points, while her freshman sister Jessica chipped in with 13. Becky Williams paced the Dragons with 13 points.

Seoul American 37, American School In Japan 35: The Falcons outlasted the Mustangs, with the help of 10 points from Olivia Anglade. Erika Taylor grabbed nine rebounds. Kristen Isle of ASIJ led all scorers with 11 points.

Kadena 49, John F. Kennedy 32: Sheneka Lee topped Kadena with 18 points and Katie LaGrave chipped in with 11. Jocelyn Pardilla led JFK with 16 points.

Kadena 52, American School In Japan 38: Lee scored 27 points, while Sarah Mintz contributed 11. Sae Hirose led ASIJ with 10 points.

Kubasaki 50, Academy of Our Lady 38: Junior Nikki McGraw, Kubasaki’s high-scoring post player, had 13 points and 12 rebounds to help the Dragons tie for the lead in their pool. Johana Taimanglo paced Academy of Our Lady with 10 points.

Zama American 41, Morrison 32: Freshman Rosanna Ignaucio’s 12 points kept Zama tied with Kubasaki for the pool lead. Keisha Miller added 12 points and 11 rebounds. Morrison’s Robin Siirila led all scorers with 20 points.

Nile C. Kinnick 44, Southern 19: In the first of two double-digit victories by the Red Devils, Jae Meno had a game-high 13 points. Jesslyn Diego led the Dolphins with five points.

Nile C. Kinnick 43, Yokota 33: The Devils made it three victories in as many tries this season over the Panthers, as Palmer scored a team-high 11 points. Emily Walsh and Sara Hannon each had six for Yokota.

Faith Academy 43, Yokota 12: The four-time defending champion Vanguards dominated inside, as Bethy Davis had 16 rebounds. Carolyn Tanchi’s 15 points led all scorers. Yokota’s Tomiko Johnson scored five points.

Class A boys

at Taegu, South Korea

E.J. King 63, Seoul International 44: Jason Cleavinger scored 20 points and dished out seven assists as King pulled away late. B.J. Trinidad had 16 points and Rahsaan Rogers and Chris Ford had six rebounds each. Eugene Sohn had 14 points, Yuhma Koh added 12 and Drew Slater 11 for Seoul.

Hokkaido International 38, ICS-Uijongbu 27: Peter Viljoen led the way for Hokkaido with 14 points, 16 rebounds and three blocks, and David Garza followed with 12 points. Blake Weaver led the Eagles with 12 points, 14 rebounds and five steals and Anthony Kim scored 10 points.

KAIAC JV All-Stars 50, Pusan American 37: Edwin Choi of SIS and Kenny Kim of Taegu teamed up to score 14 points each as the junior varsity All-Stars scored a stunning victory over the Panthers.

E.J. King 57, Hokkaido 43: Ford scored 19 points and 19 boards, plus six steals, and Trinidad recorded 14 points, as the Cobras pulled away late. Cleavinger handed out seven assists. Garza topped the Huskies with 16 points.

Seoul International 69, Pusan American 47: Koh led a balanced attack with 14 points and nine rebounds, while Sohn had 10 points plus seven boards and five steals. Greg Heckel of the Panthers topped all scorers with 21 points. Bryce Swihart added 16.

ICS-Uijongbu 73, KAIAC JV All-Stars 56: The JVs couldn’t make it two straight wins, as Weaver notched 20 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks for the Eagles. Jack Connolly had 19 points and 10 rebounds, while Adil Ashraf added 16 points and 12 boards. Edwin Choi topped the JVs with 15 points.

E.J. King 102, Pusan American 27: Rogers led seven Cobras in double figures with 20 points and 11 boards. Ray Cordero added 18 points.

Hokkaido International 58, Seoul International 52: Viljoen helped the Huskies rally, scoring 25 points, and pulling down 11 rebounds. Garza added 15 points. Toku-jin Honda dished out seven assists.

Matthew C. Perry 80, Taejon Christian International 72: Willie Perry’s 28 points helped the Samurai overcome a seven-point deficit. Tommy Penland led TCIS with 35 points, 12 rebounds, six blocks and five assists. Lionel Claiborne had 16 points off the bench for the Samurai. Jun Sung Choi had 15 points for the Dragons.

Morrison 62, Taegu American 54: Wade West’s 15 points and 12 rebounds paced Morrison. Alex Sommers added 13 points and 10 rebounds. Scotty Halasz had 27 points for the Warriors, who were missing rebounder Larry Bullock with a leg injury. Donald Holmes had 17 points.

St. Paul Christian 73, Osan American 50: Tony Balajadia’s 16 points and six steals powered St. Paul Christian over the Cougars. Deryl Pangelinan had 13 points, while Ian Mesa added 13 points for St. Paul. A.J. Scott paced the Cougars with 14 points.

Morrison 87, Taejon Christian International 63: Sommers exploded for 27 points, 16 rebounds and 11 blocks for the Mustangs. West added 14 points and 12 rebounds.

Matthew C. Perry 101, Osan American 64: Travis Elliott led five Samurai players in double figures, scoring 26 points, including six three-point goals. Perry added 18 points. Zac Johnson paced the Cougars with 16 points and seven rebounds.

St. Paul Christian 71, Taegu American 51: Mesa led the way with 27 points and 15 rebounds as St. Paul burst out to a 27-12 first-quarter lead. Halasz led all scorers with 33 points.

Osan American 61, Taejon Christian International 36: Steve Davis paced the Cougars with 14 points, while John Swanson had a triple-double with 10 points, 12 rebounds and 11 blocks.

Class A girls

at Camp Hialeah, Pusan, South Korea

Matthew C. Perry 54, Seoul International 23: Ronica Nash pulled down 14 boards and Cortaza Hall had 14 points and 10 rebounds to power the Samurai to a victory over the Tigers. The Samurai outrebounded the Tigers, 38-8. Tia Fluellen had a game-high 15 points for Perry.

Matthew C. Perry 58, Pusan American 16: The Samurai didn’t allow a basket by the Panthers until six minutes were gone, and led 29-2 at halftime. Hall had eight points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Breanne Robison led the Panthers with four points.

Osan American 37, Seisen International 32: Using coach Bruce Barker’s trademark slowdown game, Osan got 14 points and seven steals from guard Lori Shields in edging Seisen. Christine Usyak led Seisen with eight points and nine rebounds.

Osan American 33, E.J. King 32: The game was tied at 22 after three quarters. Shields had 14 points as Osan squeaked by E.J. King. Christina Mercer of King led all scorers with 16.

Taegu American 41, E.J. King 31: Senior Colleen Adkins and freshman Lauren Connelly helped Taegu rally from a first-quarter deficit. Adkins had 16 points and Connelly added 12. Mercer led King with 12 points.

Taegu American 64, Seoul International 21: Adkins scored 33 points in Taegu’s victory. Christine Ryu scored nine points for Seoul.

Seisen International 52, Pusan American 23: Looking much like the team that won the tournament in ’98 and ’99, the Phoenix got 16 points from junior Yuko Nagara. Robison paced the Panthers with 12 points.

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