Sunday, February 25, 2001

From Stripes and special reports

Mark Oliva / Stars and Stripes Christian Academy's Brianna Kennedy moves past Kubasaki's Anna Chambers during Friday night's semifinal game at the Far East Regionals. Kubasaki won, 49-44.

ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam — The Zama American Trojans of Japan took down defending champion Faith Academy Friday in the Far East High School Basketball Tournament.

The Vanguard boys tumbled in Friday’s Class AA (large schools) Tournament quarterfinal 76-62 to the Trojans.

This has not been a good tournament for Faith Academy.

On Thursday, the Vanguards girls saw their run of five straight Far East titles end with a quarterfinal loss to the Kubasaki Dragons on Okinawa.

Behind the shooting of Tim Stearns, who scored 22 points, the Trojans pulled in front of Faith 18-12 in the first quarter. Dan Duplessis scored eight of his 12 in the third.

Zama converted 11 of 16 foul shots in the final period. Eugene Brooks, who finished with 12 points, was 5-for-6 from the line. Brandon Fulford added 19 points for Zama.

"Stearns killed us today," Faith coach Toby Landers said. "He stepped up big and hit four big three-pointers. He hadn’t shown us a lot in other games that we had seen him play, but today he was a force."

Steve Krueger led Faith with 20 points.

Donovan Brooks / Stars and Stripes Christian Academy's Matt Regier puts up a shot against the JFK Islanders Friday at Guam.

Zama later fell in the semifinals 39-36 to St. Mary’s International of Tokyo, which reached its first Far East Tournament final.

The Titans faced Okinawa’s Kadena Panthers in Saturday’s title game at Andersen’s Coral Reef Sports & Fitness Center. Kadena has won the tournament eight times.

On Okinawa, host Kubasaki reached its first Class AA girls final since 1994, edging the Christian Academy In Japan 49-44 behind 22 points from Nikki McGraw.

Kubasaki was to meet Nile C. Kinnick of Japan in the final.

It’s the first appearance in the Class AA finals for Kubasaki coach Jim Hall, a Class A (small schools) champion in 1993 at the helm of Japan’s E.J. King. Kinnick, a two-time Class AA champion, is back in the finals for the second time in three seasons.

Defending champion E.J. King edged into the finals of the Boys Class A tournament in Taegu, South Korea, but had to hold off a determined St. Paul Christian squad from Guam 37-35 in the winner’s bracket final of the double-elimination tournament.

St. Paul came back later Friday to beat the Matthew C. Perry Samurai of Japan 63-47, forcing a final rematch with the Cobras.

RELATED STORY:
          Osan girls capture first Far East title

Friday's game summaries

Class AA girls

at Camp Foster, Okinawa, Japan

Semifinals

Mark Oliva / Stars and Stripes Kinnick's Leina Powers looks to the basket during Friday night's semifinal game against Edgren High at the Far East Regionals.

Kinnick 57, Edgren 35: After leading by five at halftime, the Red Devils broke it open. Jessica Jackson had 19 points and Katreem Palmer 16. Lauren White paced the Eagles with nine points.

Kubasaki 49, CAJ 44: The Dragons led by as many as 14 in the third period before surviving a stifling Knights press in the fourth. Nikki McGraw had 22 points and 14 rebounds, and Shakyra Walker scored 10. Kirsten Nelson and Brianna Kennedy led CAJ with 13 points.

Consolation

Morrison 54, Zama 47: Robin Siirila netted 21 points, Tracy McDonald added 10 and Meisha Preston grabbed 11 boards for the Mustangs. LaShawn Johnson’s 15 points topped the Trojans.

Kadena 36, Faith 30: Sheneka Lee’s 12 points helped the Panthers ensure the Vanguards would go home without a trophy for the first time since 1993. Becca Rusch and Bethy Davis scored eight each for Faith.

Yokota 43, Hong Kong 41: Tomiko Johnson had 19 points and Emily Walsh scored 14. Rachel Koehneke had 18 points and 11 rebounds and Ya Chin Chang 12 points for the Dragons.

JFK 36, ASIJ 31: The Islanders got 15 points from Jackie Mante in reaching the seventh-place game against Yokota. Jocelyn Pardilla added nine points and Christine Vicente eight. Kristen Lizaola paced the Mustangs with nine.

Seoul American 38, Academy 35: The Falcons outlasted the determined Cougars behind 14 points from Erika Taylor. Academy got 10 points from Johanna Taimanglo.

Southern 45, Guam High 19: Jesslyn Diego scored 19 points as the Dolphins won their first game in six tries and ensured the Panthers would go home winless for the third straight time at Far East.

Class AA boys

at Andersen Air Force Base and Naval Computer and Telecommunications Area Master Station, Guam.

Semifinals

Kadena 74, Father Duenas 60: Speed and height and a vicious full-court third-quarter press helped the Panthers rally from an early 10-4 deficit. Dan Spottsville topped Kadena with 20 points, Kelvin Smith added 14 points and Tim Jennings scored 10. Vince Estella led the Friars with 21 points and seven rebounds, while Francis Reyes had 16 points.

St. Mary’s 39, Zama 36: Yoichiro Basso’s two foul shots capped a 7-0 run in the last two minutes. Lars Kelley had 12 points and Basso had nine.

Quarterfinals

Father Duenas 70, Yokota 62: Francis Reyes led the way with 24 points as the Friars jumped to an early lead. Scott Smith of the Panthers had 21 points.

St. Mary’s 43, Kubasaki 31: Julian Ulmer hit two crucial third-quarter three-pointers to help the Titans keep the Dragons at arm’s length and avenge an early-season defeat at the Hong Kong International Christmas Tournament.

Zama 76, Faith 62: Stearns scored 22 points, Brandon Fulford added 19 and the Trojans shot 11-for-16 from the line in the fourth quarter. Faith was led by Steve Krueger’s 20 points.

Kadena 52, CAJ 33: Brandon Rabonza worked the inside for eight points to pace a balanced Panthers attack. Shea Ramquist of the Knights led all scorers with 11 points.

Consolation

Kubasaki 56, Faith 46: Sam Roy’s 15 points helped Kubasaki beat the Vanguards for the second time this season. Meisel had 19 points for Faith.

JFK 35, Kinnick 32: Jay Mercado’s nine points pushed the Islanders into a Saturday battle for fifth place with Kubasaki. Mike Daniels paced the Devils with nine points. Kinnick faced Faith for seventh place Saturday.

Edgren 50, Yokota 49: After opening the tournament with five straight losses, the Eagles gained their first win over Yokota in seven tries this season. Jason Steadman scored 11 points for the Eagles.

CAJ 49, Simon Sanchez 46: The Knights rode the outside shooting of Matt Regier, who scored 19 points as CAJ advanced to the ninth-place game against Edgren.

Kubasaki 59, Simon Sanchez 46: Ryan Fromherz paced the Dragons with 15 points. Ron Conner led the Sharks with 11.

JFK 39, CAJ 37: J.P. Cruz’s 12 points helped the Islanders continue their march to a berth in the fifth-place game. Regier led all scorers with 16 points.

Faith 48, Edgren 38: The Vanguards rebounded from their quarterfinal loss behind Meisel and Uriah Van den Bos, who each had 17 points. Steadman topped the Eagles with 10.

Kinnick 58, Yokota 48: The Devils earned their third win in as many tries against the Panthers. John Williams had 16 points for Kinnick, while Lawrence Copeland led the Panthers with 11.

Class A girls

at Camp Hialeah, Pusan, South Korea

Championship

Osan 44, Taegu 22: Using an early press defense, and the trademark "Barker Ball" stall offense, named for coach Bruce Barker, the Cougars led from start to finish. Lori Shields had 22 points and five steals, and Theresa Gittens added 16 points. Lauren Connelly, Colleen Adkins and Teresa Noble had six points each for the Warriors.

Winners' Bracket Final

Osan 29, Seisen 21: The Cougars used a variety of defenses early and burst in front 10-3 in the first quarter. Shields scored 15 points. Yuko Nagara paced Seisen with eight points.

Losers' Bracket

Taegu 29, Seisen 25: The Warriors used a 16-4 fourth-quarter flurry to rally from an eight-point third-quarter deficit. Adkins had 16 points and six rebounds and Noble had nine points. Nagara had seven points and 11 rebounds for Seisen.

Taegu 33, Matthew C. Perry 29: Adkins’ 18 points, four rebounds and three blocks helped keep the Warriors in front in a tight game. Cortaza Hall led the Samurai with 12 points.

Taegu 52, Seoul International 31: Adkins poured in 31 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as the Warriors routed the Tigers. Noble had eight points and five rebounds. Christine Ryu paced the Tigers with 14 points and Ann Kim had 13.

Matthew C. Perry 40, E.J. King 37: Abigail Berry hit a late clutch shot that sealed the Samurai’s three-point victory. Tia Fluellen scored 18 points and had three steals and Hall added three steals. Maria Havens had 12 points and MVP Christina Mercer scored 10 for the Cobras.

Class A boys

at Camp Walker, Taegu, South Korea.

Double-Elimination Playoffs

Winners' Bracket Final

E.J. King 37, St. Paul 35: Twenty seconds into the contest, Warriors star Deryl Pangelinan broke his right ankle. Jason Cleavinger had 16 points, four steals and five assists and Chris Ford eight points for the Cobras, who led 23-12 at halftime but had to hang on in the end. Ian Mesa’s 10 points led the Warriors.

Losers' Bracket

St. Paul 63, Matthew C. Perry 47: Mesa stepped up for the injured Pangelinan with 22 points, nine rebounds and three blocks. Tony Borja had 13 points and Mark Dayson 12 for St. Paul, which led 36-12 at half. The Samurai got 22 points from Willie Perry.

Matthew C. Perry 65, Morrison 59: Travis Elliott’s 18 points led four players in double figures for the Samurai, who trailed 13-7 after the first period. Perry had 17 points, Lionel Claiborne 12 and Dustin Elliott 10. Alex Sommers led the Mustangs with 12 points and nine boards.

Matthew C. Perry 86, Osan 69: The Elliotts each had 21 points and Perry scored 18 for the Samurai, who led most of the way. John Swanson of Osan had his fourth straight triple-double, with 10 points, 13 rebounds and 11 blocks, while A.J. Scott had 23 points and Zac Johnson 15.

Morrison 82, Taegu 58: Sommers had 23 points and eight boards and Matt Grobler and Wade West 10 points each as the Mustangs eliminated the Warriors. Scotty Halasz of Taegu led all scorers with 32 points.

Osan 61, TCIS 58: Chris Johnson had 20 points and 10 boards, Zac Johnson 16 points and Swanson 12 points. Tommy Penland paced the Dragons with 23 points and Jun Sung Choi had 17.

Taegu 62, Hokkaido 61: Halasz hit the game-winning shot in the closing seconds, en route to 23 points and four steals. Donald Holmes added 19 points and Larry Bullock had 14 for Taegu. Peter Viljoen led the Huskies with 24 points and Toku-jin Honda and David Garza had 14 points each.

Contributing to this report were: Akash Shringi and Kirk Faryniasz on Guam and Olga Bograd, Rachel LaFerney, Jonathan Edwards, Clifford Alexander, Charles Sumner, Helen Berkley, Annie Das, Claudia Santibanez, Jin Nakamura and Ryan Kang in Pusan.

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