CSUDH Women's Basketball Weekly Release
December 17, 2001

NEXT UP IN TOROS WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Dec. 29 Christian Heritage Carson, CA/ Torodome, 7 p.m.

TOROS TAKE A BREAK FROM CCAA ACTION The Cal State Dominguez Hills women's basketball team will be taking a break from CCAA action over the holiday break. The Toros are not straying too far from basketball action however, as they will host non-conference Christian Heritage on Saturday, December 29. First-tip is scheduled for 7 p.m. The Toros will return to CCAA action on January 4, when they host Grand Canyon University. Tip in that stilt is slated for 5:30 p.m.

HEAD COACH VAN GIRARD Coach Girard enters his fourteenth season at the helm of the Toros basketball program. In this time, Girard has posted a 177-173 record. He has led CSUDH to two consecutive CCAA conference titles (1994-96), and has been named CCAA Coach of the Year five times, including three in a row (1993-1996). Girard has coached one All-American, two All-West Region players, three CCAA MVP's and 29 all-conference players. His first win at the collegiate coaching level came on November 25, 1988, when he led CSUDH to a 82-68 victory against Incarante Word.

PROBABLE STARTERS

2001-02 CCAA Standings

A LOOK AT THIS WEEK'S TEAMS

SCOUTING THE HAWKS
Christian Heritage (3-7, 1-3): The Hawks are coming into the match with two consecutive victories. The Hawks are led on the season by Andrea Hamilton, who is scoring 13.2 ppg and pulling down 7.5 rpg.
The Last Time We Met: This is the first meeting between the two squads.
The Series: The series is 0-0.
Girard vs. Christian Heritage: This is the first time that Van Girard will face the Hawks.
Hawk Head Coach: Will Cunningham hold a 65-112 at CHC.

THE TOROS LAST TIME OUT

CS San Bernardino def. CS Dominguez Hills 62-57 The Toros were looking to pick up their first CCAA win as they traveled to CS San Bernardino on Friday, December 14. The game was a battle, but the Coyotes finished stronger, recording the victory. The Toros were led on the evening by Christina Tucker. The senior forward had a team-high 13 points and eight boards. Both were a season-best for the junior. Junior center Kendra Tease dumped in 12 and pulled down five boards. As a team, the Toros were 22 of 66 from the field, 4 of 18 from long range, 9 of 16 from the free throw line. They pulled down 33 boards, and dished out 14 assists. The Coyotes were led by Erica Cronin who scored a game-high 17 points and eight boards. As a team, CSUSB was 22 of 44 from the field, 8 of 15 from downtown, and 10 of 20 from the charity stripe. They grabbed 41 boards and dished out 16 assists. The Toros fell to 1-5 overall and 0-3 in CCAA action.

Cal Poly Pomona def. CS Dominguez Hills 70-53 Cal State Dominguez Hills suffered its fourth straight conference loss of the season on Saturday, as the Broncos of Cal Poly Pomona handed the Toros a 70-53 loss. The Toros were led on the night by senior Tracee Lewis. The senior guard scored a game-high 19 points, including being a perfect 8 of 8 from the free throw line. Lewis was 5 of 15 from the field, and pulled down eight boards. Junior Kendra Tease was the Toros other top scorer, with eight. As a team, CSUDH was 18 of 62(.290) from the field, an impressive 15 of 18 (.833) from the charity stripe, and 2 of 11 (.182) from behind the arc. CSUDH pulled down 45 boards, and tallied seven assists and ten steals. Cal Poly Pomona had strong showings from Lauri McIntosh and Leah Whatley who scored 18 and 17 points respectively. Whatley came up big from behind the arc, making four of her eight attempts. As a team, the Broncos were 21 of 68(.309) from the field, 4 of 16 (.208) from downtown and 2 of 6 (.697) from the free thrown line. CPP grabbed 55 boards, recorded 13 assists and 14 steals. The Toros fell to 0-4 in CCAA action and 1-6 overall.

TOROS NOTES

• A LOOK AT THE 2001-02 TOROS ROSTER CS Dominguez Hills returns eleven players from last year's squad that went 9-17 overall and 5-17 in the CCAA conference. There are a total of six new recruits, three coming from strong junior college programs. This season's roster features five seniors, seven juniors, three sophomores and three freshmen. The Toros are also taller this season, with seven players at six feet tall or over.
• TOROS ARE TAKING THE BALL The Cal State Dominguez Hills women's basketball team is taking away the basketball. The Toros have forced 171 turnovers on the season. They have grabbed more steals than their opponents in four of their seven games this year. They caused a season-high 36 turnovers, including 13 steals, in their 77-64 victory over Southern Colorado.
• PERKINS IS STRONG ON THE BOARDS Junior Nakeisha Perkins (Grant HS), has been dominating the boards this season. The 6-1 center is tallying 7.0 boards per game, ranking her first in rebounds on the squad and 12th in CCAA stats. Perkins has tallied team-high rebounds in four of the Toros seven games this season. Last season, Perkins led the squad with 7.3 boards per game.
• TOROS IN CONFERENCE STATISTICS The Cal State Dominguez Hills women's basketball team is making its mark in the latest CCAA statistics. The squad is in the upper half of the CCAA in offensive rebounding and steals.The team is sixth in turnover margin at +1.71, and eighth as a squad in free throw percentage. A couple of the Toros players are also making their presence known in the conference. Senior guard Tracee Lewis is leading the Toros charge, with her name appearing in two statistical categories: scoring and free throw percentage. Senior guard Fercia Rambacal (Mark Keppel HS) is ranking an impressive fifth in steals, while Nakeisha Perkins is 12th in the CCAA in rebounds.
• MENDEZ IS MAKING SOME NOISE In the Toros last two outings sophomore Adriana Mendez (Century HS) has been making some noise. The 5-9 guard played her most impressive game of the season, scoring a season-best nine points vs. CS San Bernardino on Friday, December 14. Mendez dumped in four points the following night at Cal Poly Pomona. In the last two nights of action, Mendez has seen 45 minutes of court time and averaged 6.5 ppg. Last season as a freshman, Mendez finished the season recording 3.7 ppg.
• LEWIS LEADING THE TOROS IN CCAA Tracee Lewis is stepping up as the CCAA season begins, and leading CSUDH in her final season in a Toros jersey. The senior guard is averaging 14 ppg in conference stilts. She is 17 of 56 (.304) from the field and a team- leading 21 of 24 (.875) from the charity stripe. In fact, Lewis was a perfect 8 of 8 (1.000) from the line vs. Cal Poly Pomona. She scored a game-high and personal season-high 19 points in the Toros loss to the Broncos. In four CCAA games, Lewis has scored 56 points in 129 minutes. Lewis is 12th in the conference is scoring stats and 7th in the conference in free throw percentage. The senior has scored team-high points in four of the Toros seven games this season, and three of CSUDH's four CCAA stilts so far. Last season, Lewis finished eighth in the conference is scoring with 15.0 ppg.