HONOLULU - The Chaminade University women's basketball team opened Pacific West Conference play with a 62-53 win over Concorida Thursday at McCabe Gym.
Lilia Maio had a game-high 18 points in the win for the Silverswords (1-3 overall, 1-0 PacWest) who won for the first time this season.
Kristle Henry contributed with 16 points and also had six steals, tying the program record which she had already owned with three others (Shamyra Daigle,
Dianna Zane, Jordan Ahakuelo). The Lihue, Kaua'i native also had a six-steal game last season.
Three 'Swords had nine rebounds with Maio, Henry and
Shana Kawakami, who also had eight points and four assists.
Courtney Kaupu added nine points and six boards.
Zoe Goss and Brittany Stafford had 15 points each for the Eagles (1-4, 0-1).
Maio's performance moved her past
Glacen Florita for second in the program's all-time scoring list with 635 points. She only trails Samantha Saito on the list (1,141 points).
A close first quarter was punctuated by
Taylor Babbitt's half-court 3-pointer at the end of the first quarter buzzer which gave the 'Swords a 17-12 lead.
The score remained close until Chaminade used a 12-4 run to end the first half, capped by back-to-back steals and breakaway layups by Kawakami and Henry which gave them a 32-22 lead at the break.
The 'Swords opened the second half with a 6-1 run as Kawakami, Kaupu and
Chantal Yadao each hit layups which gave them their largest lead of the game at 38-23 with 6:28 remaining in the third quarter. CUI battle back and whittled the deficit to 39-35 but Maio's two free throws and Henry's layup extended CUH's advantage to 43-35 after three quarters.
Maio's bucket opened the fourth then Kaupu had back-to-back shots including a 3-pointer as a part of a 7-0 run to push Chaminade's lead back to 15. The Eagles got as close as six (54-48) with three minutes left but Maio's four points in the waning minutes closed the door to give the 'Swords the win.
Chaminade shot just under 38 percent in the game while Concordia was at 35.7. The Silverswords out-rebounded the Eagles 49-39 and amassed 16 steals while forcing 26 CUI giveaways. They also took advantage of Concordia's struggles at the free throw line (9-of-22; 40.9 percent).
The 'Swords continue conference play Saturday when they host Holy Names at McCabe Gym. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. with live streaming audio coverage at GoSwords.com.
