HONOLULU – The Chaminade University women's basketball team got a career-tying 23 points from
Lilia Maio to lead a come-from-behind win as the Silverswords defeated Holy Names 63-60 Saturday at McCabe Gym.
Maio went 10-of-13 from the field for a program-record 76.9 percent from the field as the Silverswords rallied from a 10-point halftime deficit to improve to 2-3 overall. They are also 2-0 in the Pacific West Conference for the first time ever.
Courtney Kaupu contributed with 10 points and three assists while
Carissa McBride added nine points.
Shana Kawakami and
Kristle Henry each had seven points with Kawakami pulling down seven rebounds while Henry had six assists.
The Hawks (1-6, 0-2) were paced by Jeana Magana's 15 points.
The outlook did not appear promising as Holy Names scored the game's first seven points en-route to a 19-11 lead after the first quarter. Maio scored seven points midway through the second quarter in a 10-0 Chaminade run that knotted the game at 21. But HNU would recapture the momentum late in the period, grabbing their biggest lead of 12 with a minute to go in the half with the Hawks owning a 37-27 advantage at the break.
Chaminade opened the second half on an 8-0 spurt as
Kennedi Akana, Kawakami, Henry and Kaupu each had layups as the deficit was whittled down to two at 37-35. HNU built the lead back to seven but again the Silverswords responded. Kaupu knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers to pull them to within a point then Maio capped the run, hitting a baseline jumper as the third quarter horn sounded to give the 'Swords their first lead of the game at 47-46 as Chaminade outscored Holy Names 20-9 in the period.
The carryover spilled into the fourth quarter with McBride's four points then
Taylor Babbitt's triple capped off the 15-0 run that bridged the third and fourth quarters. HNU eventually cut the deficit to two with 43 seconds left. Maio hit one of two foul shots to put Chaminade up 63-60 with 24 seconds left.
The Hawks had a chance to tie it with a three but the Silverswords forced a five-second inbounds violation with 16 seconds left. However Chaminade left the door open with two missed free throws but on the ensuing possession, the Hawks elected to go with a quick score instead of a tying 3-pointer with just four seconds left where Kali Taeleifi was fouled. Taeleifi missed the first and intentionally missed the second but Henry grabbed the rebound and zigzagged her way between defenders as the clock expired.
The 'Swords hit 48 percent of their shots while the Hawks were at a 46 percent clip. Chaminade held a slight rebounding edge (31-29) and hit a season-best five 3-pointers with Kaupu and Maio hitting two each. Chaminade has also won the last three meetings against Holy Names.
The Silverswords will look to even their record Thursday when they host Hawai'i-Hilo at McCabe Gym. Live streaming audio will be available at GoSwords.com.
