HONOLULU – The Chaminade University women's basketball team closed out non-conference action with a 69-59 loss Sunday to Saint Martin's University in the Malika Sports O'ahu Christmas Classic at McCabe Gymnasium.
Diamond Carter (Kapolei, O'ahu, Hawai'i/Olympic College/Kapolei HS) buried five 3-pointers for 26 points – both season-highs – in defeat. The senior guard was just three points away from her career-high set last year.
Hunter Liftee (Kamuela, Hawai'i/Central Methodist Univ./Honoka'a HS) added nine points while
Michaella Dean (Irvine, Calif./Orange Lutheran) set season-highs of seven points and 10 rebounds while tying her season-best in assists with three.
Sephora Yayouss (Brussels, Belgium/Peninsula College/K.A. Etterbeek HS) also had three dimes which tied her career-high.
And a day after setting her season scoring high against Holy Names, freshman forward
Cheyenne Ardona (Mililani, O'ahu, Hawai'i/Mililani) pulled down a season-best seven rebounds. Another freshman,
Arianna Blowe (Monument, Colo./Lewis-Palmer) tied her season high of five points including her first career triple late in the game.
Chaminade fell to 2-6 overall while Saint Martin's from the Great Northwest Athletic Conference improved to 4-6.
Claire Dingus led the Saints with 21 points while Saniah Simpson-Patu added 12 points and 10 boards.
The 'Swords were without the services of
Destiny Castro (Talofofo, Guam/Notre Dame HS) who leads the team in points, rebounds, assists, steals and minutes played.
Castro's absence was felt early when the 'Swords fell behind 12-3 late in the first quarter. But Carter and Liftee combined for 12 points during a 16-0 run spanning the first and second quarters.
Ellyonna Bankofier (Happy Valley, Ore./Clackamas) added the other four points during the surge to give Chaminade a 19-12 lead midway through the second.
After a
Jordyn Zader (Mukwonago, Wis./Pius XI) layup that put CUH ahead 21-15, SMU scored the next nine points to give them a 24-21 with time winding down in the half. However, Dean in full sprint knocked down a running 23-footer from straight away at the buzzer to knot the game at 24 at halftime.
In a suspenseful third quarter, there were three ties and five lead changes, the final coming at 4:30 on a Megan Nilsson free throw that put SMU ahead for good, 34-33, and taking as many as a six-point lead late in the stanza.
Chaminade, however, refused to go away, reducing the deficit to just two points three times in the final quarter and 57-54 on Carter's final triple with 4:05 left. But the Saints' 7-0 run over the next two minutes helped seal the game.
Despite shooting just under 34 percent for the game, the 'Swords held Saint Martin's to just 35.7 from the floor and just 5 of 21 from 3-point range. They made nine triples, their second-highest of the year.
However Chaminade was outrebounded 43-34 which led to a 16-2 disparity in second-chance points and put the Saints on the free throw line 30 times. Chaminade was 12 of 16 from the charity stripe.
The Silverswords will take the Christmas break off and return to action on Dec. 31 when they open a five-game Pacific West Conference Northern California road trip at Fresno Pacific. The 'Swords' next home game is Jan. 17 against Point Loma.
