MIRANO ASAI | staff writer
courtesy | APU ATHLETICS
In this new era of Cougar basketball, players will get down and dirty to get the loose balls.


Already marking their third victory in the year of 2008, the Cougars have had the best start in APU history with a record of 14-2 overall and are No. 6 in the NAIA.

Twelve women now focus on competing for the GSAC regular-season championship and winning the NAIA National Tournament. Defense is the new theme for this season.

“Last year we scored a bunch of points, but we didn’t hold people as much as we do now. We get wins because we hold more people,” senior guard Sarah Leathers said.

The average team score is around 60 points for this season, compared to last year’s average team score of 80 points. On Jan. 10, the Cougars defeated San Diego Christian, 57-50.

“We struggled a little bit offensively, but defensively we worked well so that is why we were able to defeat them,” head coach T.J. Hardeman said.

In the final half, the Cougars closed the game with an intense defense, as they kept San Diego Christian away from their basket in the final four minutes to finish the game.

Senior forward Abby Johnson and sophomore center Kristie Hala’ufia grabbed a total of 24 rebounds preventing the Hawks from offensive points. Leathers also made 5 steals and 10 assists.

As the team had a hard time scoring, senior guard Kate Shipp contributed to the team by scoring three 3-pointers out of four shots.

The strong defensive effort leads the Cougars to the top of the conference rank by keeping the lowest score in the conference.

Working as a team also becomes more important as the Cougars play against competitive teams. Three seniors succeeded in bonding the team together.

“Overall, our chemistry is better this year.” Shipp said. “We have a lot of fun and we laugh a lot. Since we have to practice everyday, we are like family.”

The Cougars, including the new head coach, went to a retreat in Palm Springs before the season started to get to know each other more. It also helped to bond the team.

“We have good relationships with each other so it helps when we play the basketball games. Also, we have good team chemistry, everyone has a role and everyone does their role well,” Johnson said.

Although Shipp said that being a basketball player is a full time job and it is tough to manage their academic and athletic lives at the same time, they try to find time to play basketball outside of practice.

The three seniors are proud of their diverse strength of their team. They all agree to work extra hard to make a better team and lead other players. With 15 regular season games left, their goal becomes simple.

“Now our goal is to try to get better everyday. We want to be better in every practice and in every game,” Hardeman said. “It is frustrating that we are not reaching our goal even when we won the game.”

The next game is on Jan. 19 against Vanguard at APU. Vanguard is No. 3 in the NAIA and has a 10-2 record overall. After facing Vanguard, the Cougars will play No. 8 The Master’s. Both game will be held at Felix Event Center. The NAIA National Tournament will start at mid-March.

“We have all key components that we need to go to the nationals and win,” Leathers said.