College Update: Burbank’s Brooks thriving at dish for Notre Dame
The following are updates on local athletes at the collegiate level.
Caitlyn Brooks (Burbank High, 2015) Notre Dame softball freshman: One season removed from starring on the diamond for the Bulldogs, Brooks is off to a fine start in her first season with the Fighting Irish.
Brooks helped Notre Dame to a pair of wins — a 7-0 shutout of Stony Brook and a 7-1 win over Ball State — at the Sheraton Spring Break Classic at the Florida Gulf Coast University Softball Complex on Sunday.
Notre Dame (16-3) extended its current winning streak to 12 games with its third straight tournament sweep, outscoring its three weekend opponents by a combined 24-5 score. The 16-3 start matches the second-best start in the history of the program, equaling the 2014 squad.
In the tournament, Brooks had a team-high three runs batted in.
Brooks batted cleanup and went two for three with a triple, a walk and two runs batted in against Stony Brook. She pitched the seventh inning, striking out one and not allowing any hits or walks, getting outs via an infield fly and a ground out to second base. Against Ball State, Brooks drove in a run.
On the season, Brooks is fourth on the team with a .370 batting average (20 for 54) with 19 RBI, three home runs, five doubles and eight runs scored. Starting 16 of Notre Dame’s 17 games, mostly as a designated player, Brooks has no decisions in the circle in seven appearances. In 13 innings, she’s struck out five and walked eight.
Notre Dame is back in action with a nonconference doubleheader Wednesday at Florida International University.
Lawrence White (Burroughs High, 2013) UC Davis men’s basketball junior: The former Indians All-Pacific League player helped the Aggies pull out a dramatic victory Saturday.
The junior scored seven points and UC Davis came up big down the stretch to defeat Cal State Northridge, 87-83, in three overtimes in a Big West Conference game at the Matadome in the regular season finale for both teams.
A layup from the Aggies’ Josh Fox and a jumper from Darius Graham gave the visitors an 84-79 advantage with 1:47 left in the third extra period and CSUN couldn’t get closer than three points the rest of the way.
White was three for six from the field and one of three from the free-throw line.
White has started 13 of 27 games this season for UC Davis and is averaging 23 minutes per game. His 37 steals leads the team. In addition, he is averaging 5.5 points and 3.1 rebounds per game and has 31 assists and six blocks.
The Aggies finished the regular season 11-18 overall and 6-10 in the Big West. UC Davis will now turn its attention to the Big West Tournament, which begins Thursday at the Honda Center in Anaheim. The Aggies will be the No. 5 seed and will face No. 4 seed UC Santa Barbara at noon.
Katie Hooper (Burbank High, 2013) Cal State Northridge softball junior: Last season’s Big West Player of the Year is fighting to regain her form in her third season with the Matadors.
After hitting .392 last season and .314 as a freshman, Hooper has seen her average dip thus far this season. The utility player has started 19 of 20 games and has a .224 (13 for 58) average. Along with three home runs and four doubles, Hooper has 13 RBI and 12 runs.
CSUN (11-9) split its final day of the Stacy Winsberg Invitational on Sunday, falling to No. 12 Florida State, 10-0, in six innings before rallying to defeat Charleston Southern, 4-3.
Hooper, who went one for three with a run scored against Charleston Southern, delivered an RBI double in the second inning. The double was the 27th of her career and moves her into a tie for ninth on the Matadors’ all-time list.
On Sunday, Hooper hit a pinch-hit, two-run home run in the bottom of the sixth to lift the Matadors to a 5-3 comeback victory over Cal State Bakersfield.
CSUN will host its Matador Classic this week, opening with a pair of games Thursday against Grand Canyon University at 11:30 a.m. and Toledo at 2 p.m.
Aysia Shellmire (Burroughs High, 2013) Westmont women’s basketball junior: It has been an award-winning season for the former Burroughs All-CIF Southern Section player and a successful campaign for the Warriors.
Along with receiving Golden State Athletic Conference and National Assn. of Intercollegiate Athletics Player of the Week honors two weeks ago, last week she was named an All-GSAC selection.
Shellmire had a huge performance Saturday in leading No. 2 Westmont to a 72-58 victory against Hope International in the semifinals of the Golden State Athletic Conference Tournament. Shellmire had a double-double, leading the Warriors in scoring with 25 points and in rebounding with 13.
“Aysia and [Lauren] McCoy were great all game,” said Westmont Coach Kirsten Moore on the university’s website. “They had great energy and focus and they just play off of each other really well. They are so versatile and they can take whatever the defense gives them.”
Together, Shellmire and McCoy (21 points and nine rebounds) had 22 of the Warriors’ 42 team rebounds and 46 of the team’s 72 points.
Westmont advanced to the tournament championship game Tuesday evening against sixth-ranked Vanguard (25-5) at Hope International in Fullerton.
The Warriors already wrapped up the GSAC regular-season championship Feb. 27 with a 79-52 victory over Menlo to finish 15-1 in conference play. In the win, Shellmire shot a perfect seven for seven from the floor to tally 14 points to go along with five rebounds.
In starting all 29 of Westmont’s games, Shellmire is leading the team in scoring (13.8 points a game) and is second in rebounds (7.7). In addition, she has 30 blocks and 22 steals and ranks third in the conference in field goal percentage at 51.4 (169 for 329).
