COLLEGES / IRENE GARCIA : Guard Gets Shot at Playing With Pros

Josh Oppenheimer didn’t exactly have a spectacular senior season at Cal State Dominguez Hills, so getting drafted by the U.S. Basketball League’s Atlanta Eagles came as a surprise.

“It was a thrill to get picked considering this year didn’t turn out the way I had hoped,” Oppenheimer said. “I thought it really possibly ruined all my chances.”

The 6-foot-2 point guard had his problems with Dominguez Hills Coach Dave Yanai after transferring from Northern Arizona for his senior season. Oppenheimer, 22, played only 17 minutes a game for the Toros (16-12, 8-6 in the California Collegiate Athletic Assn.) and averaged six points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.5 assists. He said getting along with Yanai was difficult at times.

“Yanai had decided already who was going to play,” Oppenheimer said. “I only played in about 13 games. By the time I started to get the hang of it, the season was over. It is hard to get adjusted to a new system when you don’t play.”

Oppenheimer worked out on his own and last month was among 64 college seniors invited to a USBL camp in Atlanta. He was one of five players invited back, and on Wednesday became the Eagles’ third pick. He signed for one season but won’t disclose the terms.

Each of the league’s 12 teams has a 10-player roster, and the season runs from May to mid-July. Oppenheimer plans to attend an NBA mini-camp upon completing the USBL season.

“I knew, because of what I had done earlier in my college career, that (pro scouts) knew I could play,” Oppenheimer said. “It was obvious I could.”

Oppenheimer’s collegiate career was that of a basketball gypsy. He was a gym rat from Sherman Oaks who played at two Division I schools before transferring to Division II Dominguez Hills in an attempt to resurrect his once-promising career.

After playing at Notre Dame High, he earned a scholarship to Rhode Island, where he was a backup point guard as a freshman. Unhappy with a coaching change, he left five games into his sophomore season.

He transferred to Northern Arizona, a struggling Division I program, where he averaged 19.7 points and was an All-Big Sky Conference selection.

Disillusioned with the team’s lack of success, Oppenheimer left five games into his junior season, moved to Torrance and enrolled at Dominguez Hills.

Oppenheimer will report to the Eagles on May 1. He is attempting to take final exams early, which would leave him two units short of a degree in communications.

But for now, basketball is first.

“If it doesn’t work out, I’ll take incompletes in those classes,” he said. “This is something I feel I need to do now.”

On Thursday morning, Oppenheimer worked out at Loyola Marymount with Terrell Lowery, a 6-3 guard who led the Lions in scoring with an average of 26 points a game.

“I’m trying to get in the gym with top people,” Oppenheimer said. “I spent a lot of time in the gym and it has paid off.”

When first baseman Julie Berthiaume tied an NCAA Division II record for most consecutive hits (nine) earlier this month, she started a trend for her Dominguez Hills teammates.

Last week junior Melissa Punch tied a Division II single-game triple record (three) set by Michelle Stone of Norfolk State in April, 1990. Berthiaume and Brandi Pilato, a transfer from El Camino College, also tripled to help the Toros tie a Division II team record (five) for triples set by Bentley College in April, 1985.

Both records were tied in the Toros’ 6-1 victory over the University of San Diego.

Punch, who was hampered because of a shoulder injury most of last season, has a .416 batting average and leads the team with a school-record nine doubles and four home runs. She also has five triples.

Harbor College will leave the Southern California Athletic Conference to compete in the South Coast Conference next season. The Seahawks will make the move in every sport except football, where Harbor will remain in the Western State Conference.

It will mean a tougher schedule for the baseball team, which is accustomed to cruising through the SCAC yearly. Harbor will have to play SCC powers Cerritos College and Long Beach City College.

The league also includes cross-town rival El Camino, Mt. San Antonio College and Pasadena City College.

Notes

Harbor College’s Eric Carpenter signed to play basketball at Cal State San Bernardino next season. The 6-3 guard averaged 17 points a game for the Seahawks and was named to the All-Southern California Athletic Conference first team. . . . The Harbor baseball team remains in first place in the SCAC with an 11-2 record. The Seahawks are 28-8 overall. Junior catcher Rene Lopez leads the conference in batting with a .469 average. . . . Center fielder Andre LeVias has emerged as a bright spot for the struggling El Camino College baseball team. The freshman leads the Warriors with a .365 batting average, including 12 runs batted in, four triples and a home run. The Warriors are 11-17 and 9-12 in the South Coast Conference. . . . The undefeated El Camino women’s swim team (8-0, 6-0 in the SCC) will compete in the league championship meet this weekend at the Belmont Plaza in Long Beach. . . . The El Camino women’s tennis team (15-1, 11-0 in the SCC) will compete in the Ojai tournament this weekend and the Southern California playoffs starting Tuesday.