COLLEGE BASKETBALL ‘94-’95 / SMALL COLLEGE WOMEN’S PREVIEW : After Disappointing Season, Things Looking Up for Chapman

At the least the Chapman women’s basketball team won’t run out of healthy bodies this season.

Coach Mary Hegarty has made sure of that with a roster of 18 for home games and a traveling squad of 15.

Last season, her first as a head coach, Hegarty had nine players available in November and seven in February.

“Last year if anybody missed practice the assistant coaches would play and I was trying to drag people off the street to scrimmage,” Hegarty said.

Game nights also were a struggle--the Panthers won only six of their 24 games.

But 12 new players, including 10 transfers from four-year or community colleges, have Hegarty thinking a winning season is within reach.

A closer look at local teams:

CHAPMAN

1993-94: 6-18

Because of the Panthers’ significant depth, Hegarty plans to pick up the tempo this season. “We are pretty fast on the perimeter,” Hegarty said.

So fast that leading scorer Melody Earle (16.9 points), now battles to finish third in conditioning drills she won easily last season. Sig Lo, who was a redshirt last season, will start at point guard and Denise Dal Ponte, whom Hegarty credits for the team’s high conditioning level, will play off-guard. Faye Cruz, a transfer from Sierra College in Rocklin, Calif., and Amy Feniello, from Laguna Hills High and Saddleback College, also are expected to play a lot at guard.

Deb Nilsen, last season’s point guard, will get a lot of playing time backing up Lo. The Panthers are also deep in inside players, with seven posts. Shawna Parkinson, who was a standout freshman last season, will come off the bench. Alana Conyers, 5-10 from Yavapai (Ariz.) College, will start and one forward and Melissa Starr, a 5-10 sophomore will start, at the other.

CONCORDIA

1993-94: 15-13, 5-5 in the Golden State Athletic Conference

First-year Coach David Wolter comes to the Eagles from Valparaiso, a Division I school in Indiana, where his 1992-93 team led the nation in scoring at 92.4 points. He takes over a Concordia team that will be playing without three-time NAIA All-American Gitte Mejer for the first time in four seasons.

Wolter, who also teaches history at the university, has brought in a young group to begin a new legacy.

The Eagles have seven freshmen and one redshirt freshman to go with several returning players and a key community college transfer.

Michelle Kravik, a first-team All-Orange Empire Conference selection from Golden West, which lost in the State title game, has stepped in at forward. Wendy Johnson, Jennifer Zylstra, who sat out last year, and Cara Stephens are returning players who will contribute.

PACIFIC CHRISTIAN

1993-94: 9-17

The Royals’ program hasn’t had a true recruiting class in about four years, so first-year Coach David Nelson, who is also the college’s dean of students, will work with what’s available on campus.

Margie Ramos, a junior forward, is back from last season’s team and Cori Schweikert, a senior center, played two years ago.

“If we can get a couple more players in, we’ll be all right next year or the year after,” Nelson said.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA COLLEGE

1993-94: 24-8, 6-4 in the Golden State Athletic Conference

Last season was the best in school history for the Vanguards, who finished third in the conference. But injuries and the loss of Sanja Simidzija, who averaged 13 points and eight rebounds but didn’t return for her senior season, have hurt the team.

Assistant coach Randy Hawkins has had to take over the team for the first few games because of an illness in Coach Dean Cooper’s family. Hawkins said the Vanguards are being carried by their perimeter players: returning seniors Tina Southard (13-point average), and Heather Brannan (9.5 points and 5.5 rebounds) and Alisha Blomker, a freshman point guard.