Concordia Scores One for Little Guys

It might have been less than 15 seconds of fame, but the Concordia men’s basketball team relished its brief moment in the spotlight last Thursday night.

Earlier in the evening, Concordia had beaten Northern Arizona, a Division I school. After settling down in front of televisions in their Flagstaff hotel rooms, the players started seeing the score flashed on the screens:

Concordia (Calif.) 73, Northern Arizona 67.

Each time ESPN or CNN put up the score, Concordia Coach Greg Marshall heard another round of cheers.

“Every 15 minutes you would hear them yelling out from their rooms,” Marshall said.

“I’m not sure anybody slept that night. We had to get up at 6:30 to catch the flight home. I know I didn’t get to sleep until 4, but it was worth it.”

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It was the first time Concordia, which plays in the NAIA, has beaten an NCAA Division I team; the Eagles are 1-1 against those schools. Cal State Fullerton beat Concordia, 80-66, last season.

Northern Arizona, in the Big Sky Conference, is struggling, but Marshall said they appeared formidable.

“They were just immense,” Marshall said. “We looked like skinny step-children next to them. We were physically outmatched, but I think we’re quicker than we have been in the past and we used that to our advantage.

“We definitely felt like we sneaked up on them. Hopefully, it’s going to give us a lot of confidence that we can play with anyone.”

Marshall was especially pleased with the way his team reacted when point guard Danny Barajas fouled out with 8 minutes 35 seconds left to play.

Barajas received his fourth foul for reaching in and his fifth on a technical for arguing the call.

Northern Arizona made both free throws and then a three-point shot to lead, 56-52, but the Eagles responded with a 7-0 run and never trailed again.

Concordia benefited from balanced scoring. Sam Sabbara, who took over at point for Barajas and played the last seven minutes with four fouls, had 14 points, five rebounds and five assists; Pharoah Jones had 16 points and eight rebounds; Jeff Putnam had 14 points; Craig Martin had 13 points, eight rebounds and five assists, and Tarik James had 13 points.

Concordia (6-1) is off to its best start in Marshall’s five seasons at the school, but the Eagles’ early-season schedule hasn’t been too tough. Excluding the Northern Arizona game, their average margin of victory is 41 points, including a 116-26 pounding of La Sierra. Claremont-Mudd beat the Eagles, 75-72, last week.

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The Southern California College men’s team received a boost when Kevin Carlson got significant playing time last weekend for the first time since early in the season.

Carlson, a junior transfer from Fullerton College who had a sprained ankle, scored 21 points in a 73-68 loss to San Francisco State on Friday and 12 in a 77-60 victory over American Indian College Saturday. The Vanguards (5-4) have been struggling on offense and Carlson provides the spark.

“I’m amazed at how Kevin’s able to come out without practice and still shoot the ball well,” SCC Coach Bill Reynolds said.

Carlson’s brother, Brian, a freshman who played at Katella in 1992-93, played and is also working his way into the lineup. Surgery to remove bone chips in his foot has kept him out most of the season, but Reynolds is impressed with his aggressive play. He had five points and 10 rebounds in 20 minutes against American Indian.

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Chapman center Stefan Mumaw had an embarrassing gaffe during the Panthers’ 73-57 loss to Pomona-Pitzer last week. Mumaw was fouled and sent to the free-throw line for two shots, but Mumaw--and the Pomona-Pitzer announcer--thought it was a one-and-one situation.

So when Mumaw missed the first free throw, he rushed to the ball, picked it up and threw down a thunderous dunk.

No other player moved and the referee told Mumaw it was a two-shot foul.

“I swear the guy said one and one,” Mumaw said later. “But it was a really good dunk.”

The Panthers (4-3) will try to end a two-game losing streak at 7:30 p.m. Saturday when they play host to Redlands.

Notes

The Chapman women’s basketball team will try to extend a two-game winning streak when the Panthers play host to La Verne at 5:30 p.m. Saturday. Chapman (3-3) beat Occidental, 69-67, last week when Melissa Starr put in a rebound with two seconds left and defeated Redlands, 70-62. . . . Concordia women’s volleyball player Amy Bonacorsi, a junior outside hitter from Spring Valley, has been named first-team GTE All-District VIII for the second consecutive season. Bonacorsi, a biology/liberal arts major, has a 3.857 grade-point average.