Troy Makes a Statement Against Buena--Again

Troy was an underdog when it faced previously undefeated Ventura Buena in last year’s Southern Section Division I-A championship game, but the Warriors came away with a 58-51 victory.

Though it seemed that Buena and its star, Courtney LaVere, had more to play for in the rematch on Saturday in the championship of the Santa Barbara Tournament of Champions, that wasn’t necessarily the case in the minds of Troy players.

“We still feel that people think last year was a fluke,” said Pepperdine-bound senior Alicia Komaki, who scored 22 points in Troy’s 54-49 victory. “We felt that we had to prove to Buena that we were better.”

Troy had an interesting day. It began when junior Christine Usaha, who was supposed to start against Buena, injured her ankle when the tandem bicycle teammate Sunshine Atuatasi was steering crashed into a tree. Most of the team spent part of the day at the hospital.

“She’s on crutches,” Troy Coach Kevin Kiernan said before the game. “A bicycle accident. That’s a first. It’s heartbreakingly funny.

“[Buena Coach] Joe Vaughan is living right today.”

Troy had another guard, senior Britt Rinhart, out of the lineup because of injuries she suffered in an automobile accident. Ankle injuries took two players out during the game, starting forward Megan McGuire, a sophomore, and reserve guard Nicole Hayman, a freshman.

Said Kiernan afterward: “We have more depth this year, and it showed.”

Neither McGuire nor Hayman practiced on Monday.

Troy (9-0) plays Rosary on Wednesday and Norco on Thursday as part of the Orange County Championship.

“This year’s team is kind of different, and they wanted to get a nice win for themselves,” Kiernan said. “Now there’s about 20 more we want to get.”

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Back for Buena: Senior guard Emily Lewis, a third-year starter for Buena, returned to the lineup last week wearing a brace and playing on a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

“She will stabilize us with her leadership,” said Vaughan, whose team’s only previous losses this season came with Lewis out of the lineup. “If she holds up, we’re a different team, and we’re hoping she can make it through.”

The Lewis family has had terrible luck with knees. Freshman Maddie Lewis had surgery over the summer, and older sister Cory had surgery during her playing days.

“If Emily has surgery,” Vaughan said, “it will be the seventh for the family.”

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Aa is for Absent: Laguna Hills’ Megan Aaker, one of Orange County’s top players, missed the last three games--all losses--because of a sprained ankle.

Aaker is the team’s point guard and a legitimate scoring threat. Laguna Hills had already lost its center, Jennifer Von Pohlmann, for the season because of a torn ACL. Laguna Hills is 4-8.

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That’s marketing: The Huntington Beach Marina tournament has a novel idea to boost attendance this week.

Anyone bringing a program, ticket stub or recognizable hand stamp from a competing tournament can get in for half-price--ideal for those going back and forth between the Marina and Edison tournaments in Huntington Beach.

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Cross-training: Neither Estancia nor Newport Harbor scored in the first quarter of their game last week, which Estancia won, 40-21. “I went to see a girls’ basketball game between Estancia High and Newport Harbor,” wrote Costa Mesa Daily Pilot reporter Barry Faulkner, “and a soccer game broke out.”

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Out and about: This week Buena is playing in Springfield Mo., Lynwood is in Gillette, Wyo., Harbor City Narbonne is in Atlanta, Brea Olinda is in Fort Myers, Fla., Redondo Union is in Greeneville, Tenn., and Chino is in Annandale, Va.

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Tough under fire: San Marino has won both its games since the arrest of its coach, Patrick Gillan, on suspicion of sexually molesting a 17-year-old player last season. The Titans (7-4) defeated Burbank, 47-38, the day after Gillan’s arrest, and Maranatha, 51-43.