Orange Empire Women’s Race Takes on Different Look

One thing is certain about the Orange Empire Conference women’s basketball race this season--there won’t be a back-to-back champion.

That was decided in August when Saddleback suspended its program for a season because Coach Jack Single took the same position at Rancho Santiago.

Golden West, which won the six conference titles before that, announced last month there would be no team because of a lack of players.

The two departures left coaches scrambling for games to replace the four missing ones. Cypress, for example, plays Fullerton Wednesday to start the season then doesn’t have another conference game until Jan. 17.

Here’s a brief look at the Orange County teams in the conference.

Cypress (13-4)--The Chargers return the top seven from last season’s 7-22 team but all are much improved physically and mentally. Linda Rodriguez, a forward who is a strong outside shooter, is averaging a team-high 19 points as well as seven rebounds. Holly Pawlowski, another forward, is averaging 14 points and nine rebounds and guard Janine Shaw is averaging 12 points.

Fullerton (11-7)--The Hornets have played well in recent weeks, reaching the championship game of the Orange Coast tournament and finishing third in their 14-team tournament. Michelle deBruijn (15 points) is back at forward but has been slowed at times by an ankle injury. Center Nadia Hoerner, who was a standout member of the volleyball team that was second in the state, is getting better with each game.

Fullerton also has several talented freshman guards including Angie Baca (15 points), Paola Flores (11 points) and Lauren Murphy.

Irvine Valley (13-5)--The Lasers were the preseason pick to win the conference but now are just one of several talented teams. Irvine Valley has a solid and experienced front line led by forward Pamela Loud (seven points and 10 rebounds) and center Alison Carr (10 points and eight rebounds). Dyanna Hatch (14 points) is also back at guard.

Heather Cunningham, a freshman forward from El Dorado High, is averaging a team-high 16 points.

Orange Coast (13-5)--The Pirates are the surprise of the season so far. Coach Mike Thornton said recently that his goal before the season was to win 10 games. But thanks to some inspired play, things have gone really well.

Dianne Pulido has emerged as the main scoring threat. She averaged four points and four rebounds in limited playing time last season but worked hard to improve during the summer and is averaging 21 points and seven rebounds. Sophomores Traci Nakamura and Saki Takemoto and freshman Norie Nakase have also been strong at guard.

Rancho Santiago (13-3)--The names are new but the coach, Single, isn’t. He was at Saddleback for eight seasons and led Gauchos to a 31-1 record last season, losing only in the state title game to Ventura.

The Dons aren’t deep with only eight players, but they are talented. At 6 feet 2, Pauline McGee (16 points, 15 rebounds)anchors the middle. Antoinette Thompson (18 points, 17.5 rebounds) is a powerful forward and Chanel Neal (20 points) is a quick guard. All three are freshmen from Inglewood Morningside High.

Riverside is 10-8.