By Ron Smith
January 12, 2023

(SANTA BARBARA, Calif.)
 
Stefanie Berberabe became just the second Warrior in program history to surpass the 1,500 career point mark on Thursday night as #5 Westmont Women's Basketball (14-1, 7-1 GSAC) defeated Life Pacific (5-13, 1-7) by a score of 77-33.
 
Berberabe, who tallied 11 points, joined the 1500 Club at the 7:10 mark in the third quarter. Sydney Brown, standing at the top of the key, delivered a pass to Berber babe who was breaking for the basket. The 2021 NAIA MVP grabbed the pass and finished the layup in one motion.
 
"Stef is such a dynamic player and her scoring is just one of the byproducts of her influence on the game," said Westmont head coach Kirsten Moore.  "It starts with how big her heart is to compete and help our team be our best. When we need someone to put the ball in the basket she has found a way to do that time and time again over her career."
 
With tonight's performance, Berberabe moved into second place on the Warriors' career scoring list with 1,501 points. She surpassed Aysia Shellmeyer (2013-17) who finished with 1,492 points and is now in third place. Currently heading the list is Lauren McCoy (2014-18) who tallied 1,538 career points.
 
Berberabe, who did not know she was within striking distance of scoring 1500 career points, was philosophical about the accomplishment. "These past four and one-half years have been a journey," described the fifth-year senior. "All the work I have put in since I was a little girl has paid off. However, it would not have been possible without my teammates and legacy Warrior teams that I have been blessed to be a part of. I am grateful for this opportunity and blessed. All glory to God for this milestone."
 
The veteran player sees her role on the team as serving as a mentor to the younger players. "This is a year of passing on to the younger players what I have learned these past four years. My biggest goal for this year is to show them what it means to be a Warrior – being able to find gratitude in the hard times, being able to be fierce and free, and being mentally and physically tough on the court and off the court. I am excited to build the relationships that I have with this new team."
 
Though she and Brown are the first two five-year seniors in program history - a result of the COVID-19 pandemic that afforded players an extra year of eligibility - Berberabe is working her way up the all-time scoring list in less games (120) than those she is surpassing.
 
In tonight's game, all ten of Westmont's eligible players took the floor for at least 15 minutes of play. All 10 contributed to the scoring, nine recorded at least one rebound and seven tallied at least one assist.
 
Destiny Okonkwo and Laila Saenz led the scoring with 14 points each. Okonkwo added 14 rebounds to record a double-double.
 
In addition to her 11 points, Berberabe pulled down seven rebounds and dished off four assists. Brown notched 10 points and six rebounds.
 
"We had bright spots from a lot of players," said Westmont assistant coach Jana Pearson. "I saw confidence in some of our young players stepping up and shooting the ball"
 
Pearson was filling in for Moore who is attending the NCAA Convention in San Antonio as part of the requirements for Westmont's transition to Division II.
 
"Laila put a few in and Bailey came out confidently shooting," noted Pearson. "Syd was big on the boards. Des was a beast down low and went up strong through people. Stef was just Stef. When we took her out, they went on a little run. Then we put her back in and she went on a run.
 
"Paula Graichen (4 points, 8 rebounds) gave us a big target in the zone. Sage Kramer (6 points, 9 rebounds), who is working on swinging to another position, did a good job there. Kate Goostrey (6 points, 6 assists) came on and gave us some fire. She plays with such passion. She already had a busted eye but took a charge. Haley Dermer (5 points, 3 rebounds) crashed the o-boards and had a reverse lay-up and Isabella Pearson (3 points) landed a three."
 
Speaking of the team's preparation for the game, Pearson said, "All week, it was about focusing on us and returning to those little things that we do as Warriors. We talked about, 'Warrior back', which means not letting the same mistake happen two times in a row. The top key in our scouting report was to 'Warrior back'.
 
As a result of tonight's win, Westmont remains in a tie with Hope International (14-3, 7-1) for first place in the GSAC standings. The Royals defeated Vanguard (11-4, 5-3) 69-67 tonight. Vanguard falls into a tie for third place with The Master's, with whom they share an identical record.
 
The Warriors will be back in action on Saturday when they travel to El Cajon for a game against San Diego Christian that will signal the end of the first half of Golden State Athletic Conference play. Tip-off has been rescheduled to 12:00 p.m.