UCSD Wins Ball, Irvine Takes Soccer

The annual Armenian Students’ Association games took place in UC Santa Barbara, where fifteen teams from colleges in southern California participated in basketball and soccer games in the friendly spirit of competition.

By ELVIRA DERHOVSEPIAN
Elvira5027@yahoo.com

The annual Armenian Students’ Association tournaments took place at UC Santa Barbara on Saturday and Sunday, May 29 and 30. Fifteen basketball teams took part in the games from various schools (UCI, UCR, GCC, PCC, CSUN, CSUN ALUM, UCLA, UCSB, UCSB ALUM, LMU, UCB, USC, UCSD, CPP), and AEO. Eight of them participated in the soccer tournaments (UCI, UCR, AEO, UCLA, UCSB, CSUN, USC, CPP).

UCI won every one of their soccer games this year, their opponents including Cal Poly, USC, UCR and AEO. UC Irvine versed UCLA in the final game on Sunday and won the soccer tournament with a final score of 1-0. Unique to UCLA’s soccer team were two female soccer players who participated in the games amongst the rest of the guys.
“No mercy was our rule, and we never underestimated any of those teams out there... I think this is a start of a dynasty,” said David Grigorian about Irvine’s win.

On Sunday, May 30, the basketball game between UCSD and UCI grew very intense with 16 seconds left on the clock and a close score of 38-36. UCI called a foul and was given two free throws. After missing one of the two, UCSD won with a final score of 38-37, moving on to the championships.

It was especially notable considering the fact that UCI had won the title 3 years in a row prior to this year. Meghry Chopurian, the only female basketball player for GCC, mentioned her team’s close call to making the finals against UCSD. However, CSUN Alumni made it to the finals. The finals caused great commotion among the crowd as Tritons won 53-41.

“It was a big challenge for our team but we pulled through and got the win,” said Gevork Demirchyan, a second-year at UCSD. “Armand Rostamian dominated, and he drove in the ball very well,” Demirchyan said. Arakel Poladian also contributed a great amount during the game as UCSD’s Point guard. “He was able to [effectively] run our offensive plays, staying aggressive and attacking the basket as well as shooting well from three-point land,” said Rostamian. “A lot of teams doubted us in the beginning, but we were able to play as a team. It just shows how far you can get with a lot of determination,” Rostamian added.

Overall, the ASA games were a success in both soccer and basketball. Teammates and opponents got along and supported each other throughout injuries and wins. Fans and athletes celebrated together during this memorable Memorial weekend at clubs Sharkeez and Sandbar with Artin Sarkissian, also known as DJ Bert, spinning hot tracks both nights.