Honors: Hatsushi Mesa Girls Athlete of Year

Barry Faulkner

COSTA MESA - In a two-sport career that included seven varsity

seasons, recent Costa Mesa High graduate Nancy Hatsushi delivered more

assists than the local Red Cross.

As a play-making point guard in basketball, Hatsushi’s helping hands

donated a school-career-record 675 assists over four varsity seasons.

Her fondness for philanthropy also extended to the volleyball court,

where she triggered the Mustangs’ offense as a three-year starting

setter.

Factor in the points her passes set up, roughly 1,400 including

three-pointers, and the 5-foot-4 point guard accounted for roughly 2,500

points during her varsity basketball career.

Using a dangerous balance of perimeter shooting and aggressive forays

through the lane, she managed to score 1,008 of those herself in 108

varsity games, including a team-leading 13.7 points per game as a senior.

The Orange Coast College-bound standout added 7.3 assists, 4.1 steals

and 3.6 rebounds for the Mustangs, who finished 16-13 and advanced to the

second round of the CIF Southern Section Division III-AA playoffs.

She was named second-team All-CIF Division III, the Newport-Mesa

District Co-Player of the Year, first-team All-Pacific Coast League and

represented the South in the Orange County All-Star Game.

As a junior, she averaged 9.7 points, 6.2 assists and 2.1 steals to

help the Mustangs finish 18-11 and advance to the CIF Division III-AA

quarterfinals. She was all-district and second-team All-PCL.

As a sophomore, she averaged 8.3 points, 7.2 assists, 4.1 rebounds and

2.9 steals en route to second-team All-CIF Division III laurels. She was

also all-district and second-team all-league and her 219 assists set a school single-season record. The Mustangs went 19-11 that year, reaching

the CIF Division III-A semifinals.

Hatsushi came off the bench her freshman year, averaging 4.6 points to

help the Mustangs share the PCL championship, finish 13-15 and advance to

the second round of the CIF Division III-A playoffs.

Her volleyball career included one CIF playoff appearance, in her

sophomore year.