Press Releases

2-25-02 Weekly Release

Schedule of upcoming events:

MEN'S BASKETBALL:
at Sonoma State on Friday, March 1 at 7:30 p.m.
at San Francisco State on Saturday, March 2 at 7:30 p.m.

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL:
at Sonoma State on Friday, March 1 at 5:30 p.m.
at San Francisco State on Saturday, March 2 at 5:30 p.m.

BASEBALL:
vs. Anaheim Angels (exhib.) on Thursday, Feb. 28, 12:30 p.m.
at Grand Canyon on Friday, March 1 at 2:30 p.m.
at Grand Canyon (DH) on Saturday, March 2 at noon
at Grand Canyon on Sunday, March 3 at noon

M/W TENNIS:
M/Ten vs. Cal State L.A. on Friday, March 1 at 2 p.m.
W/Ten at Cal State Bakersfield on Tuesday, Feb. 26 at 2 p.m.
W/Ten vs. Cal State L.A. on Friday, March 1 at 2 p.m.

M/W TRACK AND FIELD:
Trojan Invitational at USC on Saturday, March 2, All Day

FOLLOW THE BRONCOS ON THE WORLD WIDE WEB
HTTP://WWW.CSUPOMONA.EDU/~ATHLETIC

MEN'S BASKETBALL: BRONCOS WIN FINAL TWO HOME GAMES
2001-02 Overall Record: 17-8, 2001-02 CCAA Record: 14-6
2001-02 West Regional Ranking: 10 (2-20-02)

BRONCOS ROLL PAST ANTELOPES, TRITONS: Cal Poly Pomona's men's basketball team closed out its 2001-02 home schedule with a pair of lopsided victories over Grand Canyon and UC San Diego in Kellogg Gym. The Broncos honored eight players - Jimmy Landry (Sr., La Habra, Sacramento State), Lucas LeCour (Sr., Las Vegas, Las Vegas HS), T.J. Williams (Sr., Dana Point, Santa Margarita HS), Marques Montgomery (Sr., Cerritos, Valley Christian HS), Rafael Zielonka (Sr., Anaheim Hills, Servite HS), Jesse Altamirano (Sr., Whittier, East Los Angeles College), Raymond Hubbard (Sr., Chicago, Cuyamaca CC) and David Erickson (Sr., Newbury Park, Newbury Park HS) - before Saturday's home finale in Kellogg Gym for their contributions to the Cal Poly Pomona program. Cal Poly Pomona opened the weekend with an 86-69 victory over Grand Canyon in an evening that had historic implications. LeCour, a fourth-year guard for the Broncos, became Cal Poly Pomona's all-time leading scorer when he nailed a 3-pointer with 1:04 left. The Broncos raced out to a 15-point halftime lead, 46-31, and kept the Antelopes at bay the rest of the way. Grand Canyon got as close as seven points in the second half, but the Broncos led by at least 11 points for the final 14 minutes of the game. Jeff Bonds (Fr., Compton, Mayfair HS) led the Broncos with 23 points and three rebounds. Bonds hit eight of his nine field-goal attempts and seven of his nine free throws. Montgomery also had a strong game with 11 points and a season-high six rebounds, while Steve Lambert (Jr., Covina, Charter Oak HS) had 11 points and four rebounds. The following evening, the Broncos honored their seniors and then avenged an early-season loss to UC San Diego by burying the Tritons, 88-66. Cal Poly Pomona broke open the game with a 15-1 run to open the second half, stretching a 34-28 halftime edge to a 49-29 advantage. The Broncos led by as many as 32 points before settling for the final 22-point margin of victory. Bonds led the way for the second straight evening with 23 points, which matched his season high, and 12 rebounds, which was a new season high. Bonds led five Broncos in double figures. Lambert had 14 points, David Sybesma (Fr., Corona, Corona Centennial HS) had 13 points and six rebounds, Montgomery had 11 points and three rebounds and Zielonka had a season-high 10 points.

LECOUR BECOMES ALL-TIME SCORING LEADER: Lucas LeCour (Sr., Las Vegas, Las Vegas HS) became Cal Poly Pomona's all-time scoring leader when he drained a 3-pointer with 1:04 remaining in the win over Grand Canyon Friday night in Kellogg Gym. The basket gave LeCour 1,271 points, which surpassed Julian Hammond's mark of 1,270 points. LeCour is also the Broncos' career leader in steals and free throws made and is fourth in assists. LeCour is leading the Broncos in scoring and assists for the second straight season.

BRONCOS SECURE THIRD IN THE CCAA: While the Broncos will still need some cooperation from others to reach the NCAA postseason for the first time since 1976, they have already wrapped up one of the best regular seasons in the program's history. Cal Poly Pomona will finish no worse than tied for third in the CCAA, which is the best finish for the Broncos since the conference expanded in the 1998-99 season. The Broncos have already tied the team record for most conference wins (14) with two games remaining. If the Broncos can win two games this weekend, they will finish the regular season with 19 wins, which would be the most since the Broncos won 20 games in 1980-81.

BRONCOS TO END REGULAR SEASON ON THE ROAD: Cal Poly Pomona will try to put the pressure on the teams immediately ahead of them in the NCAA Division II West Region rankings when they conclude the 2001-02 season with road games at Sonoma State on Friday and San Francisco State on Saturday. To have any shot of getting into the playoffs, the Broncos will have to win both games this weekend. Sonoma State is in seventh place in the conference and playing well lately, while San Francisco State is fourth in conference, two games behind Cal Poly Pomona.

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: #2 BRONCOS WIN TWO MORE IN KELLOGG GYM
2001-02 Overall Record: 21-4, CCAA Record: 17-3.
2001-02 National Ranking: 2 (USA TODAY/ESPN/WBCA). 2001-02 Regional Ranking: 1

BRONCOS GET BACK ON TRACK WITH TWO MORE WINS: Cal Poly Pomona's women's basketball team bounced back nicely from its loss to UC Davis and remained tied for first in the CCAA with two conference games remaining. The Broncos started the weekend with a 79-48 victory over Grand Canyon in a game much easier than the 57-57 nailbiter they had against the Antelopes earlier in the season. All-American center Aprile Powell (So., Santa Ana, Century HS) had a season-high 26 points for the Broncos to go along with 12 rebounds. Lauri McIntosh (Sr., Diamond Bar, Diamond Bar HS) added 21 points and six rebounds. The Broncos shot 52.6 percent for the game and forced 26 Grand Canyon turnovers. McIntosh had a career-high eight steals to lead the defensive effort. Marisa Lattin (So., Oceanside, El Camino HS) had nine points and four rebounds, while Margot Richards (Sr., Orangevale, Erskine College) had eight points and three rebounds. Salma Rasheed (So., Walnut, Walnut HS) had seven points and five rebounds for the Broncos. On Saturday evening, the Broncos recognized their five seniors, three of whom have been with the program for four years and have helped Cal Poly Pomona to a 97-16 mark in that time span, including a 72-10 record in the CCAA. Those three seniors - McIntosh, Burgundie Porter (Sr., San Dimas, San Dimas HS) and Kim Kennedy (Sr., Walnut Creek, Carondelet HS) - were recognized along with Leah Whatley (Sr., Suisun, Tartleton State), who is in her first year with the program, and Richards, who is in her second. Cal Poly Pomona wasted little time making sure the seniors would finish their regular-season home schedule in style, racing to a big early lead and crushing UC San Diego, 96-57. McIntosh had another big game for the Broncos, pouring in a game-high 32 points. Porter added 19 points and four assists, while Kennedy had a season-high eight points and two assists. Rasheed added seven points and nine rebounds, while Powell had eight points and six rebounds.

BRONCOS REMAIN FIRST IN REGIONAL POLL, SLIP TO SECOND IN THE NATION: Cal Poly Pomona's women's basketball team remained atop the NCAA Division II West Region poll in the Feb. 20 rankings, but slipped to second in the national poll after the home loss to UC Davis on Feb. 16. A new national poll will be out Tuesday, while the next regional poll will be released on Wednesday.

BRONCOS TO FINISH REGULAR SEASON ON THE ROAD: Cal Poly Pomona's women's basketball team has plenty to play for this weekend because the CCAA title is still up for grabs and so is the right to host the NCAA Division II West Regional. The Broncos are tied for first in the CCAA with Cal State Bakersfield, which will finish up at Cal State L.A. and Cal State Dominguez Hills. The Broncos will face third-place Sonoma State on Friday in a huge game. The Cossacks are playing for a playoff spot and the Broncos for the conference title. Cal Poly Pomona will be at San Francisco State on Saturday. The regional pairings will be announced next Sunday.

BASEBALL: BRONCOS DROP THREE OF FOUR TO COYOTES
2002 Overall Record: 10-5-1; 2002 CCAA Record: 5-3
2002 National Ranking: 17 (Collegiate Baseball Newspaper)

BRONCOS HAVE TOUGH TIME WITH CAL STATE SAN BERNARDINO: Two of the top college baseball teams in the country squared off in a four-game series and, just when it looked like the Broncos might salvage a split, Cal State San Bernardino claimed its third victory in the four contests with a strong rally. The first game of the series was a sparkling pitching dual between the Broncos' Tony Ortiz (Sr., Rancho Cucamonga, Mt. SAC) and Cal State San Bernardino's Tawd Frensley on Thursday in San Bernardino. Ortiz allowed only four hits and one run in seven innings, but that one run turned out to be the only one scored in the game as the Coyotes prevailed, 1-0. Matt Stevens (Fr., Riverside, Rubidoux HS) and Andy Gonzales (Fr., Whittier, California HS) had two hits each, but that was all the offense the Broncos could manage. Things didn't go any better on Friday in San Bernardino as the Coyotes rolled to a 12-2 win. Gregor Connors (Sr., Poway, Palomar College) belted a solo home run and Gonzales singled in a run, but those were about the only highlights of the day for the Broncos, who were outhit in the game, 14-6. Cal Poly Pomona returned to Scolinos Field for a doubleheader on Saturday and had to settle for a disappointing split. The Broncos won the opener, 5-3, behind a strong starting pitching job by Kevin Waldinger (Sr. Yorba Linda, Fullerton JC) and a splendid relief effort by Jose Munoz (Jr., Baldwin Park, Rio Hondo JC). Waldinger went seven innings and gave up just six hits and one run to improve to 3-0. Munoz worked the final 2 2/3 innings to record his first save of the season. Jason Welch (Sr., Diamond Bar, Santa Ana JC) singled in two runs to highlight a three-run first inning for the Broncos, who also got three hits and two RBI from Stevens. Connors and Matthew Lopez (Fr., Lancaster, Quartz Hill HS) had two hits each for the Broncos. In the nightcap, Cal Poly Pomona owned a 5-3 lead after five innings behind a solid start from Andrew Perkins (Jr., Diamond Bar, Diamond Bar HS), who gave up three hits and two earned runs. The Broncos took a 4-3 advantage in the second inning after a run-scoring single by Andy Gonzales and a run-scoring double by Anthony Gonzales (Jr., Whittier, Santa Ana JC). Stevens tripled to center in the fifth inning and scored on a sacrifice fly by Munoz to make it 5-3. Then the roof caved in. With relief ace Ricky Wooten (So., Riverside, Rubidoux HS) on the mound, the Coyotes struck for six runs in the sixth inning to take a 9-5 edge. Two walks were followed by three consecutive Cal Poly Pomona errors and a hit batter and Cal State San Bernardino was in business. The Coyotes had only one hit in the inning. Anthony Gonzales hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the inning to make it 9-7, but the Coyotes struck for three more runs in the top of the seventh to put the game out of reach.

BRONCOS TO FACE ANAHEIM ANGELS IN EXHIBITION GAME: Cal Poly Pomona's baseball team will face the Anaheim Angels in an exhibition game Thursday in Tempe, AZ before beginning a four-game CCAA series against Grand Canyon on Friday. The Broncos are expected to play an eight-inning exhibition beginning at 12:30 p.m. at the Angels' spring-training complex. The conference series with the Antelopes will begin on Friday at 2:30 p.m. and continue with a doubleheader on Saturday and a single game on Sunday.

MEN'S AND WOMEN'S TENNIS: BRONCOS PICK UP MORE WINS

Men's Overall Record: 6-1
Men's Ranking: No. 24 in the nation; 5th in the West Region (ITA)
Women's Overall Record: 5-1, CCAA Record: 2-1
Women's Ranking: No. 17 in the nation; 9th in the West Region (ITA)

BRONCO MEN ROLL TO WIN OVER ALLIANT: Cal Poly Pomona's men's tennis team continued the momentum it picked up from its big win over nationally-ranked UC Davis with a dominating 9-0 victory over Alliant International on Wednesday. JR Villaroman (Sr., Anaheim, Troy HS) continued his impressive season with a 6-2, 6-4 victory at No. 1 singles. He also teamed up with Seamus Sullivan (Jr., Palos Verdes, Peninsula HS) for a win at No. 1 doubles, 8-0. Andy Roland (Jr., Hollywood, Glendale CC) won at No. 2 singles, 6-0, 6-3; Ryan Terry (Jr., Diamond Bar, Diamond Bar HS) won at No. 3 singles, 6-2, 6-2; Sullivan won at No. 4 singles, 6-2, 6-4; Nguyen Than (Jr., Garden Grove, Loara HS) won at No. 5 singles, 6-1, 6-1 and A.J. Feliz (Sr., San Gabriel, New Mexico Military Institute) won at No. 6 singles, 6-1, 6-0. Roland and Terry were victorious at No. 2 doubles, 8-2 and Than and David Nguyen (So., Los Angeles, Beverly Hills HS) won at No. 3 doubles, 8-1. The Broncos will be back in action Friday with a home contest against Cal State L.A.

BRONCO WOMEN WIN TWO MORE: Cal Poly Pomona's women's tennis team posted easy victories last week over Alliant International, 8-1, on Wednesday and Cal State San Bernardino, 9-0, on Saturday. The Broncos were without an ailing Anne Claire Ortiz-Luis in the win over Alliant, but Dehlia Feliz (Fr., San Gabriel, San Gabriel HS) moved up to No. 1 singles and posted a 7-6, 6-1 victory. Feliz also teamed up with Lisa Jones (Sr., Visalia, College of the Sequoias) to win at No. 1 doubles, 8-4. Singles wins were also posted by Michelle Hammond (Jr., Tulare, College of the Sequoias), Priscilla De Vera (So., Walnut, St. Lucy's HS), Jennie Burggraf (So., Chino Hills, Ayala HS) and Julie Manning (Sr., Capistrano Beach, San Clemente HS). The Broncos then rolled past Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday to improve to 5-1 overall and 2-1 in the CCAA. Ortiz-Luis was back in the lineup and she won at No. 1 singles, 6-0, 6-1, and teamed with Hammond for a victory at No. 1 doubles, 8-3. Feliz, Hammond, De Vera, Jones and Burggraf all won their singles matches in straight sets, while Jones/Feliz and Manning/De Vera posted wins in doubles by scores of 8-1 and 8-2 respectfully.

BUSY WEEK COMING UP FOR BRONCOS: Cal Poly Pomona's men's and women's tennis teams will both be in action this week. The Bronco women will be at Cal State Bakersfield on Tuesday in a CCAA match and then host Cal State L.A. in a nonconference contest on Friday (the two teams have already competed in their conference match against each other and the Broncos won, 8-1). The Bronco men will also be in action against Cal State L.A. on Friday.

M/W TRACK & FIELD: BRONCOS SHINE AT CAL STATE L.A.

BRONCO MEN BEAT CONFERENCE RIVALS: Cal Poly Pomona's men's and women's track and field teams were at Cal State L.A. on Saturday and the Bronco men posted an impressive victory over UC San Diego and Cal State L.A. Cal Poly Pomona finished the competition with 170 points, while UC San Diego had 149 and Cal State L.A. had 38. The Bronco women were third, behind UC San Diego and Cal State L.A., but ahead of Cal State Dominguez Hills and Sonoma State. Sam Boswell (Jr., Covina, Covina HS) cleared 16-0 ½" in the pole vault to set a new Cal Poly Pomona record in that event. Vincent Nguyen (Fr., Santa Ana, Fountain Valley HS) won a pair of sprints, winning the 100 in 10.4 (hand-timed) and the 200 in 21.5. Geoff Smith (Fr. Fullerton, Troy HS) was second in both races. Lutz Braun (Sr., El Cajon, Grossmont HS) had a personal best of 3:58.4 while finishing second in the 1,500 meters, Sean Zeitler (Fr., Rancho Santa Margarita, Santa Margarita HS) won the 400 intermediate hurdles in 55.1 and Sebastien Bidault (Sr., Evian France, INSA Lyon France) won the discus with a throw of 165-2. Rajan Monteiro (Sr., Long Beach, Long Beach CC) won the long jump (22-1) and the triple jump (47-7). James Chambless (Fr., Covina, South Hills HS) won the high hurdles and Timm Shingler (So., Lake Arrowhead, Rim of the World HS) won the high jump. For the women, Terri Amborn (Sr., Hacienda Heights, W. State College) set a new personal best in the pole vault with a mark of 10-6. Deidre Echevarria (So., West Covina, Webb Schools) was third in the 100 in 12.1 and Katie Price (So., Grover Beach, Arroyo Grande HS) was a close second in the 800 in 2:20.7.

BRONCOS TO COMPETE AT USC ON SATURDAY: Cal Poly Pomona's men's and women's track and field teams will compete in the Trojan Invitational this Saturday at USC.