CALIFORNIA STATE POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY, POMONA

Bronco Sports News

For Immediate Release

Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2003

Contact: Paul Helms

(909) 869-2812

 

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

MEDIA NOTES

 

2003-04 CPP Record: 5-0. 2003-04 CCAA Record: 2-0

 

Broncos Set To Face Two Regional Powerhouses: Cal Poly Pomona’s women’s basketball program, which has won two NCAA Division II championships in the past three years, will face two of the traditional powers in the West Region in the third annual California Collegiate Athletic Association-Great Northwest Athletic Conference Classic, which will be held at Cal State L.A. The Broncos will face Western Washington on Friday at 3 p.m. and then meet No. 9 Seattle Pacific on Saturday at 3 p.m. The Broncos will then be off until resuming CCAA play on Jan. 2 with a home game against Chico State. Cal Poly Pomona is off to a 5-0 start for the first time since the 1998-99 season when the Broncos opened the season with 10 straight victories. Cal Poly Pomona is tied with North Dakota State for most national championships won in Division II (5) and for most postseason wins (46) in Division II. The Broncos have three starters returning from last year’s team, including second-team All-CCAA forward Brandi Fletcher (So., Pomona, Diamond Ranch HS), four-year standout Marisa Lattin (Sr., Oceanside, El Camino HS) and second-year guard Tami Swanson-Cades (Sr., Nevada City, Sierra College). Seven players in all return from last year’s squad.

 

About Last Week: Cal Poly Pomona had to rally from an 18-point deficit before subduing Cal State San Bernardino, 75-66, Saturday night in Kellogg Gym. The Broncos completed a two-game sweep of the Coyotes and have now won 11 of the past 13 contests played between the two programs. Cal State San Bernardino swept the Broncos last season. Candice Allen (Sr., Ontario, University of Arizona) scored 22 of her game-high 24 points in the second half to spark the comeback. Shanika Perkins (So., Oakland, Oakland HS) continued her sensational play, scoring a career-high 17 points and setting a new scoring record for the second straight game. Marisa Lattin (Sr., Oceanside, El Camino HS) added 11 points, including a key 3-pointer that gave the Broncos the lead for good in the second half. Keila Beachem (Sr., Chicago, Ill., University of Kansas) had seven points and five rebounds, while Jaida Williams (Sr., Opalocka, Fla., Barry University) had seven points. The Broncos trailed at halftime, 36-20, and were on the short end of a whopping 28-9 disadvantage on the boards. The Coyotes then scored the opening basket of the second half to make it 38-20 before the Broncos took over. Cal Poly Pomona outscored the Coyotes, 55-30, in the second half. Cal Poly Pomona forced 34 turnovers, making it 60 in the two games against the Coyotes. The Broncos, on the other hand, committed 36 turnovers.

 

Head To Head: Cal Poly Pomona is 7-3 all-time against Western Washington, but lost to the Vikings, 78-69, in overtime in Bellingham, WA, last year in the California Collegiate Athletic Association-Great Northwest Athletic Conference Classic. The Broncos held a 63-57 lead with 1:51 left, but a buzzer-beater by the Vikings sent the game into overtime. The teams have had some recent history in the playoffs, facing each other three straight times in NCAA Division II playoff games in Kellogg Gym. The Vikings won in the regional final in 2000, 84-66, but the Broncos won in a regional semifinal, 91-85, in 2001. Then, the Broncos beat the Vikings on a pair of last-second Leah Whatley free throws, 71-70, in 2002 in the regional final. The Broncos won national titles in 2001 and 2002. Cal Poly Pomona is 2-3 all-time against Seattle Pacific and lost last year in Bellingham, WA, 87-73, in the CCAA-GNAC Classic. The Broncos edged Seattle Pacific, 63-62, on a last-second shot by Burgundie Porter in the 2001 West Regional championship game.

 

Let Us Introduce Ourselves: Cal Poly Pomona has several new players on its roster, including a pair of student-athletes from Division I programs. The Broncos welcome local high-school star Candice Allen (G, Sr., Ontario, University of Arizona), who played at Ayala High School and Keila Beachem (F, Sr., Chicago, Ill., University of Kansas), who started nine games for the Jayhawks last season. Khiara Ferguson (Fr., Gardena, Bishop Montgomery HS) is a top freshman newcomer.

 

Broncos Picked To Finish Second In CCAA: Cal Poly Pomona’s women’s basketball program, which has won a record 18 California Collegiate Athletic Association championships, has been picked to finish second in the conference this season in voting by the conference coaches. Chico State, which finished second last season and has three starters returning, has been tabbed as the conference favorite. Defending conference champion Cal State Bakersfield was picked third and Cal State Stanislaus is fourth.

 

Where We Left Off: The Broncos lost its final two road games at Cal State Stanislaus and Cal State Bakersfield and finished the 2002-03 season with a 13-14 overall record. It was only the second time in the program’s history that Cal Poly Pomona had a non-winning record. The Broncos were unsuccessful in their bid for a first-ever third consecutive NCAA Division II championship. When Cal Poly Pomona won national titles in 2000-01 and 2001-02, it marked the second time in the program’s history that the Broncos had won back-to-back championships. Previously, Cal Poly Pomona had won consecutive titles in 1985 and 1986. The Broncos also saw their three-year reign atop the California Collegiate Athletic Association come to an end with a sixth-place finish. The Broncos, who have won 18 CCAA titles, had won five titles in the previous six years.

 

The Thomas Guide: Paul Thomas is in his 10th season as Cal Poly Pomona’s head coach. Thomas was named the 2001-02 NCAA Division II Coach of the Year by the WBCA and by the Division II Bulletin. He was also the WBCA District 8 Coach of the Year and the CCAA Co-Coach of the Year. He has won four conference Coach of the Year awards. Thomas has a record of 186-77 at Cal Poly Pomona and has guided the Broncos into the postseason in six out of the past seven seasons. The Broncos have also won five CCAA titles during the Thomas years, including three in the past four seasons.

 

How About Those Rings: You’d be hard-pressed to find a more star-studded coaching staff in the NCAA Division II than the one at Cal Poly Pomona. Head Coach Paul Thomas has a pair of championship rings he earned while guiding the Broncos to back-to-back national titles in 2001 and 2002. He was named the 2001-02 NCAA Division II Coach of the Year by the Women’s Basketball Coaches’ Association and the Division II Bulletin. Assistant coach Heather Jacobsen has a pair of national championship rings she earned while part of the coaching staff in 2001 and 2002. Jacobsen also played for the Broncos and was a three-sport standout in high school, competing in basketball, volleyball and track and field. Assistant coach Tasha Burnett has a championship ring she earned as a Bronco player in 2001. She tied an NCAA record by hitting all 11 of her field-goal attempts in a national quarterfinal victory over Pace University. She made the All-Elite Eight Tournament team. And the newest assistant coach, Lauri McIntosh, has a pair of championship rings she won while playing for the Broncos. McIntosh finished her career after the 2002 title run and is completing her degree at Cal Poly Pomona. She was the NCAA Division II Player of the Year in 2002 and finished her career as the No. 2 scorer in Cal Poly Pomona history with 2,176 points.

 

Program History: The Broncos’ back-to-back national championships in 2001 and 2002 have just added to the program’s rich women’s basketball history. The Broncos are tied with North Dakota State for the most postseason victories (46) in NCAA Division II and most national championships (5).  Their 18 NCAA postseason appearances are second overall to Bentley and the .780 postseason winning percentage is second to North Dakota State’s .804. Cal Poly Pomona has also reached the national title game eight times, has five national Player of the Year winners (Jackie White, 1983; Vickie Mitchell, 1986; Debra Larsen, 1987; Cathy Gooden, 1989 and Lauri McIntosh, 2002), five Most Outstanding Players in the NCAA Tournament (Jackie White, 1982; Vickie Mitchell, 1985; Debra Larsen, 1986; Aprile Powell, 2001; Lauri McIntosh, 2002), 30 All-America awards earned by 19 different players, 18 CCAA titles and 9 CCAA Player of the Year awards. Counting the five SCCA titles the Broncos won before joining the CCAA, Cal Poly Pomona has captured 23 conference titles.

 

PLAYER NOTES

 

4          CANDICE ALLEN (G, Sr., Ontario, University of Arizona)

Last Week: Had 24 points, five rebounds and one assist against Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday.

2003-04: Averaging 25.2 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game. Leads the team in scoring, rebounding and steals and is second in assists.

Season Highs: Points – 35 vs. Abilene Christian (11-21-03); Rebounds – 11 vs. Azusa Pacific (11-22-03); Assists – 5 vs. Abilene Christian (11-21-03).

Career Highs: First year with Broncos.

 

5          BRITT SUMIDA (G, Jr., Chino Hills, Ayala HS)

Last Week: Went scoreless with one assist against Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday.

2003-04: Averaging 3.6 points, 0.8 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. Hit go-ahead 3-pointer in second half in win over Azusa Pacific and hit a career-high three 3-pointers in win over Pt. Loma Nazarene.

Season Highs: Points – 11 vs. Pt. Loma Nazarene (11-29-03); Rebounds – 2 vs. Pt. Loma Nazarene (11-29-03); Assists – 2 vs. Pt. Loma Nazarene (11-29-03).

Career Highs: Points – 11 vs. Pt. Loma Nazarene (11-29-03); Rebounds – 3 vs. UC San Diego (2-21-03), Assists – 3 vs. UC San Diego (2-21-03), at UC San Diego (1-18-03).

 

14        LEANNE JENKINS (G, Fr., Selma, Selma HS)

Last Week: DNP-CD. Is expected to miss the remainder of the season with a knee injury.

2003-04: Averaging 5.5 points, 1.0 rebound and 1.0 assist per game. Is fifth on the team in scoring.

Season Highs: Points – 6 vs. Abilene Christian (11-21-03); Rebounds – 2 vs. Abilene Christian (11-21-03); Assists – 1 vs. Azusa Pacific (11-22-03), vs. Abilene Christian (11-21-03).

Career Highs: First year with Broncos.

 

21        JAIDA WILLIAMS (F, Sr. Opalocka, Fla., Barry University)

Last Week: Had seven points and one steal against Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday.

2003-04: Averaging 5.2 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.0 assist per game.

Season Highs: Points – 7 vs. Cal State San Bernardino (12-13-03); Rebounds – 6 vs. Pt. Loma Nazarene (11-29-03); Assists – 3 vs. Abilene Christian (11-21-03).

Career Highs: Points – 10 vs. Cal State San Bernardino (12-7-02); Rebounds – 9 at Azusa Pacific (11-23-02); Assists – 3 vs. Abilene Christian (11-21-03).

 

22        KHIARA FERGUSON (C, Fr., Gardena, Bishop Montgomery HS)

Last Week: DNP-CD against Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday.

2003-04: Averaging 2.2 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.0 assists per game. Made her Cal Poly Pomona debut against Abilene Christian on Nov. 22.

Season Highs: Points – 5 vs. Pt. Loma Nazarene (11-29-03); Rebounds – 4 vs. Pt. Loma Nazarene (11-29-03); Assists – 0.

Career Highs: First year with Broncos.

 

23        KEILA BEACHEM (F, Sr., Chicago, Ill., University of Kansas)

Last Week: Had seven points, five rebounds and two assists against Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday.

2003-04: Averaging 11.8 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game. Is second on the team in scoring and second in rebounding.

Season Highs: Points – 21 vs. Abilene Christian (11-21-03); Rebounds – 11 vs. Azusa Pacific (11-22-03); Assists – 2 vs. Cal State San Bernardino (12-13-03), at Cal State San Bernardino (12-2-03), vs. Pt. Loma Nazarene (11-29-03), vs. Abilene Christian (11-21-03)

Career Highs: First year with Broncos.

           

24        BRANDI FLETCHER (F, So., Pomona, Diamond Ranch HS)

Last Week: Had four points, one rebound and three assists against Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday

2003-04: Averaging 5.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.2 assists per game.

Season Highs: Points – 9 vs. Azusa Pacific (11-22-03); Rebounds – 7 vs. Pt. Loma Nazarene (11-29-03); Assists – 3 vs. Cal State San Bernardino (12-13-03), vs. Azusa Pacific (11-22-03).

Career Highs: Points – 25 at Sonoma State (3-1-03); Rebounds – 10 at Cal State L.A. (2-7-03); Assists – 3 vs. Cal State San Bernardino (12-13-03), vs. Azusa Pacific (11-22-03), vs. Cal State San Bernardino (12-7-02).

 

25        RACHEL GATDULA (G, Fr., Covina, St. Lucy’s Priory HS)

Last Week: Went scoreless in two minutes against Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday.

2003-04: Averaging 2.0 points and 0.8 rebounds per game. Made her Cal Poly Pomona debut against Pt. Loma Nazarene (11-29-03).

Season Highs: Points – 5 vs. Pt. Loma Nazarene (11-29-03); Rebounds – 2 vs. Pt. Loma Nazarene (11-29-03).

Career Highs: First year with Broncos

 

32        TAMI SWANSON-CADES (G, Sr., Nevada City, Sierra College)

Last Week: Had three points, one rebound and two assists against Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday.

2003-04: Averaging 7.0 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. Is fourth on the team in scoring.

Season Highs: Points – 10 at Cal State San Bernardino (12-2-03); Rebounds – 6 at Cal State San Bernardino (12-2-03); Assists – 2 vs. Cal State San Bernardino (12-13-03), vs. Azusa Pacific (11-22-03).

Career Highs: Points – 18 vs. Westminster College (12-21-02); Rebounds – 10 vs. Cal State Bakersfield (1-31-03); Assists – 8 vs. Chico State (2-15-03).

 

34        MARISA LATTIN (F, Sr., Oceanside, El Camino HS)

Last Week: Had a season-high 11 points and four rebounds against Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday.

2003-04: Averaging 4.2 points, 4.0 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game. Is third on the team in rebounding.

Season Highs: Points – 11 vs. Cal State San Bernardino (12-13-03); Rebounds – 8 vs. Azusa Pacific (11-22-03); Assists – 2 vs. Abilene Christian (11-21-03) .

Career Highs: Points – 38 vs. UC Davis (2-14-03);  Rebounds – 13 vs. UC Davis (2-14-03); Assists – 3 vs. UC San Diego (2-21-03), at Cal State San Bernardino (2-14-02), at San Francisco State (3-02-02) vs. Cal State L.A. (1-28-00).

 

40        SHANIKA PERKINS (G, So., Oakland, Oakland HS)

Last Week: Had career-high 17 points, four rebounds and one assist against Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday.

2003-04: Averaging 8.4 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game. Is third on the team in scoring and leads the team in assists.

Season Highs: Points – 17 vs. Cal State San Bernardino (12-13-03); Rebounds – 6 vs. Azusa Pacific (11-22-03); Assists – 4 at Cal State San Bernardino (12-2-03).

Career Highs: Points – 17 vs. Cal State San Bernardino (12-13-03); Rebounds – 7 vs. Westminster College (12-21-02); Assists – 4 at Cal State San Bernardino (12-2-03).

 

42        GE’YANNI POLK (G, Fr., San Leandro, San Lorenzo HS)

Last Week: Went scoreless in two minutes against Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday.

2003-04: Averaging 0.7 points, 0.0 rebounds, 0.0 assists per game. Made her Cal Poly Pomona debut against Azusa Pacific on Nov. 22.

Season Highs: Points – 2 vs. Pt. Loma Nazarene (11-29-03)

Career Highs: First year with Bronco.

 

54        ALEXIS WILSON (F, So., Wayzata, MN, Wayzata HS)

Last Week: Had two points and two rebounds against Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday.

2003-04: Averaging 2.2 points, 1.6 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game.

Season Highs: Points – 6 vs. Pt. Loma Nazarene (11-29-03); Rebounds – 3 vs. Abilene Christian (11-21-03); Assists – 1 vs. Pt. Loma Nazarene (11-29-03).

Career Highs: Points – 6 vs. Pt. Loma Nazarene (11-29-03); Rebounds – 4 at Western Washington (12-28-02); Assists – 1 vs. Pt. Loma Nazarene (11-29-03), vs. Cal State L.A. (2-7-03).