CALIFORNIA STATE POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY, POMONA
Bronco Sports News
For Immediate Release
Tuesday, Jan. 11, 2005
Contact: Paul Helms
(909) 869-2812
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
MEDIA NOTES
2004-05 CPP Record: 8-3. CCAA Record: 3-1
2004-05 National
Ranking: 15
Broncos Look To Rebound From First Conference Defeat: After losing its first California Collegiate
Athletic Association game of the season, Cal Poly Pomona’s women’s basketball
team will try to bounce back in a pair of road games this weekend. The Broncos
don’t have an easy task. Cal Poly Pomona will face conference leader Chico State on Friday in Chico and then meet Cal State Stanislaus on
Saturday in Turlock. Chico State’s women’s team is the only team still
undefeated in conference play in either the men’s and women’s divisions. The
Wildcats are off to a best-ever 10-1 start and appear in the USA
Today/ESPN/WBCA Top 25 for the first time this season. Cal Poly Pomona
inexplicably jumped from 18 to 15 after its two games last week. After this
weekend’s games, the Broncos will finally return to Kellogg Gym for a pair of
contests, beginning with Pack the Gym Night on Friday, Jan. 21 against Cal
State San Bernardino. The Broncos will also face UC San Diego on Saturday, Jan.
22 before facing four more road games. Cal Poly Pomona is coming off another
outstanding season. The Broncos reached the NCAA Division II West Region
championship game at Seattle Pacific and became the only Division II program to
reach the Sweet Sixteen for the fourth time in the past five years. Cal Poly
Pomona also posted playoff wins over Chico State and Cal State Bakersfield,
giving the Broncos 48 postseason wins, which is the most among all Division II
programs. Cal Poly Pomona remains tied with North Dakota State for most
national championships won (5). The Broncos won back-to-back titles in 2001 and
2002. The Broncos have three starters returning, including Candice Allen (Sr.,
Ontario, University of Arizona), the 2004 CCAA Player of the Year and the
leading scorer in the NCAA Division II. Other starters back are Brandi Fletcher
(Jr., Pomona, Diamond Ranch HS),
a second-team All-CCAA forward in 2003, and Shanika
Perkins (Jr., Oakland, Oakland HS).
About Last Week: The Broncos recorded a split in California Collegiate Athletic
Association road games. Cal Poly Pomona opened the week with an 86-61 victory
over Cal State L.A. Friday night in Los Angeles. The Broncos broke open a close game at
halftime by outscoring the Golden Eagles, 47-28, in the second half. Candice
Allen (Sr., Ontario, University of Arizona) recorded her first double-double of the
season with 38 points and 10 rebounds. She also had five assists and six
steals. Shanika Perkins (Jr., Oakland, Oakland HS) had 14
points and four rebounds, while Shyrah Thomas (Sr., Inglewood, San Francisco State) had a season-high eight points, four
rebounds and two assists. The Broncos connected on 12 of 23 attempts from
behind the 3-point arc and owned a 40-36 rebounding advantage. Cal Poly Pomona
then lost to Cal State Bakersfield, 86-74, Saturday night in Centennial Garden. The Broncos shot 39.7 percent from the
floor and had a 45-39 rebounding edge. Cal Poly Pomona, though, committed 24
turnovers to only 14 for the Roadrunners. Brandi Fletcher (Jr., Pomona, Diamond Ranch HS)
had a season-high 17 points and seven rebounds to lead the Broncos, while
Perkins had a season-high 15 points and seven rebounds. Natasha Reed (Fr., San
Francisco, Deer Valley HS) had her first double-double of the season,
contributing 11 points and 11 rebounds, while Allen had a season-low 11 points,
three rebounds and three assists.
Allen Leading NCAA In Scoring Once Again: Kodak All-American Candice Allen (Sr., Ontario, University of Arizona), the reigning California Collegiate
Athletic Association Player of the Year, is off to a sensational start in the
2004-05 season. After leading the nation in scoring last season by averaging
24.5 points per game, Allen is leading the NCAA Division II in scoring this
year at 29.3 points per game. Allen is shooting 50.2 percent from the field
(111-221) and has knocked down 60 percent of her 3-point attempts (21-35). She
has also made 79 of 95 free-throw tries. Allen has already been named the
Wilson CCAA Women’s Basketball Player of the Week twice this season. She was
the Co-Player of the Week for the week of Dec. 6-12. Allen set a new Cal Poly
Pomona and California Collegiate Athletic Association record by scoring 50
points to lead the Broncos past No. 9 Glenville State and also had 32 points to
lead the Broncos past Northwest Nazarene. For the week, Allen averaged 41.0
points per game on 54.7 percent shooting. She also averaged 6.0 rebounds, 2.5
steals and 2.0 steals. She shared the honor with Chico State guard Kim Abts,
who tied a conference record with 16 assists. Allen was also honored for the
week of Nov. 29 – Dec. 5. Allen scored 30 points in a 104-85 win over Sonoma State and then added 31 points and grabbed six
rebounds in a 93-61 victory over San Francisco State. For the week, Allen averaged 30.5 points
per game on 57.5 percent shooting (23-40). She also averaged 4.5 points, 4.0
steals and 2.5 assists for the week.
Head To Head: Cal Poly Pomona
is 13-6 all-time against Chico State
and won two of three meetings against the Wildcats last season. The Broncos
lost to Chico State
in Kellogg Gym, 107-98, despite 36 points from Marisa Lattin
on Jan. 2. Cal Poly Pomona then beat the Wildcats in Chico,
85-65, behind 30 points from Candice Allen (Sr., Ontario,
University of Arizona)
on Feb. 28. In the final meeting, in the NCAA Division II West Region playoffs
in Seattle, the Broncos prevailed,
74-70. Allen had 30 points in that one, while Keila Beachem had 17 rebounds. Cal Poly Pomona is 15-6 all-time
against Cal State Stanislaus and beat the Warriors twice last season. Cal Poly
Pomona won, 90-73, in Turlock on
Jan. 31 behind 31 points from Allen. Cal Poly Pomona also won the rematch in
Kellogg Gym, 85-43, on Feb. 6 behind 22 points and eight rebounds by Beachem.
Let Us Introduce Ourselves: Cal Poly Pomona has several
new players on its roster, including six freshmen. Sahfiya
Brown (Fr., Fontana, Etiwanda HS), Ashley Moody (Fr., Carson, King Drew HS),
Unique Anderson (Fr., Lake Elsinore, Temescal Canyon HS), Sasha Goldkorn (Fr., Moreno Valley, Canyon Springs HS), Porsche’ Kirksey (Fr., Gardena, Junipero Serra HS) and Natasha Reed (Fr., San Francisco, Deer Valley
HS) give the Broncos one of their best and deepest freshman classes in several
years. Shyrah Thomas (Sr., Inglewood,
San Francisco
State) joins the active roster
after being a redshirt last season and Lauren Stayton
(Jr., Inglewood, Fresno
State) returns after one year away
from competition.
Look Who’s Back: Leading the list of talented players
returning for the Broncos is the California Collegiate Athletic Association
Player of the Year, Candice Allen (Sr., Ontario,
University of Arizona).
Allen led the NCAA Division II in scoring with a 24.5
points per game average. She was also second on the team in rebounding with 6.1
per game and second in assists with 2.9 per game. Allen also led the team in
steals with 77 or 2.6 per game. Brandi Fletcher (Jr., Pomona, Diamond Ranch
HS), who was third on the team in scoring last year with 10.2 points per game,
is back and so is starting guard Shanika Perkins
(Jr., Oakland, Oakland HS), who averaged 6.7 points per game. Britt Sumida
(Sr., Chino Hills, Ayala HS), one of the leaders of the team, is another key returner, Alexis Wilson (Jr., Wayzata, MN, Wayzata HS) is
back for her third year and Khiara Ferguson (So., Gardena,
Bishop Montgomery HS) and Ge’Yanni Polk (So., San Leandro, San Lorenzo HS) return for their second seasons
with the Broncos.
Where We Left Off: The Broncos completed another
successful season in 2003-04 with a 23-7 overall record and a spot in the NCAA
Division II West Region championship game. Cal Poly Pomona reached the Sweet
Sixteen for the fourth time in the past five seasons, a total unmatched by any
other Division II program. Included in that run, of course, are national
championships in 2001 and 2002. Cal Poly Pomona was 17-5 in the California
Collegiate Athletic Association and finished second. The Broncos, the No. 3
seed in the West Region, won its first-round game against No. 6 Chico State,
74-70. Cal Poly Pomona got 30 points and six assists from Candice Allen (Sr., Ontario,
University
of Arizona) and 10 points and 17
rebounds from Keila Beachem
(Sr., Chicago, Ill.,
University of Kansas).
The Broncos then rallied from a 13-point second-half deficit to beat Cal State
Bakersfield, 87-84, in the second round. Beachem had
a huge game with 28 points and 20 rebounds, while Allen contributed 26 points.
After the Roadrunners took an 84-83 lead on a pair of free throws with five
seconds left, Allen was inexplicably fouled while trying to catch an inbounds
pass. She hit both free throws to give the Broncos an 85-84 lead and then,
after a Cal State Bakersfield turnover, was fouled hard from behind, but picked
herself up to hit two more free throws with one second left to account for the
final margin. Cal Poly Pomona then fell to undefeated tourney host Seattle
Pacific, 80-63, in the championship game. The Broncos shot just 33 percent.
Marisa Lattin capped her Cal Poly Pomona career with
a team-high 20 points, while Allen had 16.
The Thomas Guide: Paul Thomas is in his 11th 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 212-87 at Cal Poly Pomona and has guided the Broncos into the postseason
in seven out of the past eight seasons. Cal Poly Pomona has a 14-5 record in
the NCAA Division II playoffs under Thomas and has won 12 of its last 13
postseason games. The Broncos have also won five CCAA titles during the Thomas
years, including three in the past five seasons.
How About Those Rings:
You’d be hard-pressed to find a more star-studded coaching staff in the NCAA
Division II. 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 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.
Program History: The Broncos’ two postseason wins in
2004 and the back-to-back national championships in 2001 and 2002 have just
added to the program’s rich history. The Broncos have the most postseason
victories (48) in NCAA Division II and are tied with North
Dakota State for
the most national championships (5). The
Broncos have also reached the regional championship game in four of the past
five years, which is more than any other Division II team. Their 19 NCAA
postseason appearances are second overall to Bentley and the .774 postseason
winning percentage leads all Division II programs. 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), 36 All-American
awards earned by 20 different players, 18 CCAA titles and 10 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
2 SAHFIYA
BROWN (F, Fr., Fontana, Etiwanda HS)
Last Week: DNP-CD. Is sidelined for
the year with a knee injury.
2004-05: Averaging 3.8 points, 2.0 rebounds and 0.0
assists per game.
Season Highs: Points – 7 vs. St. Thomas (11-20-04); Rebounds – 4 vs. Sonoma State (12-3-04). Assists – None.
Career Highs: First year with Broncos.
4 CANDICE ALLEN (G, Sr., Ontario,
University of Arizona)
Last Week: Had 38 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, and six steals
against Cal State L.A. on Friday; had 11 points, three rebounds and three
assists against Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday.
2004-05: Averaging 29.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists per
game. Leads the NCAA Division II in scoring. Shooting 50.2 percent from the floor. Set new Cal Poly
Pomona and CCAA single-game record with 50 points against Glenville
State on Dec. 11. Also leads the
team in assists and steals and is second in rebounding.
Season Highs: Points –
50 vs. Glenville State
(12-11-04); Rebounds – 10 at Cal
State L.A. (1-7-05); Assists
– 5 at Cal State L.A.
(1-07-05), at Azusa
Pacific (11-19-04).
Career Highs: Points –
50 vs. Glenville State
(12-11-04); Rebounds – 11 vs. Azusa
Pacific (11-22-03); Assists – 7 at Cal
State Bakersfield
(1-30-04), vs. Cal
State Stanislaus (2-6-04).
5 BRITT SUMIDA (G, Sr., Chino Hills, Ayala HS)
Last Week: Had six points, two rebounds and four
assists against Cal State L.A. on Friday; went scoreless with two rebounds and one
assist against Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday.
2004-05: Averaging 2.7
points, 1.4 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game. Is second on
the team in assists and third on the team in three point field goals made.
Season Highs: Points
– 8 at Azusa Pacific (11-19-04); Rebounds – 3 vs. Glenville
State (12-11-04); Assists – 5 at Azusa
Pacific (11-19-04).
Career Highs: Points
– 11 vs. Pt. Loma Nazarene (11-29-03);
Rebounds – 3 vs. Glenville State (12-11-04), vs. UC San Diego (2-21-03); Assists – 5 at Azusa
Pacific (11-19-04).
10 ASHLEY
MOODY (G, Fr., Carson, King Drew HS)
Last Week: Had one point and two steals against Cal State L.A. on Friday;
went scoreless against Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday.
2004-05: Averaging 2.5 points, 0.7 rebounds and 0.3 assists per
game.
Season Highs: Points – 7
vs. San Francisco State
(12-3-04); Rebounds – 3 vs. San
Francisco State (12-3-04); Assists – 1 at Seattle
Pacific (12-30-04).
Career Highs: First year with Broncos.
14 NATASHA REED (F, Fr., San
Francisco, Deer
Valley HS)
Last Week: Had a season-high 11 points and 11 rebounds against Cal
State Bakersfield on Saturday; had seven points and five rebounds against Cal
State L.A. on Friday.
2004-05: Averaging 6.8 points, 5.6 rebounds and 0.9 assists per
game. Leads the team in rebounding and is fifth in scoring.
Season Highs: Points –
11 at Cal State
Bakersfield (1-08-05); Rebounds
– 11 at Cal State
Bakersfield (1-08-05); Assists
– 3 vs. Sonoma State
(12-3-04).
Career Highs: First year with Broncos.
20 SHANIKA
PERKINS (G, Jr., Oakland, Oakland
HS)
Last Week: Had 15 points and a season-high seven rebounds against Cal
State Bakersfield on Saturday; had 14 points with four rebounds against Cal
State L.A. on Friday.
2004-05: Averaging 7.3 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.7 assists per
game. Is third on the team in assists and is fourth in scoring.
Season Highs: Points –
15 at Cal State
Bakersfield (1-8-05); Rebounds
– 7 Cal State
Bakersfield (1-08-05); Assists
– 5 vs. Grand Canyon (12-14-04).
Career Highs: Points –
17 vs. Cal State
San Bernardino (12-13-03); Rebounds
– 10 at Cal State Dominguez Hills (2-13-04);
Assists – 5 vs. Grand
Canyon (12-14-04),
vs. Chico State
(1-2-04).
21 SASHA GOLDKORN (G, Fr., Moreno Valley, Canyon Springs HS)
Last Week: DNP-CD.
2004-05: Averaging 1.3 points, 0.7 rebounds and 0.0 assists per
game.
Season Highs: Points – 3
vs. Grand Canyon (12-14-04); Rebounds
– 1 vs. Grand Canyon (12-14-04), vs. San Francisco
State (12-4-04); Assists
– None.
Career Highs: First year with Broncos.
22 KHIARA FERGUSON (C, So., Gardena,
Bishop Montgomery HS)
Last Week: Had two points with one rebound against Cal State L.A. on
Friday; went scoreless with one rebound against Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday.
2004-05: Averaging 2.4 points, 2.1 rebounds and 0.1 assists per
game.
Season Highs: Points – 8
vs. Sonoma State
(12-3-04); Rebounds – 7 vs. Glenville
State (12-11-04); Assists
– 1 vs. San Francisco State
(12-4-04).
Career Highs: Points – 8
vs. Sonoma State
(12-3-04); Rebounds – 7 vs. Glenville
State (12-11-04); Assists
– 1 vs. San Francisco State
(12-4-04), at UC San
Diego (1-9-04).
23 SHYRAH THOMAS (F, Sr., Inglewood,
San Francisco State)
Last Week: Had a season-high eight points and four rebounds against
Cal State L.A. on Friday; had two points and a season-high five rebounds against
Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday.
2004-05: Averaging 2.1 points, 2.0
rebounds and 0.6 assists per game.
Season Highs: Points – 8
at Cal State L.A.
(1-07-05); Rebounds – 5 at Cal
State Bakersfield
(1-08-05); Assists – 2 at Cal
State Bakersfield
(1-08-05).
Career Highs: First year with Broncos
24 BRANDI FLETCHER (F, Jr., Pomona,
Diamond Ranch HS)
Last Week: Had a season-high 17 points and seven rebounds against Cal
State Bakersfield on Saturday; had six points and two rebounds against Cal
State L.A. on Friday.
2004-05: Averaging 9.4 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.0 assist per game.
Is third on the team in scoring and fourth in rebounding.
Season Highs: Points – 17
at Cal State Bakersfield (1-08-05); Rebounds
– 9 at Seattle Pacific (12-30-04); Assists
– 2 at Cal State L.A. (1-07-05), vs. Grand Canyon (12-14-04), Northwest Nazarene (12-10-04), vs. Sonoma
State (12-3-04).
Career Highs: Points –
25 at Sonoma State (3-1-03); Rebounds
– 10 at Chico State (2-28-04), vs. Cal State Dominguez Hills (1-24-04), vs. UC
Davis (1-3-04), at Cal State L.A. (2-7-03); Assists – 4 vs. Cal State Stanislaus (2-6-04).
25 RACHEL
GATDULA (G, So., Covina, St. Lucy’s Priory)
Last Week: In her first week of action with the Broncos this
season, had two points and one assist against Cal State Bakersfield on
Saturday; went scoreless against Cal State L.A. on Friday.
2004-05: Averaging 1.0 point and 0.5
assists per game.
Season Highs: Points – 2
at Cal State
Bakersfield (1-08-05); Rebounds
– 0; Assists – 1 at Cal
State Bakersfield
(1-08-05).
Career Highs: Points – 5 vs. Point Loma
Nazarene (11-29-03); Rebounds – 2 at
Cal
State Stanislaus (1-31-04), at San
Francisco State (1-17-04), at Sonoma
State (1-16-04), at Grand Canyon (1-10-04), vs. Point Loma Nazarene
(11-29-03); Assists – 2 vs. Grand
Canyon (3-5-04), at Grand Canyon (1-10-04).
32 LAUREN STAYTON (G, Jr., Inglewood, Fresno State)
Last Week: Had four points, three rebounds, one assist, and two
steals against Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday; DNP-CD against Cal State L.A.
on Friday.
2004-05: Averaging 12.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.6 assists per
game. Is second on the team in scoring, third in rebounding,
and fourth in assists.
Season Highs: Points –
21 at Azusa Pacific (11-19-04); Rebounds – 7 at Azusa
Pacific (11-19-04); Assists – 5 vs. Sonoma
State (12-3-04).
Career Highs: Points –
21 at Azusa Pacific (11-19-04); Rebounds – 7 at Azusa
Pacific (11-19-04); Assists – 5 vs. Sonoma
State (12-3-04).
34 PORSCHE’ KIRKSEY (F, Fr., Gardena, Junipero Serra HS)
Last Week: DNP-CD.
2004-05: Averaging 2.4 points, 3.3 rebounds and 0.0 assists per
game.
Season Highs: Points – 5
vs. Western Washington (12-29-04), vs. Sonoma
State (12-4-04); Rebounds
– 7 vs. Sonoma State
(12-3-04); Assists – None.
Career Highs: First year with Broncos.
40 UNIQUE ANDERSON (G, Fr., Lake Elsinore, Temescal Canyon HS)
Last Week: Had a season high eight points, two steals, and one
assist against Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday; had two points, four rebounds,
two steals, and one assist against Cal State L.A. on Friday.
2004-05: Averaging 2.7 points, 2.5 rebounds and 0.7 assists per
game.
Season Highs: Points – 8
at Cal State L.A.
(1-07-05); Rebounds – 6 at Azusa
Pacific (11-19-04); Assists – 2 vs. Western
Washington (12-29-04),
vs. San Francisco State
(12-4-04), at Azusa
Pacific (11-19-04).
Career Highs: First year with Broncos.
42 GE’YANNI POLK (G, So., San
Leandro, San
Leandro HS)
Last Week: Had two points against Cal State L.A. on Friday; went
scoreless with one steal against Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday.
2004-05: Averaging 1.1 points, 0.6 rebounds and 0.1 assists per
game.
Season Highs: Points – 4
vs. St. Thomas (11-20-04); Rebounds
– 2 vs. St. Thomas (11-20-04); Assists – 1 vs. St. Thomas
(11-20-04).
Career Highs: Points – 4
vs. St. Thomas (11-20-04); Rebounds
– 2 vs. St. Thomas (11-20-04), at Cal State Dominguez
Hills (1-24-04); Assists – 1 vs. St.
Thomas (11-20-04).
54 ALEXIS WILSON (F, Jr., Wayzata,
MN, Wayzata HS)
Last Week: Had four points and tied a career high with four rebounds
against Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday; went scoreless and tied a career
high with four rebounds against Cal State L.A. on Friday.
2004-05: Averaging 1.7 points, 1.7 rebounds and 0.1 assists per
game.
Season Highs: Points – 7
vs. San Francisco State (12-4-04); Rebounds
– 4 at Cal State Bakersfield (1-08-05), at Cal State L.A. (1-07-05), vs. Grand
Canyon (12-14-04);
Assists – 1 at Azusa
Pacific (11-19-04).
Career Highs: Points – 7
vs. San Francisco State (12-4-04); Rebounds
– 4 at Cal State Bakersfield (1-08-05), at Cal State L.A. (1-07-05), vs.
Grand Canyon (12-14-04), vs. San Francisco State (2-20-04), at Sonoma State (1-16-04),
at Western Washington (12-28-02); Assists
– 3 at UC San Diego (1-9-04).