UC Santa Barbara Tabbed Preseason Favorite To Capture Big West Title
The Gauchos of UC Santa Barbara were selected to claim their third consecutive, 14th overall, Big West Conference women's basketball regular season title, as voted on by the media. The Gauchos captured 10 of a possible 20 first-place votes and 162 total points. They were closely followed by second place UC Davis, who received six first-place nods and 155 points. Rounding out the top three was Cal Poly with three first-place selections and a point total of 146.
Two-time Big West Champion UC Riverside was selected fourth with one first-place vote and a total of 112 points. Garnering the fifth slot in the preseason poll with 99 points is Long Beach State, who begins a new era under first-year head coach Jody Wynn. Pacific earned the sixth spot after acquiring 87 points and was followed by Cal State Fullerton (59), Cal State Northridge (41) and UC Irvine (39).
The media also voted on a six-player preseason all-conference team that included Haylee Donaghe (UC Davis), Karina Figueroa (Long Beach State), Whitney Fields (Long Beach State), Jordan Franey (UC Santa Barbara), Paige Mintun (UC Davis) and Kristina Santiago (Cal Poly).
Long Beach State Showcases New Face At The Helm Of Its Program
Jody Wynn, who spent the last five seasons as the senior assistant, recruiting coordinator and head of scouting at USC, becomes the sixth head coach in Long Beach State women's basketball history. Wynn comes to LBSU with 13 years of collegiate coaching experience under her belt. While at USC, she was in charge of bringing in four nationally-ranked recruiting classes, including the No. 1-ranked group in 2006. On the court, Wynn coached seven All-Pac 10 performers, a conference freshman of the year and a WNBA draft pick. Making up the rest of her staff are assistant coaches Derek Wynn, Jeffrey Cammon and Laura Freimuth.
Foster Takes Over Reins At Fullerton
Former associate head coach Marcia Foster at Cal State Fullerton was promoted to head coach after Dr. Maryalyce Jeremiah relinquished her head coaching duties at the end of last season. Foster begins her seventh year with the Titans women's basketball program. She also spent one year as head coach at Cal Tech and six years as an assistant at Cal Poly. She began her coaching career at the high school level in Orange County (Mater Dei and Garden Grove) and also coached the Orange County Optimist AAU team to an 18-and-under Southern California championship in 1994. Her college career began with one season as an assistant at Arizona State.
Margaritis Eyes Coaching Milestones
UC Riverside head coach John Margaritis has his sights set on two coaching milestones in 2009-10. He enters the year just four wins shy of capturing his 200th career win. Along with his overall victories, he is inching his way towards his 100th win at UC Riverside with an 86-67 mark. Margaritis, averaging 17.2 wins per season over a five-year span, has the 100th win well within reach.
Mustangs Hope To Continue Where They Left Off A Year Ago
Cal Poly is coming off its best season during the program's 35-year history. Last year the Mustangs established a new program record with a .656 winning percentage (21-11) and the 21 victories accumulated matched the 1981-82 Mustang squad for the highest single-season victory total in school history. Cal Poly's 11 losses ranked as the second-lowest amount in program history while the Mustangs finished the year 10 games above a .500 winning percentage for the first time. The Mustangs, who finished third in the conference standings for just the second time in program history, also set new Big West school records for victories (11), fewest losses (5) and overall winning percentage (.688). They welcome back three starters that includes 2009-10 Preseason All-Conference selection Kristina Santiago. The junior forward is primed to take over the lead role as she is the top Cal Poly stat returner in almost every category, including scoring (15.2 ppg), rebounds (5.3) and minutes played (25.8).
Big West Looks For New Players To Shine In 2009-10
The 2008-09 class was headlined by a quintet of seniors that had successful careers during their time in the Big West Conference. Proving their dominance, all five athletes began their final campaign having already reached the 1,000-point plateau - Kemie Nkele (UCR), Toni Thomas (CSF), Jenna Green (UCSB), Seyram Gbewonyo (UCR) and Megan Harrison (CP). UC Riversides Roney Friend joined the elite group late in the 2008-09 season.
What a difference a year makes. Not one athlete enters the 2009-10 season with 1,000 points under her belt. Although Long Beach States redshirt freshman Karina Figueroa is eyeing the benchmark with 984 points. The next closest player climbing the ladder is Cal Polys Kristina Santiago with 704 points.
Matadors Look To Build On Last Season
Having posted an 8-23 overall record in 2008-09, the Cal State Northridge women's basketball team successfully navigated one of the nations best turnarounds after a 1-26 showing in 2007-08. Last season the Matadors earned both a berth and victory in the Big West Tournament. Cal State Northridge returns several top players for the 2009-10 season, including Jasmine Erving, Katrina Thompson and Analee Viena-Lota. Erving finished second on the team with an 8.9 points per game average and enters the new season as the top returner in scoring, free throw percentage and blocks. Thompson will also make her presence felt on the court this year as she paces the roster in rebounds (6.1 rpg), assists (1.5 apg) and steals (2.0 spg).
'Eaters Add Height For 2009-10
Four newcomers have been added to the lineup this year: three freshmen and one transfer from Loyola Marymount. Two of the four newcomers stand six-feet or taller, giving UC Irvine some much needed height after losing three players in the offseason. Sophomore transfer Mikah Maly-Karros measures in at 6-1 and freshman Lauren Spinazze is 6-0. A third newcomer, Cheyenne Cathey, just misses the six-foot threshold with a height of 5-11.
A Veteran Squad For Aggies
Following a season in which UC Davis featured a roster filled with young players, including seven freshmen, the Aggies have one of the most veteran teams in the league this year. In fact, the Aggies are the lone team in the conference that welcomes back five starters for the 2009-10 season. Leading the way for the Aggies are Paige Mintun, Lauren Juric and Kasey Riecks. Mintun, an All-Big West First Team member, led the Aggies in both scoring (13.0 ppg) and rebounding (6.4 rpg) in 2008-09. Juric is coming off a stellar season during which she was named Big West Freshman of the Year and collected All-Big West Honorable Mention accolades. She is also the top returner in three-point percentage (.407). Like her fellow teammates, Riecks also received All-Big West honors with honorable mention and all-freshman team selections last year.
Quick Glimpse Of 2009-10 Rosters
With the departure of such a large group of talented women's basketball players, fresh faces will be seen on the court this year. Three teams with the tough task of constructing a successful lineup this season are UC Riverside, UC Santa Barbara and Pacific. The Highlanders must start from scratch after losing all five of their starters to graduation. The Tigers and Gauchos arent far behind, welcoming back just one starter from last season.
Pacific Showcases New Lineup
Pacific welcomes back seven letterwinners, but only one starter from last year's team that went 8-8 in conference play and 14-16 overall. All-Big West Honorable Mention Gretchen Tiernan and Emma Head are the top stat returners for the Tigers. Tiernans 8.4 points per game and .331 three-point percentage leads the 2009-10 squad, while Head's .493 field goal percentage paces the Tigers.
Big West On Twitter
The Big West Conference is excited to bring Big West Live to Twitter, a Twitter feed designed to give fans an in-the-stands view of select Big West Events. Bringing near-instantaneous photos, commentary, and updates, Big West Live is the first feed of its kind. Moving beyond the scores and stats, Big West Live delivers the "color" of Big West events.
Live On The Net
The Big West Conference and the CBS College Sports Network are partnering to bring you exclusive coverage of Big West sports, press conferences, interviews and features into your home via the Internet! Now in its fifth year, BigWest.TV covers every home and conference contest in womens volleyball as well as men's and women's basketball. Also covered are select contests in men's and women's soccer, baseball, softball, and Big West Conference Championships. A monthly subscription of $9.95 or an annual subscription of $79.95 delivers exclusive coverage to you. If you cant make it to the gym or the field, you can still catch all the action on BigWest.TV!