United Athletic Conference

 

CollegeInsider.com has announced California Baptist University women's basketball head coach Jarrod Olson as the recipient of the 2020-21 Kay Yow National Coach of the Year Award. This award is given annually to the top coach in Women's Division I college basketball. Olson was also awarded his second Western Athletic Conference Coach of the Year award earlier this year after leading the Lancers to the program's first-ever regular-season and tournament championships.

 

The historic California Baptist season has finally come to a close as they fell 55-79 to Rice in the Third Round of the Women's National Invitational Tournament.

 

The Lancers (26-1) struggled early as they fell 14 points behind Rice (21-4) to start the game. The Lancers looked more like themselves in the second quarter as they nailed four three-pointers.  Meanwhile, after a 25-point first quarter, the Owl offense cooled off but still carried a 10-point advantage into the break.

 

The second half belonged to Rice as its offense proved to be too much for CBU, finishing with 40 second-half points to earn the win. California Baptist was led by 14 points from Caitlyn Harper while Britney Thomas added 12 points and seven rebounds. The Owls' top scorer was Lauren Schwartz who finished with 20 points while adding six rebounds and five assists. Three other Rice scorers reached double digits, including Nancy Mulkey who posted 16 points to go along with eight rebounds.

 

California Baptist is moving on to the third round of the Women's National Invitational Tournament as they eliminated San Francisco, 90-82.

 

The opening quarter was extremely competitive as the lead shifted sides four times before the Lancers put together an 11-2 run to finish the quarter up a pair. The second quarter belonged to CBU as they outscored San Francisco 26-21 to head into halftime with a seven-point advantage. The Lancers were led in the first half by 13 points from Britney Thomas.

 

Despite losing senior leader Ane Olaeta to injury in the final seconds of the first half, California Baptist came out strong in the third quarter. Thomas continued to dominate as she scored six of the Lancers' first 10 points in the second half. Eventually, CBU pushed its lead to 15 points and took a nine-point lead into the final period. The Dons came charging back in the fourth quarter as they cut the lead to six with just over seven minutes remaining in the fourth. A huge triple from Caitlyn Harper with two minutes remaining would prove to be the dagger as the Lancers went back up by double digits and earned their second win in as many nights.

 

For the second game in a row, Thomas and Harper carried the load for the Lancers. Thomas was nearly unstoppable as she finished with 26 points on a perfect 10-for-10 from the field. Harper added 23 points of her own to go along with seven rebounds. Taylor Wu also had a strong outing as she pitched in with 12 points and four assists.

 

California Baptist improved its record to 25-0 upon defeating New Mexico by a score of 90-85 in the first round of the Women's National Invitational Tournament.

 

The Lancers struggled out of the gate as the Lobos opened the game on an 8-0 run to jump ahead early. The WAC Champions eventually found their rhythm and drew even with just over eight minutes remaining in the second quarter. New Mexico then went on another scoring run in the second quarter, however, senior Ane Olaeta connected on a last-second shot to pull the Lancers within five going into the half. Redshirt sophomore Caitlyn Harper led all scorers in the first half with 11 points on 5-of-8 from the field.

 

California Baptist's strengths rose to the surface in the second half as they went 7-for-8 to start the third quarter. With about five minutes to go in the third, Harper finished an and-one to give the Lancers their first lead of the game. The lead changed hands six times in the third quarter before the Lancers' Taylor Wu hit a wide-open triple to give CBU a four-point lead and force a UNM time out. CBU outscored the Lobos 30-22 in the third to give themselves a three-point edge heading into the final quarter.

 

The Lobos proved tough as they battled back to tie the score at 73-73 with 7:36 left in the game. Several huge buckets down the stretch from Harper and Britney Thomas proved to be the difference as the Lancers pulled away to keep their dreams of a perfect season alive.

 

The duo of Harper and Thomas led the way for CBU as they combined for 48 points and 19 rebounds on the night. Harper poured in 25 points to go along with nine boards while Thomas finished with a double-double as she had 22 points and 10 rebounds. Olaeta also tabbed a double-double as she had a stat line of 11 points, 14 assists and seven rebounds. 

 

Utah Valley had its Cinderella dreams put to rest in the first round of the NCAA Tournament as they fell to Stanford, 87-44, in the Wolverines' first-ever trip to The Big Dance.

 

The Wolverines (13-6) hung around early, but the Cardinal (25-2) proved why they received the top overall seed in the NCAA Tournament as their offense exploded for 12 triples and 53 points in the first half. The Cardinal shot nearly 56 percent from the field and 45 percent from behind the arc as they collected the wire-to-wire victory.

 

Utah Valley was led by 18 points from Josie Williams while Stanford's top scorer was guard Kiana Williams who connected on six three-pointers to finish with 20 points. Maria Carvalho added six points and eight rebounds for UVU.

 

Stanford would eventually go on to win the 2021 NCAA Tournament as they took down Arizona 54-53 in the National Championship game.

 

Utah Valley is set to take on top-seeded Stanford as they represent the WAC in the first round of the 2021 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament. 

 

The Wolverines (13-6, 10-4) earned the WAC's automatic qualification by way of finishing second in the WAC regular-season standings as regular season and tournament champion California Baptist is ineligible for the NCAA Tournament due to transitioning status. Utah Valley is led by sophomore standouts Josie Williams and Maria Carvalho. Williams averages 14.0 points, 8.2 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game to lead the Wolverines in each category Carvalho is UVU's floor general as she averages 3.2 assists per game to go along with 13.3 points and 1.7 steals per game.

 

Stanford earned one of four No. 1 seeds as they finished the year with a 25-2 overall record and a 19-2 record in Pac-12 play. The Cardinal are led by senior guard Kiana Williams who averages 14.3 points and 2.9 assists per game. Sophomore guard Haley Jones posts 13.0 points per game to rank second on the team in scoring while also leading the Cardinal in rebounding, collecting 7.7 boards per contest.

 

The first round of the NCAA Tournament will take place across five Texas venues located in San Antonio, Austin and San Marcos. Utah Valley is scheduled to square off with Stanford on Sunday, March 21 at 8 p.m. MT at a site to be determined.

 

For the second time in program history, California Baptist will compete in the 2021 Postseason Women's National Invitational Tournament. The unbeaten Lancers are set to take on New Mexico in the first round of the WNIT.

 

Following a WAC regular-season title and the only undefeated regular season in WAC history, the Lancers (24-0, 14-0) were named one of nine automatic qualifiers for the WNIT. They also went on to win the WAC Tournament; however, CBU is unable to represent the WAC in the NCAA Tournament due to its transitioning status. The Lancers are led by WAC Player of the Year Ane Olaeta who led the nation in assists per game (8.4) while also scoring 11.7 points per game. Redshirt sophomore Caitlyn Harper emerged as the Lancers' leading scorer after a pair of breakout performances in the WAC Tournament that helped her finish the season at 13.5 points per game.

 

New Mexico (15-4, 11-3) also garnered automatic qualification as they will compete in the WNIT after finishing as the regular-season champion in the Mountain West. The Lobos are led by 14.6 points per game from junior guard LaTascya Duff. Senior New Mexico native Jaedyn De La Cerda comes in just behind Duff, accounting for 14.3 points per game to go along with 5.1 rebounds per game.

 

California Baptist is scheduled to square off with New Mexico on Friday, March 19 at 7 p.m. MT in Fort Worth, Texas. All games will be available on FloHoops.

 

California Baptist continued their run at a perfect season as they took down NM State in the semifinals and Grand Canyon in the championship. Tournament MVP Caitlyn Harper led the way for CBU, averaging 13.5 points and 8.5 rebounds per game.

 

Harper was joined on the All-Tournament team by teammate Tiena Neale who exploded for 21 points in the title game while also snagging five rebounds. Grand Canyon's Tiarra Brown, NM State's Shania Harper and Utah Valley's Josie Williams also garnered All-Tournament honors.

 

California Baptist finished the year leading the league in scoring as it posts 77.7 points per game. The undefeated Lancers also finished atop the conference in several other categories, including scoring margin (+18.4), field goal percentage (.438), field goal percentage defense (.319), three-point percentage (.335), three-point field goal percentage defense (.236), rebounding offense (43.4), blocked shots (5.5), assists (21.0), assist to turnover ratio (1.4), defensive rebounds (33.5) and three-pointers made (9.6). Grand Canyon paced the conference in steals per game (13.4), turnover margin (+8.40) and offensive rebounds (13.1) and offensive rebound percentage (.327). Utah Valley closed the year atop the group in scoring defense (57.3), rebounding defense (32.8), rebounding margin (+5.6), and defensive rebound percentage (.739) while Tarleton was best in the conference in free throw percentage (.727).

 

Following the WAC tournament, UT Rio Grande Valley's Amara Graham led the league in scoring at 16.5 point per game while also leading the conference in minutes per game (38.1). Utah Valley's Josie Williams led the league in blocked shots (1.9) and offensive rebounds (3.1). California Baptist's Britney Thomas collected the most rebounds per game (8.6) and had the top field goal percentage by a wide margin, shooting at a .643 clip. Thomas also snagged the most defensive rebounds per game (6.3). Fellow Lancer, and one of the top passers in the country, Ane Olaeta dished out the most assists per game at 7.6 while also maintaining the best assist to turnover ratio (2.5). The Lancers also had the top three-point shooter as Sydney Palma shot .462 from deep. Seattle U's Bree Calhoun collected the most steals per game (3.3) while Tarleton's Iyana Dorsey connected on the most triples per contest (2.2) and held the best free throw percentage (.836).

 

Amidst one of the greatest women's basketball seasons in WAC history, California Baptist (24-0, 14-0) secured the regular-season title upon completing the sweep of Grand Canyon. With win number 22, the Lancers became the first school in WAC history to put together an undefeated regular season.

 

CBU also became just the sixth program in WAC history to finish the regular season with an undefeated league record. Only San Diego State (1994-95), Colorado State (1998-99), Louisiana Tech (2002-03), Fresno State (2009-10) and NM State (2016-17) have achieved the feat of an unblemished WAC record.

 

Due to the Lancers' transitioning status, they became the first team in men's or women's college basketball to go undefeated and not reach the NCAA tournament since 1983. Instead, California Baptist received an automatic berth into the Women's NIT, marking the Lancers' second trip to the NIT in just three seasons of Division I play.

 

In UT Rio Grande Valley's final regular-season game of the season, Amara Graham recorded her 1,000th point as a Vaquero. Graham posted nine points to eclipse the mark as she finished the season with 306 points as she led the Vaqueros with 16.1 points per game.

 

Seattle U's McKenzi Williams joined the 100-steal club after entering SU's series with California Baptist with 99 career steals. In the Redhawks' first matchup with the Lancers, Williams snagged a pair of steals to put her over the mark. On the season, Williams had 43 steals as she finished 7th in the WAC with 1.8 steals per game.

 

Seattle U redshirt junior guard McKenzi Williams was awarded the Seattle Sports Commission's Female Sports Star of the Year Award. The Auburn, Washington, native has been a force all year as she posts 15.4 points per game to lead the Redhawks. That mark is also good for third-best in the conference. Williams' season was highlighted by a 36-point outburst against Idaho on Dec. 21 in which she set the SU Division I program record.

 

Williams beat out four other finalists in the fan voting contest, as Alysha Clark (Seattle Storm), Morganne Flores (Washington softball), Charlisse Leger-Walker (Washington State basketball) and Jenn Wirth (Gonzaga basketball) were in the running. Williams is just the eighth Seattle U student-athlete to win a Sports Star of the Year honor.

 

UT Rio Grande Valley's Amara Graham eclipsed a pair of career marks last week during the Vaqueros series against Utah Valley. Graham knocked down her 100th triple in Friday's contest while she tallied career assist number 300 on Saturday. Graham is one of only two active players in the conference to achieve both totals, joining California Baptist's Ane Olaeta. Graham finished with the season with 32 three-pointers and 50 assists, giving her 107 threes made and 307 assists for her career.

 

Utah Valley's Maria Carvalho collected her 100th career steal last weekend. After entering the week with 98 career steals, Carvalho came up with a season-high five steals against NM State on Friday, Feb. 19, to reach the century mark. On the season, Carvalho closed the regular season with 30 steals, giving her 116 steals in her three seasons as a Wolverine.

 

California Baptist head coach Jarrod Olson posted his 200th win as the Lancer leader. Friday, Feb. 5, CBU dominated NM State 94-53 at home to help Olson reach the mark. His 74.1 win percentage is also the best in program history by far and ranks second in program wins behind Dave King as King was at the helm for 287 wins. In Olson's 200th victory, the Lancers' offense was rolling as they shot 54.8 percent from deep and knocked down 17 triples, just one shy of most all-time in a WAC contest.

 

The Redhawk defense came to play on Saturday, Jan. 30, as Seattle U took down Chicago State for its fourth WAC win of the season. Seattle U held the Cougars to just 26.8 percent shooting and allowed zero three-pointers as Chicago State went 0-for-8 in the contest. The Redhawks gave up only 39 points, marking the lowest point total for any opponent in a WAC game this year and the lowest total in a conference game since CSU Bakersfield held Grand Canyon to 37 on March 2, 2019.

 

After enduring a seven-game losing streak, Tarleton collected its first true Division I win as it took down UT Rio Grande Valley, 79-63, on Wednesday, Feb. 27. In their debut DI season, the Texans had earned wins over three non-DI opponents (Howard Payne, Bacone College, Champion Christian) before securing their first win over a DI program. In the win, the Texans had three players with 16 or more points, including Emily Cunningham's 20-point outburst to lead the way.

 

Seattle U's 106-39 win over Northwest produced a night of scoring that is unmatched in Redhawk history. SU set a Division I program scoring record with 106 points while it tied their DI program record in both assists (29) and three-pointers made (15).

 

Tarleton also posted numbers that were etched into the history books as they blew out Champion Christian College, 95-27. The Texans reached a new program record for three-pointers made, knocking down 16 triples. Tarleton also forced 32 turnovers to set a new record for a Misty Wilson-coached team. The 68-point win is also the most dominating victory during Wilson's tenure.

 

Seattle U took down Utah State 75-72 in overtime on Thursday, Dec. 3. In the Redhawks overtime win, they collected 66 rebounds, marking the third-most by an NCAA team up to that point in the season and the most by a Seattle U team since 2010.

 

Despite a slow start, Tarleton put together an 80-39 win over Bacone College on Wednesday, Dec. 2. The 41-point margin marks the Texans' most dominating victory since 2017 when they took down Arlington Baptist 104-52.

 

California Baptist's Ane Olaeta returns for her senior season after leading the WAC in assists (6.0). The WAC Preseason Player of the Year is also the leagues leading scorer amongst returners as she finished ninth a year ago, averaging 12.2 points per game. UT Rio Grande Valley's Amara Graham is also back after leading the conference in three-point percentage (.427). 

 

Utah Valley has been named the favorite to win the 2020-21 women's basketball title and California Baptist's Ane Olaeta was selected as the WAC Preseason Player of the Year in a vote of the league's nine head coaches, who could not vote for their own team or players.

 

After finishing second in the conference a year ago, the Wolverines earned the top spot with 57 points and two first-place votes in the preseason poll. California Baptist collected four first-place votes and tallied 55 points, followed by Grand Canyon with two first-place votes and 47 points. NM State garnered the final first-place vote and a total of 45 points as they were picked to finish fourth while UT Rio Grande Valley came in just behind the Aggies with 44 points. Seattle U claimed sixth with 29 points. Newcomer Tarleton followed the Redhawks to capture the seventh spot with Dixie State and Chicago State rounding out the group.

 

Olaeta is atop the list of Preseason All-WAC honorees. The senior guard is joined on the first team by Utah Valley's Josie Williams and Maria Carvalho, UT Rio Grande Valley's Amara Graham and Aaliyah Prince of NM State.

 

Second team honors went to Grand Canyon's Laura Piera, NM State's Soufia Inoussa, Tarleton's Alexa Hoy and Seattle U's duo Courtney Murphy and McKenzi Williams.

 

The Western Athletic Conference women's basketball media have selected California Baptist as the preseason favorites to be named the 2020-21 conference champions while the Lancers' Ane Olaeta was named WAC Preseason Player of the Year.

 

In just their third year in the league, California Baptist earned five first-place votes and 61 points from the media to capture the top spot. Utah Valley came in just behind CBU with 60 points and received one first-place vote. UT Rio Grande Valley collected the third spot as they earned 56 points while NM State picked up a first-place vote to put them in fourth with 53 points. The media gave the fifth spot to Seattle U with 41 points. Grand Canyon tallied the final first-place vote and 39 points to finish sixth, followed by Tarleton in seventh, Dixie State in eighth and Chicago State in ninth.

 

Olaeta leads the group of Preseason All-WAC award getters and is joined by teammate Britney Thomas. UT Rio Grande Valley's Amara Graham, Utah Valley's Maria Carvalho and NM State's Aaliyah Prince are also among the first-team honorees.

 

Second-team selections include Utah Valley's Josie Williams, Seattle U's Courtney Murphy, California Baptist's Georgia Dale and Caitlyn Harper, and NM State's Soufia Inoussa.

 

The WAC adds two new schools as Dixie State and Tarleton join the conference. The Dixie State Trailblazers come over from the DII Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference and while the Texans of Tarleton competed in the DII Lone Star Conference a year ago. The two newcomers are replacing CSU Bakersfield (Big West) and Kansas City (Summit League). Dixie and Tarleton join California Baptist as schools transitioning from Division II to Division I. The Lancers enter the third year in the WAC and will be eligible for NCAA postseason in the 2022-23 season. Dixie and Tarleton will complete their transition and be eligible for NCAA postseason play in 2024-25.