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David Dennis/All-Star Sports Photography

Women's Basketball Written by James Tsitakis-Cecil

CSUB Faces CSUN for Second Straight Year in the BWC

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – After a rough-and-tumble regular season, the Cal State Bakersfield women's basketball heads to Henderson, Nevada for the Hercules Tires Big West Championship presented by The Hawaiian Islands. The No. 9 Roadrunners will first come up against No. 8 CSUN, the same exact scenario as last year's tournament in which CSUB advanced to give Hawai'i a hard time. The `Runners look to upset CSUN for a second straight year.

Upcoming Schedule
  • vs (8) CSUN, Tuesday, Mar. 7, 12:00 p.m.
  • Quarterfinals, Wednesday, Mar. 8, 12:00 p.m.
  • Semifinals, Friday, Mar. 10, 12:00 p.m.
  • Finals, Saturday, Mar. 11, 3:00 p.m.
All-Big West Awards
  • First and foremost, CSUB Athletics would like to recognize three student-athletes that were chosen to be rewarded by the Big West for their accomplishments in the 2022-23 season.
  • Taylor Caldwell earned an All-Big West honorable mention. She transferred to her hometown as a graduate student at CSUB. Caldwell made an instant impact as the most experienced on the team, leading the team with 30.7 average minutes per game, 65 assists, and 45 steals.
  • Hennie van Schaik also earned an All-Big West honorable mention. She starred as a sophomore after flashing potential last year. Despite facing injury issues in, she still led with 218 points, 14 double-digit point games, 11.5 average points, and 6.7 average rebounds.
  • Garrisen Freeman was named to the All-Freshman Team. As a redshirt freshman from Las Vegas, she quickly earned the trust of Greg McCall and became a consistent starter. In the starting five for the final fifteen games, she shot .317 from the field in 19.8 average minutes.
Quotes from Head Coach Greg McCall
  • "We can't look in the review mirror, everyone is at a 0-0 record right now. I keep telling our players that what happened back here [in the regular season] doesn't matter anymore. You have to look forward, because it's a fresh, new, and exciting season to go out here and show what we're made of."
  • "We have to be able to deliver on both ends of the court. If we do miss our shots, we have to make sure we're doing our best to crash the offensive boards. Teams are going to stop you sometimes, but you have to follow through and do your job."
`Runner Notes
  • Cal State Bakersfield (6-22, 3-17 Big West) finished the season on a nine-game losing skid, but the `Runners will look to rectify that with a good showing at the postseason tournament.
  • Kayla Morris, during the regular season finale, managed to eclipse Janae Coffee for the No. 2 spot in CSUB's D1 single season blocks mark, smacking down her 53rd blocked shot this year.
  • Senior Day honorees Taylor Caldwell and Soli Herrera will be playing the final games of their college careers during the Big West Championship. After their outstanding performance in the season finale, much can be expected from these veterans in the tournament.
  • Garrisen Freeman is not only a Big West award winner in her first year, but she is also returning to her hometown of Las Vegas to play the tournament in front of friends and family.
  • Other than those mentioned above, other player to watch out for would be Sophia Tougas, Grace Hunter, and Nseije Ortiz.
    • Tougas and Hunter are part of the guard trio with Caldwell that showed out for CSUB's offense this year, totaling nearly 600 points between the three of them.
    • Ortiz, the walk-on true freshman nicknamed "Scrap" for her tenaciousness, earned a place in the regular lineup with 11 starts while tallying 18 steals and 22 assists.
Scouting the Matadors
  • CSUN (7-23, 6-14 Big West) is led by first-year head coach Carlene Mitchell.
  • This is the second straight season where these teams play each other in the same exact seeding. Last season, the Matadors beat the `Runners in their only regular season contest, but CSUB managed to take the tournament win. Bakersfield will be looking for a repeat result.
  • In that game, the `Runners found a way to hold off the Matadors in overtime 63-62 after thwarting a CSUN comeback attempt.
  • This is the third time in under a month that these two teams will be facing off. In the last two games, CSUN managed to take both, but CSUB still played hard.
  • When the `Runners faced CSUN the first time this season, the Matadors found a way to break their 9-game losing streak. The `Runners now have that exact same job, as they attempt to break their own 9-game skid.
How to Follow the `Runners
  • All Big West Basketball Championship games will be available on ESPN+.
  • Links for video, live stats, and tickets are available at GoRunners.com/Live.
  • Live updates will be shared during games on Twitter @CSUB_WBB.
  • Tickets for the Big West Basketball Championship are available now. Visit GoRunners.com/Tickets or call 661-654-BLUE or 661-654-GOLD for more information.
~GoRunners.com~
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Players Mentioned

Garrisen Freeman

#32 Garrisen Freeman

G
5' 10"
Redshirt Freshman
Soli Herrera

#13 Soli Herrera

C
6' 3"
Senior
Kayla Morris

#15 Kayla Morris

F
6' 2"
Redshirt Freshman
Sophia Tougas

#5 Sophia Tougas

G
6' 0"
Redshirt Freshman
Hennie van Schaik

#3 Hennie van Schaik

F
6' 3"
Sophomore
Grace Hunter

#4 Grace Hunter

G
5' 10"
Junior
Taylor Caldwell

#11 Taylor Caldwell

G
5' 9"
Senior
Nseije Ortiz

#14 Nseije Ortiz

G
5' 6"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Garrisen Freeman

#32 Garrisen Freeman

5' 10"
Redshirt Freshman
G
Soli Herrera

#13 Soli Herrera

6' 3"
Senior
C
Kayla Morris

#15 Kayla Morris

6' 2"
Redshirt Freshman
F
Sophia Tougas

#5 Sophia Tougas

6' 0"
Redshirt Freshman
G
Hennie van Schaik

#3 Hennie van Schaik

6' 3"
Sophomore
F
Grace Hunter

#4 Grace Hunter

5' 10"
Junior
G
Taylor Caldwell

#11 Taylor Caldwell

5' 9"
Senior
G
Nseije Ortiz

#14 Nseije Ortiz

5' 6"
Freshman
G
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