Axe ‘Em Open – Friday, Jan. 10

• The Cal State Bakersfield women’s indoor track and field program had a historic day in Arizona as three student-athletes broke indoor school records and multiple CSUB all-time lists at the Axe ‘Em Open hosted by Northern Arizona University.
• In their respective events, two freshmen, Makiah Parker and Skye Odom, are at the top of the CSUB all-time list.
• Parker crossed the line with a time of 7.55 in the 60m. She also became the second-fastest Bakersfield athlete in the 300m with a time of 40.91.
• She now is on the CSUB all-time list for four different events.
• Skye Odom holds the indoor school record in the triple jump with a mark of 11.65m.
• The freshman became the first CSUB athlete to win her event this season.   
• Odom also jumped a 5.26m mark for the long jump and a new CSUB #2 spot.
• Bakersfield native Julie Johnson joined two `Runners with school records as she rebroke her record in the 300m she had last year. Johnson crossed the line with a new personal best and school record time of 40.86.
• Jaztyn Greer also had an impressive outing at the NAU meet. Greer now holds the fourth fastest time in program history for the 300m joining Johnson and Parker in resetting the CSUB all-time list for the event. She has a new personal best time of 43.02.
• The senior also posted a #3 time for the 60mH with a new PB of 9.09.
• The `Runners are back in action this week when they travel up north for the Spokane Indoor Challenge.
• Schedule & Links

CSUB 66, UCSB 78

• The Roadrunners dropped the first game of this week at Santa Barbara.
• Bakersfield lost their top scorer, Jemel Jones, after 9 minutes of playing time following a flagrant two call
• CSUB closed out the first half down 44-29
• In the second half CSUB found themselves down as much as 24 points, but then went on a 23-7 run cutting the lead to 8 points with 7:24 left to play
  • Bakersfield could not get over the hump as UCSB responded with a trio of three-point field goals to put an end to the CSUB momentum
• CJ Hardy led the Roadrunners with a career high 25 points, getting to the line 13 times
• Marvin McGhee IV scored 11 points knocking down 3-5 3FG

CSUB 94, CSUN 90

• CSUB was back in the Icardo to close out the week hosting the Matadors
• Bakersfield struggled in the first half, meanwhile CSUN was firing on all cylinders
  • The Matadors knocked down 65.52% of their shots
• Northridge led Bakersfield 35-16 with 6:32 left to go in the first half
• At the break CSUN led 49-34, Jemel Jones closed it out a free throw and finishing with 14 points
• In the second half CSUN opened with a 10-3 run and the Roadrunners found themselves down 23 points with 15:50 to play
• Bakersfield began chipping away at the CSUN lead and Jones led the charge with Jaden Alexander and Kadar Waller alongside him
• Bakersfield took the lead following Waller’s steal and fastbreak layup just under 7 minutes to play with a score of 72-71
• Alexander knocked down a huge three pointer extending the lead to five points
• With the game tied at 90, Jones made a jumper to go up 92-90 with 21 seconds left in the game
  • Jones would break the CSUB single game scoring record with 45 points, breaking Kenny Warren’s 40 points that was set in 1993
  • Jones’ mark is the second-highest scoring total by any NCAA Division I men’s basketball player so far this season (49 by Ryan Kalkbrenner, Creighton, 11/6/24)

• The Cal State Bakersfield Women’s Basketball team had a strong showing this weekend against two Big West opponents, securing their first win of the season on the road against CSUN. 
• Caitie Gingras was a standout, averaging 14.5 points per game. 
• Ary Dizon continues to dominate, ranking first in the Big West for blocks and blocks per game. 
  • Nationally, she’s ranked 13th in total blocks and 12th in blocks per game. In both games this weekend, Bakersfield averaged 25 points in the fourth quarter, their highest scoring output of the season.

CSUB 57, UCSB 61

• Bakersfield got off to a slow start against UC Santa Barbara, scoring only 17 points in the first half.
• Trailing by 11 points, the ‘Runners fought back in the third quarter, matching UCSB’s scoring with 14 points.
• In a dramatic comeback, Bakersfield scored a season-high 26 points in the fourth quarter but fell short, losing by just 4 points.
• Gingras led the team with 14 points, while Taylor Caldwell added 13 points.
• Cheyenne Forney made a strong contribution, scoring 14 points and shooting 6-7 from the free-throw line.

CSUB 62, CSUN 56

• CSU Bakersfield earned their first conference win of the season, bouncing back after a tough preseason schedule.
• The ‘Runners came out strong against CSUN, jumping to an early lead and finishing the first quarter with an 18-16 advantage.
• Despite trailing by four points at halftime, Bakersfield came out of the break energized, outscoring the Matadors by one point in the third quarter.
• In the fourth, the ‘Runners went on a 9-point run, holding CSUN scoreless for three crucial minutes in the final stretch. Bakersfield finished strong, scoring 24 points in the fourth to seal the 62-56 victory.
• Dizon led the charge with a double-double, recording 10 points and 10 rebounds.
• Gingras added 14 points, 2 assists, and 2 steals, while the team’s defense and efficient offense sealed the win.

• The Cal State Bakersfield divers tackle the CBU Diving Invite in Riverside, Calif. this week.
• The `Runners will now move into postseason competition with the Big West Championships set for Feb. 12-15, in Houston.

CSUB at CBU Diving Invite

• Jan. 9-11, Riverside, Calif.
• Two CSUB divers represented the `Runners against tough competition from Southern California: Dyson Modica and Anderson Laing.
• Both `Runners placed Top 10 on Day 1 as Modica (6th) and Laing (9th) competed on the 1-meter board.
• Modica placed fourth on the 3-meter board on Friday, while Laing finished sixth with his highest score since October of 2023.
• Closing out the meet, Laing placed third on the platform with a 25-point personal best (221.65).
• Schedule & Links

• The Cal State Bakersfield wrestling team continued the 2024-25 season at the NWCA National Duals.
• CSUB has returned to national recognition with four `Runners recently recognized by FloWrestling in the national rankings at some point this season: Richard Castro-Sandoval (125), Gerrit Nijenhuis (174), AJ Ferrari (197), and Jake Andrews (32).
• FloWrestling ranked Cal State Bakersfield #24 as a team coming into this weekend while InterMat had the Roadrunners at #22. 
• Former NCAA Champion AJ Ferrari is ranked the #13 Pound-for-Pound wrestler in the country by FloWrestling, which also ranks him #3 in the 197-pound weight class. InterMat ranked Ferrari #1 at 197.
  • Ferrari is a perfect 9-0 on the season and has won 25-straight collegiate matches.
• Bakersfield native Jake Andrews is now 12-2 on the season. The `Runner heavyweight won the Pac-12 Wrestler of the Week honor on Nov. 26 and he is nationally ranked at #31 by FloWrestling.

CSUB at NWCA National Duals

• Cal State Bakersfield set out for Cedar Falls, Iowa, Jan. 10-11, for the NWCA National Duals.
• The `Runners dropped their first three match, handicapped by having to forfeit the 141-pound weight class in each match, before overcoming the disadvantage with a 19-18 victory over SIUE to close out the weekend.
  • #22 CSUB 10, #12 Northern Colorado 32
  • CSUB 9, Drexel 33
  • CSUB 17, George Mason 23
• #1 AJ Ferrari (197) and #31 Jake Andrews (285) paced Bakersfield, each going 4-0 on the weekend.
  • Ferrari remains unbeaten (9-0) on the season and he now boasts a 39-1 collegiate record.
  • Andrews is 12-2 on the year after going 16-48 over the first three seasons of his career.
• Guillermo Escobedo (165) claimed victories each day while finishing 3-1.
• Richard Castro-Sandoval (125) and Santino Sanchez (133) both won a pair of bouts on Saturday to go 2-2 in Iowa.
• Gerrit Nijenhuis (184) started the weekend with an upset victory over #20 AJ Heeg (Northern Colorado).
• After a weekend off, CSUB will travel to Washington, D.C. for the 4th Annual Chippewa Challenge.
• Join the `Runners for a busy February full of home duals. Get your tickets now at GoRunners.com/Tickets
• Schedule & Links