The 2009-10 campaign gets underway for the Long Beach State women’s basketball team on Sunday, Nov. 8, when it hosts Cal Poly Pomona in an exhibition game at noon in the Gold Mine.
LBSU begins its first season under the direction of head coach Jody Wynn. Wynn brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to The Beach after spending the last 13 years as an assistant coach at the Division I level.
Most recently, Wynn was the senior assistant, recruiting coordinator and head of scouting at USC. During her five-year stint with the Women of Troy, Wynn was in charge of bringing in four nationally ranked recruiting classes, including the No. 1-ranked group in 2006. On the court, she coached seven All-Pacific-10 performers, a conference freshman of the year and a WNBA draft pick.
Wynn inherits an experienced 49er squad that features eight seniors, including tri-captains Karina Figueroa,Lauren Sims and Ally Wade. Figueroa, who redshirted the 2008-09 campaign, is a three-time All-Big West selection and was named to the preseason all-conference team. She currently ranks among Long Beach State’s career leaders in 3-point field goals made (72) and 3-point field goals attempted (223), and is just 16 points away from becoming the program’s 21st 1,000-point scorer.
Sims earned All-Big West honorable mention recognition last season after leading the team in 3-point field goal percentage (36.3 percent) and posting a career-best 9.1 points per game. Sims has also excelled off the court as she is a two-time CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District VIII and academic All-Big West selection. In addition, she was selected as Long Beach State’s 2009-10 Rhodes Scholar candidate and is also a nominee for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award.
Wade, a sharp-shooting forward from Yorba Linda, has averaged 4.4 points and 2.6 rebounds in her three years at The Beach. As a sophomore, she finished sixth in the Big West in 3-point accuracy, shooting 32.4 percent from beyond the arc.
Also expected to play a key role for the 49ers is second-team All-Big West selection Whitney Fields. Fields, who was named to the 2009-10 preseason all-conference team, led the league in rebounding (8.7 rpg) last year. She also finished tops on the team in scoring, averaging 12.6 points per contest.
Other top returnees include senior Courtney Jacob (8.2 ppg) and juniorLaTorya Barbee (10.7 ppg).
Cal Poly Pomona was picked to finish second in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) preseason poll. The Broncos, who went 16-14 last season, return the league’s leading scorer in junior Reyana Colson. Colson averaged 16.8 points, 7.5 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game and was an All-CCAA first-team selection.
Long Beach State will return to the court on Friday, Nov. 13, for its official season opener against Prairie View A&M. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. PT at the Walter Pyramid.
Reports From LBSU