Arbolida, Douglas named CCCSIA Athletes of the Month for February
SACRAMENTO - Star baseball player Cary Arbolida from Orange Coast College and women’s basketball standout Ansiah Douglas from De Anza College turned in outstanding performances during February and were recognized as the California Community College Sports Information Association Male and Female Athletes of the Month.
Listed below are recaps for the month for both the winners and honorable mention selections.
Female Athlete of the Month
Cary Arbolida | Orange Coast College | Baseball | Freshman
Freshman infielder Cary Arbolida hit safely in 11 of 12 games during the month of February for the 14th-ranked Pirates. He batted .422 over the month with 19 hits in a dozen games, including two doubles, a triple and four home runs. Arbolida also powered the OCC offense with 15 runs scored and 13 driven in. He was 3rd in the state with a .457 batting average and 7th with a .729 slugging percentage. Orange Coast opened the season by dropping six of their first eight games after the tragic loss of their Head Coach John Altobelli, however, Arbolida helped right the Pirates' ship and the defending CCCAA State Champions ended the month riding a seven-game winning streak.
Female Athlete of the Month
Anisah Douglas | DeAnza College | Women's Basketball | Freshman
Freshman Cager Anisah Douglas drove the Dons to their first Coast Conference Championship since 2014. In the month of February, Douglas averaged 24.4 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 5.4 steals, as De Anza won five of seven games, including a four-game winning streak to clinch the title. She led the Coast South Division with a 22.9 ppg. average and was tabbed as the 2020 Coast Conference South Division Player of the Year. Douglas also earned a spot on the 2020 CCCAA All-State third team and earned De Anza the No. 17 seed in the 2020 CCCAA Regional Basketball Playoffs.
Honorable Mention - Women
Mystique Rocha | Santiago Canyon College | Softball | Freshman
Rocha led the entire state with 14 wins through February while leading the Hawks into the top spot in the Orange Empire Conference. She pitched a total of 126.2 innings with 18 complete games through February which was the second-highest in the state in both of those respective categories. She posted an incredible 93 strikeouts, which is top three statewide. During the month of February, she had eight games where she posted a minimum of six strikeouts per game.
Danielle Ruiz | Pasadena City College | Softball | Sophomore
Ruiz was a sure bet to reach base during the month of February as she batted .545 and had an on-base percentage of .674 in 12 games. She finished the month on a nine-game hitting streak and collected 18 hits, 11 walks and endured two HBP over that span to reach base safely 31 times in 46 plate appearances. Ruiz also stole 14 bases, scored 16 runs, had four doubles and 8 RBIs as the Lancers' leadoff. Her OPS was an amazing 1.341. She led the Lancers to an 8-4 month.
Honorable Mention - Men
Matthew Pinal | Long Beach City College | Baseball | Freshman
Pinal was a key player for the 4th-ranked Long Beach City baseball team as both a pitcher and an infielder. Pinal batted .341 including a big game against Rio Hondo on the final day of the month. He hit two home runs, including a grand slam, and hurled seven innings of one-run ball from the mound while striking out four. Pinal 4-1 with a save as a pitcher with a 2.81 ERA. Additionally, he is also batting .275 with a South Coast Conference-best four home runs, He was also named the CCCBCA Player of the Week the first week of March.
(Pete Schuler, CCCSIA)