State champion Sierra College nails down top spot in final CCCSIA Women’s Basketball Poll

SACRAMENTO – Sierra College didn’t hold down the No. 1 position in the California Community College Sports Information Association (CCCSIA) poll at any point this season but finally grabbed the top spot the best way possible – by winning the 2022 CCCAA Women’s Basketball Championship.

The Wolverines (28-3), who downed previous No. 1 and Big 8 Conference rival San Joaquin Delta in Sunday’s title tilt, 76-71, headline the the final top 25 poll of the year, garnering 159 points. That’s just ahead of Delta (30-3), which had 153 points and was the state’s only 30-game winner.

The top eight teams in the rankings were all in the Elite Eight in Lemoore last week with Irvine Valley, College of the Sequoias, Mt. San Antonio, Palomar, Butte and Moorpark falling in line behind the top two teams. Fresno City (24-5) and City College of San Francisco (21-6) round out the top 10. The top 13 teams were all 20-game winners while 17 of the top 25 reached the magical mark.

Butte made the biggest jump of teams in the top half of the poll, rising four spots to No. 7 while Merced went from the receiving votes category to a final ranking at No. 15. Cypress, ranked 18^th, No. 24 Allan Hancock and No. 25 Chabot went from no votes in the previous ranking to a seat in the top 25.

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Recap of 2022 CCCAA Championship

SIERRA COLLEGE WINS CCCAA TITLE

By Greg Murphy, CCCWBCA

SAN LUIS OBISPO - Sierra College (Rocklin, Calif.) has been crowned the California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) 2021-2022 women’s basketball champions.  It is the second title for the Wolverines and the first for 16-year Head Coach Brandie Murrish.

Sierra began its run in regionals against ccnference-mate Folsom Lake College (Folsom, Calif.).   The 45-point win was the largest margin of the three matchups in the season series.  

Merced College put up a challenge in regional finals.  Merced out-rebounded and out-shot.  Sierra made up the differences with nine more trips to the free throw line nine to win 67-59.

Moorpark College had struggles late in the season, yet made CCCAA Finals.  Moorpark sprint to a 9-0 lead.  Sierra took charge as Moorpark’s issues returned.  The Wolverines were able to rest their starters with the largest winning margin at State, 83-53.

The semifinal was versus College of the Sequoias.  The Giants led much of the first half, by as much as 23-17.  Sierra responded with a 13-0 run to take the lead for good.  The final was 69-53.

Sunday’s championship was between the top two North Region seeds, No. 2 Sierra vs. No. 1 San Joaquin Delta College from Stockton, Calif.  Delta swept their conference series by nine and 38 points.  It looked like history would repeat with early Mustang leads.  The Wolverines moved ahead halfway through the first stanza.

The lead flip-flopped until Sierra pushed its way though a 10-0 run and a six-point edge.  The lead was ten by halftime and 21 with one period remaining.

Before Sierra could score in the fourth quarter, Delta had cut their deficit to 11.  Before they scored again, the margin was five.  Twice, the Mustangs were in range at four.  San Joaquin Delta was forced to foul and Sierra celebrated after making four of six free throws.  The final score was Sierra 76, San Joaquin Delta 71.

Delta had to mount another big, late comeback in its Saturday semifinal.  Irvine Valley College (Irvine, Calif.) had the Mustangs down 19 points midway through the third quarter.  A 32-11 run put Delta in the lead with 1:48 left in regulation.  After Irvine free throws, Delta dashed off a 6-0 run to close out the contest 77 to 74.

An eight-point streak to begin the fourth quarter put Palomar College (San Marcos, Calif.) in dire straits in their quarterfinal with Delta.  By the time the Comets got their offense working again, the Mustangs led by nine in the final minute, six at the buzzer.

In regional play, San Joaquin Delta opened with a 40-point win over State host West Hills College Lemoore (Lemoore, Calif.).  The Mustangs had good starts in each half to put away Skyline College (San Bruno, Calif.) in the state qualifier round, 61-49.

Irvine Valley was the lone South Region squad to advance to the State semifinals.  Butte College (Oroville, Calif.) play from behind for most of the tilt, only taking the lead once, but never losing touch with the Lasers.  Time ran out for the Roadrunners with the scoreboard reading 56-48.

Irvin Valley’s regional trek was impressive with a pair of large wins, 49 points over Cerritos College and a 37-point margin over College of the Canyons (Santa Clarita, Calif.).

Sequoias’ quest to qualify for State brought wins against Modesto Junior College (89-61) and City College of San Francisco (88-73).  An offnsive foul gave Mt. San Antonio (Walnut, Calif.) a chance to take the lead with 18 seconds remaining in the State quarterfinal.  A layup in the paint refuse to draw net.  A pair of free throws won the game for the Giants.