Women's Basketball | 10/29/20

ROCKLIN, Calif. – Coming off back-to-back twenty-win seasons, the Jessup Women's Basketball team is ready to tipoff their 2020-21 campaign. With the fifteenth annual Bill Holtz Warrior Classic set to take place this weekend, the Warriors will match up against Bethesda University on Saturday for a Halloween matinee. 
 
New Look Warriors In 2020-21
 
This year's Jessup squad will have a new look to it, losing four graduating seniors, along with head coach Kurt Westendorp who is now coaching at NCAA D-2 Ferris State University in Michigan. Now at the helm to lead the Warriors' program is former Duke Women's Basketball Associate Head Coach Hernando Planells
 
Along with a new coach, the roster features ten new players as well. Of the newcomers, five are incoming freshmen, three are seniors transferring in from Notre Dame De Namur University, and two are local transfers of nearby Sierra College. 
 
Key Players Returning
 
While the team no longer has some key contributors from a season ago, they will be returning their NAIA All-American Honorable Mention and GSAC All-Conference player in Miranda Zaragoza. Entering her senior year, Zaragoza is coming off a stellar junior campaign that saw her average 14.2 points per game paired with 12.3 rebounds per game. 
 
The Warriors also retain the scoring prowess of forward Aycee Willis who averaged 12.1 points per game along with guard JoeLyn Stirton who put up 11.1 points per contest. Willis and Stirton both were productive rebounders as each averaged just above 5 per game while Stirton was a defensive specialist leading the team with 53 total steals. 
 
A Look At The Opponent
 
The Bethesda University Flames will be aiming for an improved 2020-21 season, finishing 0-28 a season ago. Their last appearance in the Bill Holtz Tournament came in 2018 as they faced off with Northwest Christian University (now known as Bushnell University), and Oregon Tech. The Warriors and Flames last matched up (2016), it was the Warriors who came away with the win in that last meeting, 73-58. 
 
The Flames will have a new look in the upcoming season, as they return no players from the previous year. The leading scorer for the Flames in 2019-20 was guard Tanika Stephenson, who averaged 16.5 points per game. Bethesda faced off with three GSAC schools last year: Hope International (twice), San Diego Christian (twice), and Vanguard.

Game Day Information
 
Tip-off for Saturday's anticipated season opener is slated for 1:00 p.m. from Warrior Arena in Rocklin. Fan attendance to the game will not be permitted due to Placer County guidelines and the current COVID-19 pandemic. Live streaming and stats can be followed online at jessupathletics.com. 
   
William Jessup University is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), and the Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC). For additional information regarding Jessup Athletics, visit www.jessupathletics.com; visit www.jessup.edu for more information on William Jessup University. Follow Jessup Athletics on social media: William Jessup University Athletics (Facebook) and @JessupAthletics (Twitter & Instagram).