Fresno State Athletics
2009-10 Bulldogs Make History
4/27/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
April 27, 2010
Complete Release in PDF Format 
FRESNO, Calif.- As Adrian Wiggins looks back on the 2009-10 season, he not only is going to remember all the school records that were broken on the court but he is also going to remember the success his team had in the classroom and in the community.
"I am proud of not only what the players did on the court but I am proud of their academic efforts," Wiggins said. "It is one stat I keep track of and that is we were first on the court and in the classroom. That is a compliment to the character of the basketball team this year."
On the floor, the Bulldogs had a record breaking season as they won a WAC championship for the third straight year and had a school record 27 wins and 19-game winning streak. The program also earned its first-ever at-large berth to the NCAA tournament, marking the third consecutive year the Bulldogs have gone to the Big Dance.
"This was a team that set new standards on the basketball court," Wiggins said. "We played some good teams and were competitive with them. Two of our losses were to Final Four teams. It helped us set a new vision for us in our expectations. We took a step forward in getting better as a team."
The success the team had brought many individual honors to players and coaches as Wiggins was named the WAC and WBCA Region 7 Coach of the Year, allowing him to be a finalist for the WBCA National Coach of the Year. Jaleesa Ross was named to the WBCA All-Region team and she earned Honorable Mention All-America honors. She was the WAC Defensive Player of the Year and earned first-team All-WAC for the second straight year.
Ross led the Bulldogs in nearly every statistical category as she netted 17.4 points and brought down a team-best 5.9 rebounds a contest. She also led the team in steals (2.1) and assists (2.9). She shot 48 percent from the field and 41 percent from the 3-point line.
Hayley Munro earned second-team All-WAC honors for the second consecutive year while Rosie Moult was named to the WAC All-Freshman team. Munro was second on the team in scoring at 11.7 points a game.
Along with the 27-7 record and the 19-game winning streak, Fresno State became the first WAC school since 2002-03 to go undefeated in conference play and it is the only time the Bulldogs have finished conference play with an unblemished record.
That accomplishment sunk in with Wiggins when he was at the Final 4 in San Antonio.
"To hear colleagues congratulate us at the Final 4 on our season puts things into perspective," Wiggins said. "Being undefeated is something to be proud of but there is so much more to this team."
The Bulldogs accomplished their record season against an extremely tough schedule as nine opponents finished the year with an RPI of 80 or better in Stanford (2), Baylor (10), West Virginia (13), USC (31), TCU (48), Boston College (50), Louisiana Tech (77) and Saint Mary's (79). The Bulldogs played nationally ranked foes Stanford (No. 2), Baylor (No. 4) and West Virginia (No. 16).
"I love the way we competed," Wiggins said. "We played good teams and we were right there. That was exciting. When we lost the team found a way to get better. That is hard to do for a lot of people."
The 2009-10 Bulldogs played for each other and sacrificed for the good of the team. This mentality was led by seniors LaShay Fears, Joh-Teena Filipe and Brittny Jones. All are set to graduate with their degrees this spring and all three were instrumental in the Bulldogs run to three WAC championships and three NCAA tournament appearances.
"In their own way they all sacrificed for the good of this team," Wiggins said. "I am not sure they will ever realize how much respect I have for them because of that."
Along with the example of the three seniors, the Bulldogs were led statistically by the play of Jaleesa Ross. The Bulldog junior led the team in nearly every statistical category as she netted 17.4 points and brought down a team-best 5.9 rebounds a contest. She also led the team in steals (2.1) and assists (2.9).
She shot 48 percent from the field and 41 percent from the 3-point line. She broke her own single season 3-point record with 103 3-pointers and she set the career 3-point record as she now has 287, breaking Lindsay Logan's record of 272. Ross was also named to the WAC All-Decade team.
"It is great to see her recognized for all the awards she received," Wiggins said. "She is a great learner. She really followed Tierre (Wilson) who followed Chantella (Perera). She learned from watching older players. She has become a great leader. Her stats reflect how hard she has worked."
Ross is a part of an upcoming senior class who has high expectations for the future of the program. This next year Hayley Munro, Emma Andrews, Marnique Arnold and Taja Edwards will join Ross as the senior leaders on the team.
The 2010-11 senior class already boasts a record of 73-27 in three years, good for a winning percentage of .730. The current school record for most wins in a class is by the class from 2004-08 who earned 84 wins. The class with the best winning percentage is the 1983-87 class who was 81-37, good for a winning percentage of .686.
Despite all the success of winning championships, one goal for the class and program is to win in the NCAA tournament.
"This group has a desire to win in the tournament," Wiggins said. "They love being conference champions. They love to play for each other and they know this is their last chance to hang a fourth banner. They are a smart group and in their minds this is their last chance to top a few things."
In the classroom, the Bulldogs had six student-athletes earn Academic All-WAC honors. Andrews, Fears, Jones, Munro, Ross and Ali Drennan all earned the honor, putting Fresno State tied for the most Academic All-WAC selections for women's basketball. The six Academic All-WAC selections is the most since six Bulldogs earned the honor in 2005-06 and it is the most named to the team for Fresno State since it joined the WAC. The 1994-95 and the 2004-05 teams also boasted six Academic All-WAC honorees.
With the success the program has had over the last three years Wiggins and his staff is excited about where the program is going and the respect it is getting around the country.
"I am proud of the program," Wiggins said. "I get a lot of praise when we have success but it is really a team-effort. These players believe in the people around them. Playing basketball at Fresno State is a humbling and honorable thing to play basketball here."
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