Rams end historic season with heartbreaking loss to Pasadena

By Aaron Turner
ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

As the final horn sounded at Selland Arena in Fresno on Friday March 13, so too sounded the end of a dream season for the Rams.

In heartbreaking fashion, the Rams lost 95-93 in overtime to Pasedena City College. The Rams 2008-2009 season saw the women’s basketball team reach a 34-3 record, the best ever at City College.

Freshman guard Jazmine Holmes led the way for City College with 26 points and four assists.

She was accompanied by the other two guards in the dynamic freshman trio, as Moné Peoples finished with 20 points, and Brittney Allen with 18 points.

Sophomore forward Monique Calvello also added 17 points of her own, along with nine rebounds.
Pasadena ultimately proved to be up to the tough task of handling the Rams scorers.

Sophomore guard Kinyada Johnson led all scorers with 34 points, before leaving the game in the final minutes with a leg cramp. Easter Faafiti also finished with 23 points and 14 rebounds to help guide the balanced Pasadena attack.

“We have never played that well and not walked away with a win,” Calvello said. “[Pasadena] put on a top show, and despite the fact that we were running and gunning, that team was just ready to go as well.”

Neither team was able to secure a significant lead. After a fast-paced, high-scoring affair in the first half, the Rams went in at halftime and were down by one point.

Pasadena got off the blocks quickly in the second half opening up with a 12-6 run to push their lead to seven points.

The Rams answered back with an 11-0 run of their own, as both Allen and Peoples began to heat up from beyond the arc.  Down the stretch, the teams swapped lead changes seven times.

After coaxing a late foul call, the Lancers converted 1 of 2 free throws to send the game to overtime.
Once in overtime, the Rams fell down by six points after three quick Pasadena scores.

Despite a few big shots by Holmes and Calvello, the Rams were simply unable to muster a final comeback.

The victorious Pasadena Lancers would go on to advance to the championship game where they won the state title.

Following the game, head coach Jamie Wong praised for her team’s accomplishments.

“Overall, we had a great season,” Wong said. “We had a great run, undefeated in our preseason, six tournament championships, and three all-conference players. How can I be disappointed?”

As far as next season is concerned, Jazmine Holmes, who was a runner-up for conference player of the year, is nothing but optimistic. The team has a good core of players coming back.

“I expect us to be just as good, or even better next season,” Holmes said.
Moné Peoples, one of the top players returning next year along with Holmes and Allen, is also excited about the team that will be taking the court next year.

“Next year, we expect to be even better,” said Peoples.  “When [the Freshmen] return, we’re just going to do that much more. We know how it feels to lose like we did, and we don’t want to experience that again.”