FRESNO, Calif. – Aiming to keep the momentum rolling after picking up its first PacWest Conference victory of the year, the Fresno Pacific University women's basketball team is set for the busiest week of the season.
 
THIS WEEK
Game #15: PacWest Contest
@ Point Loma
Monday, Jan. 9 • 5:30 p.m.
Golden Gymnasium • San Diego
Live Stats • Live Video
 
Game #16: PacWest Contest
vs. Hawai'i Pacific
Wednesday, Jan. 11 • 5:30 p.m.
The Special Events Center • Fresno, Calif.
Live Stats • Live Video
 
Game #17: PacWest Contest
vs. Chaminade
Saturday, Jan. 14 • 2:30 p.m.
The Special Events Center • Fresno, Calif.
Live Stats • Live Video

SCHEDULE NOTES
After this week, a road trip to Notre Dame de Namur comes on Jan. 20, and the final home game of the month will see defending PacWest Champion California Baptist make the journey to Fresno.
 
The Sunbirds wrap up January with a pair of road trips to Northern California, paying visits to Academy of Art and Holy Names.
 
Senior Day for the Sunbirds comes on Feb. 25 against Notre Dame de Namur, with the PacWest Conference Tournament beginning on March 1 in Irvine. To view the schedule in its entirety and results from this season, please click here.
 
ABOUT THE SUNBIRDS (4-10, 1-5 PacWest)
Fresno Pacific earned its first PacWest victory of the season on Thursday, outlasting Holy Names 59-53 at the Special Events Center. The Blue and Orange never trailed on Thursday despite the Hawks claiming an advantage in shooting percentage (43%-40%) and rebounds (35-34). The Sunbirds did win the turnover battle (19-13) and have now done so in four consecutive games. Abrina Salas led the team offensively, racking up 12 points while adding three steals on the defensive side. Bree Alvarez finished on her heels with 11 points and currently leads the Sunbirds with 16.7 PPG, while Freshman Cassie Pisik has been the primary rebounder so far (5.3 RPG).
 
ABOUT THE SEA LIONS (12-2, 6-1 PacWest)
Carrying the PacWest's premier defense (57.1 PPG allowed), Point Loma currently sits in second place in the league standings, just one game behind California Baptist. Alex Brunk leads the team with 13.6 PPG, joining Kassidy Gengenbacher (12.1), Roya Rustamzada (11.6), and Madison West (11.2) as Sea Lions averaging in double-figures. Rustamzada is less than a rebound away from averaging a double-double, a feat she has accomplished seven times already this season. PLNU brings a seven-game winning streak into Monday evening, including a 75-54 victory over Dominican on Saturday evening.    
 
SERIES HISTORY: FPU VS. POINT LOMA
Point Loma has won 41 of the 73 all-time meetings between the Sunbirds and Sea Lions, including four of the last five. Earlier this season, PLNU cruised to a 76-57 victory in Fresno, with Rustamzada going for 18 points and 14 rebounds to record a game-high in both categories. Pisik led FPU with 16 points, while Alex Green and Megan Lee combined for 26 points, five assists and two blocks off the bench.
 
ABOUT THE SHARKS (7-3, 4-1 PacWest)
The Sharks have won three of their last four games dating back to Dec. 15, outscoring opponents by an average of 11 points in that span. Most recently, HPU defeated Azusa Pacific by a final of 77-68 on Thursday evening, with Cece Pearl and Breanna McKenzie each scoring 24 points. The latter also collected 10 rebounds to round out her first career double-double. McKenzie leads the squad in scoring so far this year with 15.5 PPG, while Aminata Cole has hauled in 7.0 rebounds per night.  
 
SERIES HISTORY: FPU VS. HAWAI'I PACIFIC
FPU will look to improve to .500 in the all-time series on Wednesday, as the Sharks have claimed three of the first five meetings. Last season in Fresno, HPU came away with a 79-57 victory after McKenzie went for 27 points on a 9-of-16 shooting effort.  
 
ABOUT THE SILVERSWORDS (1-11, 1-7 PacWest)
Chaminade will look to snap a six-game losing skid this week and will have chances to do so on Tuesday (Academy of Art) and Thursday (Notre Dame de Namur) before heading to Fresno on Saturday. Four Silverswords have averaged in double-figures this season, highlighted by Lilia Maio's 14.9 per game. Maio also leads the team with 7.8 rebounds and ranks sixth in the PacWest Confernce with 14 blocks to date. The team's lone win came on Dec. 10, when they knocked off Hawai'i Hilo 59-54 in league action. Most recently, the Silverswords ran into California Baptist on Thursday, falling 111-77 despite scoring the most points CBU has surrendered in a win this season.
 
SERIES HISTORY: FPU VS. CHAMINADE
The Sunbirds have taken three of the four all-time meetings between the two clubs, with Chaminade's lone win coming last season in Hawai'i. The Blue and Orange swapped buckets with their hosts for most of the game, but the Silverswords ultimately emerged with a 62-58 victory.
 
HEAD COACH TIM BEAUREGARD
In his first year as the head coach of the Sunbirds, Beauregard returned to FPU after previously serving as an assistant from 2006-10. During a head coaching transition following his final season as the lead assistant at FPU, Beauregard oversaw the program for a brief period, landing top recruit Jenay Herring who went on to become FPU's second all-time leading scorer.
 
Following his time at FPU, Beauregard was hired as the lead assistant at Azusa Pacific University where he was responsible for the day-to-day operations of the program, including scheduling, recruiting, scouting and practice planning. The Cougars went on to win the 2011 NAIA National Championship after finishing as the national runner-up in 2010.
 
Beauregard is well connected in the women's basketball world and has served as camp director for nationally-recognized NBC Camps since 2005. He has run over 50 overnight camps and clinics ranging from Canada to Colorado to Southern California, and several spots in between. While at NBC Camps, Beauregard combined and emphasized basketball training with psychological and spiritual training to develop integrity and confidence in his student-athletes.
 
SHOP FPU
The Fresno Pacific Department of Athletics is proud to announce the opening of a Team Store that can be accessed on ShopFPU.com. Fans and students can now purchase apparel for all 14 athletic teams, along with numerous other items, throughout of the 2016-17 season.
 
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