Lady Cougars Open 2016-17 Season at Mt. SAC Tip-Off Classic

The College of the Canyons women's basketball opens the 2016-17 on the road this weekend with the Lady Cougars set to compete at the 2016 Linda G. Smith Memorial Tip-Off Classic hosted by Mt. SAC Nov. 4-6.

The Lady Cougars will square off against Saddleback College at 5 p.m. on Friday, before continuing in the tournament bracket through the weekend.

Canyons begins its campaign as the No. 12 ranked team in the California Community College Women's Basketball Coaches Association (CCCWBCA) regional preseason poll.

Also competing at the event are Citrus College, Rio Hondo College, College of the Desert, No. 14 San Bernardino Valley College, No. 6 Long Beach City College, and host No. 1 Mt. SAC. A full tournament bracket can be found here.

COC is one year removed from winning the program's 15th Western State Conference (WSC), South division championship after posting a 23-6 overall record and a 13-1 conference mark under head coach Greg Herrick. In all, five players from last year's squad were honored with All-WSC selections, including returning sophomore point guard Marina Rojas.

Rojas started all 29 games for the Lady Cougars in 2015-16 while averaging 7.6 points and a team-high 4.9 assists per game as a freshman.

Fellow All-WSC First Team selection Ciera O'Brien was also expected to be a major contributor this season before suffering a season-ending knee injury earlier this fall. With O'Brien's absence, sophomore forward Tasi Ramon is the only other returning player on Coach Herrick's squad.

As such, Herrick will look to the team's stable of 10 freshmen to provide contributions.

Guards Alexis Corona, Gissel Sanchez, Dayna Tanaka, Tiffany Olega, Judy Couja, Morgan Bizzell, Crystal Oribio and Sabrina Hart will provide Herrick with a variety of backcourt options.

Meanwhile, forwards Jerica Washington and Sepiuta Aliki will be tasked with replacing the steady presence of post-players Monica Friedl and Hannah Green, who both left the program after transferring to four-year schools.

Friedl, a two-time All-WSC First Team selection, is now playing at California State University, San Marcos. Green, the 2016 WSC Player of the Year and a CCCAA South Region All-State Team honoree, is continuing her playing career at Illinois State University.

After this weekend, Canyons will have three weeks off before playing in the Ventura College-Kiwanas Tournament of Champions Nov. 26-27.

The Lady Cougars are scheduled to play their first home game on Friday, Jan. 6, 2017.

—Story and photo by Jesse Munoz/COC Sports Information Office.