California State University Northridge Athletics
Photo by: Will Navarro
CSUN Women's Basketball Preview Part 2-The Newcomers
11/4/2022 12:44:00 PM | Women's Basketball
NORTHRIDGE, Calif.—The CSUN women's basketball team begins the 2022-23 season with a road trip to Northern California that gets underway on Monday at the University of California. The trip concludes on Wednesday at No. 2 Stanford.
As the campaign gets ready to get underway, this is the second of a two-part preview of the Matadors. We now look at the CSUN newcomers.
Laney Amundsen joins the Matadors from Fresno City College. The 6-1 forward averaged 14.4 points and 9.1 rebounds per game for Fresno City College during the 2021-22 season. She was a first-team All-League selection who in 25 appearances, shot 48% from the field (135-281), 36% from three-point range (36-100), and 76.4% from the free throw line (55-74). Amundsen scored a season-high 32 points against Reedley College on Jan. 22, 2022
The team went 24-5, won a league title, and advanced to the third round of the CCCAA Tournament. The younger sister of the Matadors' Tess Amundsen, Laney Amundsen also played volleyball and beach volleyball for the Rams. The volleyball team won the 2021 CCCAA State Championship and earned first-team All-League honors in beach volleyball.
COACH MITCHELL ON AMUNDSEN
"Laney is a coach's daughter who possesses a high IQ. She does all the small things that do not necessarily show up in the stats. She is a great addition to our team."
Ana Carolina De Jesus played the 2021-22 season at Eastern Florida State College, where she was named second-team All-Conference. De Jesus' Titans advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2022 NJCAA Division I Tournament, where De Jesus recorded 12 points and 10 rebounds in the 69-54 victory against Moberly Area CC in the first round.
She averaged 5.6 points and 5.5 rebounds in 31 games. The 6-3 post player began her collegiate career at Northwest Florida State College, playing for the 2021 NJCAA National Champions in 22 games.
COACH MITCHELL ON DE JESUS
"Ana is a skilled player. Her passing ability and mid-range game will make an immediate impact on our games."
Rochelle Fourie sat out last season as a redshirt in the CSUN program. She was to have joined the Matadors in time for the 2020-21 season, but CSUN opted out of the season due to COVID-19.
A 6-3 center, Fourie was a member of the U-17 and U-19 New Zealand National Teams before graduating in 2019 from the Manukura School. She earned the Manawatu Sports award, Supreme Girls award, and Sports Woman of the Year in 2019. Fourie was a member of the tournament team for the New Zealand secondary school nationals from 2017-19.
COACH MITCHELL ON FOURIE
"After a year in our system after sitting out last year, Rochelle will bring a physical presence, especially on the defensive end of the floor. She makes our team better each day."
Cheyenne Givens is a grad transfer from Pepperdine where she was second on the team in assists (48), tied for second in steals (27), and third in scoring (7.7) in 2021-22. As a junior in 2020-21, Givens finished 10th in the WCC and led the Waves in steals with 39.
She began her collegiate career at Los Angeles Trade Technical College, where as a freshman in 2018-19, she was selected SCC Player of the Year and to the CCCWBCA South Region All-State first team. In leading the team to a conference title and an Elite Eight State Tournament appearance, Givens averaged 27.7 points per game for LATTC, including a season-high 41 against Mt. SAC.
COACH MITCHELL ON GIVENS
"Cheyenne can get downhill which will bring an exciting element to our offense. Her defensive personality will help us get us easy transition points.
Arina Nikishina comes to CSUN after spending two years as a member of the women's basketball team at Kursk State University in Kursk, Russia. Nikishina was a member of the Russian U16, U18, and U20 national teams and was part of a high school team that won Russian championships in 2018 and 2019.
COACH MITCHELL ON NIKISHINA
"Arina can be a major impact player for us. She has a great defensive presence and brings international experience to our team."
The final newcomer is graduate forward De'jah Williams. Williams transferred to CSUN a year ago from Iona College but was injured during the preseason and was forced to take a medical redshirt.
She appeared in six games for Iona College in 2020-21, scoring 15 points, grabbing 11 rebounds, posting one steal, and one assist. Williams averaged 4.5 points and 2.4 rebounds in 28 appearances for Iona in 2019-20. A MAAC Academic Honor Roll honoree, she scored a season-high 20 points against Quinnipiac on Jan. 2, 2020. She began her collegiate career at the University at Albany where she played in 20 games as a redshirt freshman during the 2018-19 season.
COACH MITCHELL ON WILLIAMS
"De'Jah's ability to flex at the three and four positions will give us a big guard that can play physically on both sides of the ball. After a year off, she will be a critical player for us."
As the campaign gets ready to get underway, this is the second of a two-part preview of the Matadors. We now look at the CSUN newcomers.
Laney Amundsen joins the Matadors from Fresno City College. The 6-1 forward averaged 14.4 points and 9.1 rebounds per game for Fresno City College during the 2021-22 season. She was a first-team All-League selection who in 25 appearances, shot 48% from the field (135-281), 36% from three-point range (36-100), and 76.4% from the free throw line (55-74). Amundsen scored a season-high 32 points against Reedley College on Jan. 22, 2022
The team went 24-5, won a league title, and advanced to the third round of the CCCAA Tournament. The younger sister of the Matadors' Tess Amundsen, Laney Amundsen also played volleyball and beach volleyball for the Rams. The volleyball team won the 2021 CCCAA State Championship and earned first-team All-League honors in beach volleyball.
COACH MITCHELL ON AMUNDSEN
"Laney is a coach's daughter who possesses a high IQ. She does all the small things that do not necessarily show up in the stats. She is a great addition to our team."
Ana Carolina De Jesus played the 2021-22 season at Eastern Florida State College, where she was named second-team All-Conference. De Jesus' Titans advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2022 NJCAA Division I Tournament, where De Jesus recorded 12 points and 10 rebounds in the 69-54 victory against Moberly Area CC in the first round.
She averaged 5.6 points and 5.5 rebounds in 31 games. The 6-3 post player began her collegiate career at Northwest Florida State College, playing for the 2021 NJCAA National Champions in 22 games.
COACH MITCHELL ON DE JESUS
"Ana is a skilled player. Her passing ability and mid-range game will make an immediate impact on our games."
Rochelle Fourie sat out last season as a redshirt in the CSUN program. She was to have joined the Matadors in time for the 2020-21 season, but CSUN opted out of the season due to COVID-19.
A 6-3 center, Fourie was a member of the U-17 and U-19 New Zealand National Teams before graduating in 2019 from the Manukura School. She earned the Manawatu Sports award, Supreme Girls award, and Sports Woman of the Year in 2019. Fourie was a member of the tournament team for the New Zealand secondary school nationals from 2017-19.
COACH MITCHELL ON FOURIE
"After a year in our system after sitting out last year, Rochelle will bring a physical presence, especially on the defensive end of the floor. She makes our team better each day."
Cheyenne Givens is a grad transfer from Pepperdine where she was second on the team in assists (48), tied for second in steals (27), and third in scoring (7.7) in 2021-22. As a junior in 2020-21, Givens finished 10th in the WCC and led the Waves in steals with 39.
She began her collegiate career at Los Angeles Trade Technical College, where as a freshman in 2018-19, she was selected SCC Player of the Year and to the CCCWBCA South Region All-State first team. In leading the team to a conference title and an Elite Eight State Tournament appearance, Givens averaged 27.7 points per game for LATTC, including a season-high 41 against Mt. SAC.
COACH MITCHELL ON GIVENS
"Cheyenne can get downhill which will bring an exciting element to our offense. Her defensive personality will help us get us easy transition points.
Arina Nikishina comes to CSUN after spending two years as a member of the women's basketball team at Kursk State University in Kursk, Russia. Nikishina was a member of the Russian U16, U18, and U20 national teams and was part of a high school team that won Russian championships in 2018 and 2019.
COACH MITCHELL ON NIKISHINA
"Arina can be a major impact player for us. She has a great defensive presence and brings international experience to our team."
The final newcomer is graduate forward De'jah Williams. Williams transferred to CSUN a year ago from Iona College but was injured during the preseason and was forced to take a medical redshirt.
She appeared in six games for Iona College in 2020-21, scoring 15 points, grabbing 11 rebounds, posting one steal, and one assist. Williams averaged 4.5 points and 2.4 rebounds in 28 appearances for Iona in 2019-20. A MAAC Academic Honor Roll honoree, she scored a season-high 20 points against Quinnipiac on Jan. 2, 2020. She began her collegiate career at the University at Albany where she played in 20 games as a redshirt freshman during the 2018-19 season.
COACH MITCHELL ON WILLIAMS
"De'Jah's ability to flex at the three and four positions will give us a big guard that can play physically on both sides of the ball. After a year off, she will be a critical player for us."
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