Long Beach State University
Cal Poly
Beach Return To Big West Play At Cal Poly
1/2/2026 5:03:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Women’s Basketball turns the page to conference play after a demanding early schedule
LONG BEACH, Calif. -- The calendar flips to Big West play for Long Beach State with a road contest against Cal Poly on Saturday afternoon. The Beach return to conference action after testing themselves against a tough early schedule designed to prepare them for league play.
RIGHT AWAY
• Long Beach State tips off Big West play against Cal Poly after grinding through one of the toughest non-conference slates in the league. The series sits dead even at 17-17, and the Beach come in riding confidence from a 72-64 road win in San Luis Obispo the last time these two met.
• Through 12 games, Long Beach State averages 50.6 points per night, shooting .331 from the floor and .249 from three. Defensively, the Beach bring energy and activity, forcing turnovers with 6.2 steals per game and protecting the paint with 2.6 blocks.
• Everything runs through JaQuoia Jones-Brown, who rarely leaves the floor. The sophomore guard averages 36.2 minutes per game, the eighth-most in all of Division I, while leading the Beach in scoring at 17.4 points per game, rebounding at 6.9, and assists at 2.3. She exploded for 29 points against Sacramento State to earn Big West Player of the Week honors and then powered Long Beach State to its first win of the season with a commanding 23-point, 17-rebound performance, a career high, against Hope International. Jones-Brown also ranks sixth in the Big West in scoring, rebounding, free throw percentage at .820, offensive rebounds per game at 1.8, and defensive rebounds per game at 5.2.
• Inside, Judit Oliva Fernandez sets the physical tone. She averages 7.2 points and 5.0 rebounds while anchoring the defense with 19 blocked shots on the season at 1.6 per game, the third-best mark in the Big West.
• Kennan Ka gives Long Beach State versatility up front and a steady secondary option offensively, contributing 5.9 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game while helping initiate sets and keep the ball moving.
• Khylee Pepe brings nonstop effort and defensive edge. The senior guard averages 5.3 points and 4.6 rebounds, leads the team with 1.8 steals per game, and consistently creates second chances with 19 offensive rebounds on the year.
ABOUT THE BEACH
• Judit Oliva Fernandez has had extensive experience playing Internationally for Spain in 3x3 tournaments, an experience that she detailed for the Long Beach State Beach Reads series found at www.longbeachstate.com.
• Other returning players for Long Beach State in addition to Jones-Brown, Richards, Oliva Fernandez and Ka include sophomore guard Christy Reynoso, forward Brelynn Brice and center Haley Wright. The trio combined for 32 games played during the 2024-25 campaign.
• Two redshirts also return for Long Beach State. Tairat Samuel-Afolabi is a redshirt freshman from Sweden, while Lauren Cummings returns after playing 26 games in 2023-24 before redshirting last season.
• Khylee Pepe gives Long Beach State some veteran experience, joining the program as a senior after spending four years at San Diego State, including one as a medical redshirt in 2024-25. Pepe played in all 35 games for the Aztecs in 2023-24 as a junior, averaging 4.2 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game. In total, Pepe played in 95 games with San Diego State after entering the program as a high school recruit from Bishop Montgomery High School.
• Long Beach State brought in three high school recruits to join the team this season. Rosie Akot is a 6-2 forward whose intensity was noted by Wright, coming from Adelaide in Australia. Morgan Mack is a 5-10 guard from Lancaster, who finished her career as the top scorer in Hart HS history, while Brynna Pukis was a four-time first-team all-league selection at Glacier Peak High School in Washington.
• Long Beach State made two changes to the staff in the offseason. Jesse Clark joined the program as an assistant coach, coming to the Beach from the Academy of Art in San Francisco where he was the head coach for the last two seasons, capping over 25 years in coaching across multiple levels. The Beach added Ashley Arroyo as the team's Director of Basketball Operations, while Jashae Lee and Raru Archer return for their third seasons on staff with Amy Wright and Long Beach State.
