College Roundup: Former MC women’s basketball star headed to Europe to play professionally
Former Merced College women’s basketball star Malaya Kendrick, a 5-foot-6 point guard from Edison High in Fresno, has signed to play professional basketball in Kosovo.
Kendrick led the CVC in rebounding and total offense in 2019 and 2020 and was the spark behind consecutive Elite 8 appearances in the state finals.
Her Blue Devil teams posted a combined record of 54-10. She was twice voted conference player of the year and twice was designated all-state.
Kendrick since has graduated from Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas.
She will fly out of LAX on Oct. 10 and admits she knows nothing about what happens next—the airport she’s flying into, the town she’ll live in, or the team she will play for.
“I’m going to go with the flow,” Kendrick said.
That’s been her method for what she’s done since leaving Fresno after high school and with exceptional results.
Men’s Water Polo
The Blue Devils faced heavy competition last weekend in Cuesta against some of the best teams in Southern California. They finished 2-2, with wins over Ventura and San Diego Miramar.
Their record stands at 11-8, and they have faced five of the top 10 teams in the state.
The Blue Devils begin conference play on Wednesday against Los Positas in Livermore.
Dominic Guerra (Bullard, Fresno) ranks second in the state assists with 47.
Women’s Water Polo
The women beat Foothill 13-2 and Diablo Valley 13-4 last Friday at the Bob Pollitt Aquatics Center.
Goalie Savonah Ward (Golden Valley) registered 15 saves for the day. Jazzmen Hicks (Buhach Colony) had three goals and three assists.
The Blue Devils’ record stands now at 9-4, securing a No. 10 ranking in the state, No. 3 in the north, and second place in the Coast Conference behind West Valley, the state’s top-ranked team.
Men’s and Women’s Soccer
Both soccer teams registered 9-0 wins on Tuesday.
The women won at home against Porterville in their CVC season opener, putting them in first place.
The men beat Marin on the road in their final preseason game before opening conference play with a trip to Clovis. Daniel Borges (Pitman) and David Mejia (Downey) contributed to four goals against the Tars.
For the women, a pair of Buhach Colony grads accounted for seven of the nine goals: Juliana Beltran (three) and Stephanie Alvarez (four).
UC Merced
The UC Merced women’s volleyball team swept Pacific Union 3-0 this week to improve to 5-4 in California Pacific Conference play.
Serena Choi tallied her second consecutive triple-double and her third of the season, this time stuffing the stat sheet with a career-high 14 kills to go along with 14 assists and eleven digs in the 25-17, 25-18, 25-15 sweep on Thursday.
Her 14 kills came while operating at a career-best .722 hitting percentage and she becomes the first Bobcat in program history to hit over .700 with at least 18 attempts.
Olanasaze Ojo was named the California Pacific Conference Attacker of the Week on Monday.
The Bobcats middle blocker turned outside hitter averaged over 2.5 kills and 0.5 blocks per set against three of the top teams in the conference and tallied her fourth and fifth double figure kill performances of the year.
Men’s Water Polo
The Bobcats men’s water polo officially begins its inaugural season this weekend at the Keelhauler Classic in Vallejo.
The Bobcats will make their historical debut against San Jose State’s club team on Saturday at 12:30pm. The Bobcats will play three other club program’s, including Cal on Saturday and then UC Davis and the host Cal Maritime on October 2.
