It took a player who last appeared in a game eight years ago--Celine Bolton-Ford--to help acting head coach Alexa Mirzaian earn her and the 2025-26 Pasadena City College women's basketball team their first victory on Sunday morning.
Bolton-Ford was having a monster freshman season back in 2017 when her year was cut short with an injury. After stepping away from the game for a few years, more injuries curtailed her attempts for a comeback until this weekend's season-opening, PCC Sisterhood of Champions Tournament played Nov. 1-2.
With her last game on Dec. 16, 2017, Bolton-Ford was a little rusty during the Lancers' 79-72, opening loss on Saturday, but on Sunday she looked like her freshman year as she came off the bench to score 17 points, make 8-for-13 from the field, and grab 11 rebounds as the Lancers routed San Bernardino Valley, 78-40.
Mirzaian, an assistant coach last season, picked up her first collegiate head coaching victory after taking over the program only a few weeks prior to the season.
The Lancers are primed to improve on a rough 24-25 campaign that produced just five victories and will do so with the added experience of two returning All-South Coast Conference players in First Team guard Lyndsey Valverde and Second Team guard Monica Menzies.
The lefty-shooting Valverde, the MVP of the tourney, scored a game-high 18 points v. SBVC and added six rebounds, four assists and four steals. Menzies poured in 14 points, making six steals plus three assists.
All-Tournament and returning sophomore forward Paris Ngeam, who collected seven points, 20 rebounds, six steals and five blocked shots in the two games, guard Ava Chang (10 points v. Taft) and center Kimberly Dominguez are all back for their second seasons in PCC uniforms.
The Lancers newcomer class is a good one with All-San Gabriel Valley Tribune selection and 5-foot-9, freshman forward Kamora Fletcher, who attended Diamond Bar High as a senior but made history at San Dimas High as a junior when she helped the Saints upset La Salle on a buzzer-beating basket for SDHS first-ever CIF Division I playoff victory. Fletcher had a terrific collegiate debut as she scored 17 points, grabbed 15 rebounds and made four steals v. the Wolverines.
Another newcomer is frosh guard Kennedy Jackson, from Quartz Hill High, who totaled 17 points, nine boards and seven assists in the first two games. Also on the '25-26 roster is 6-2, redshirt freshman center Raiah Blackmon and 5-7 guard Gemani Abrams, from Las Vegas.
In the Lancers opener, the game was a foul-a-thon as the two teams were whistled for an amazing 61 fouls, resulting in a combined 89 free throw attempts. Menzies scored 23 points and Valverde netted 21 with eight rebounds and six assists. PCC led 35-31 by halftime and 51-50 after three quarters. A 3-pointer by Menzies gave the Lancers their final lead at 61-60 with six minutes left, but Taft scored the next eight points to pull away.
"I'm proud of the way our team competed and responded this weekend," Mirzaian said. "We're continuing to grow and learn how to play together, and it's exciting to see our culture and chemistry develop day by day. After a tough loss in our opener, the team showed great resilience and energy to bounce back with a strong win v. San Bernardino Valley. This group is laying the foundation for something special. I'm really excited abut what's ahead for us this season."
Mirzaian's two assistant coaches are Patil Yaacoubian, who recently finished playing for a state final four team at Glendale College, and volunteer assistant Armen Nazaryan.
The Lancers next play the Moorpark We Are MC Invitational, an 8-team bracketed tournament, beginning Thursday, Nov. 6 at 12 noon against LA Valley. PCC returns home on Thursday, Nov. 20 when it plays Fullerton in a 6 p.m. non-conference contest. All PCC home games are at Hutto-Patterson Gymnasium.
Lyndsey Valverde puts up a shot v. San Bernardino Valley
Monica Menzies in action v. Taft
Paris Ngeam accepts a PCC Sisterhood of Champions trophy from PCC's coaching staff
