After dropping its first three California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) contests, the Chico State women's basketball team regained its confidence with an impressive win last weekend, and looks to build on its victory over Cal Poly Pomona with another pair of conference wins. The Wildcats face another "home and away" schedule this week, hosting Cal State Monterey Bay Thursday at 5:30 p.m. at Acker Gym, followed by a 1 p.m. tilt Saturday against Sonoma State at the Wolves' Den in Rohnert Park.
 
Fans can follow the action locally on Newstalk 93.9 KPAY FM. Mike Baca and Mike Wessel's broadcasts will be simulcast on the Internet through the Wildcat Athletics website, which will also feature Live Stats and live streaming video.
 
Chico State sits at 5-4 on the season, and begins the week's action tied for ninth place in the CCAA with a 1-3 conference record. Thanks to last Saturday's 79-67 win over Pomona, the Wildcats are 2-2 this season in the friendly confines of Acker Gym.
 
The 'Cats used their biggest single-game point total of the season to bump the team's scoring average up to 62 points a contest. Chico State's defense remains one of the stingiest in the CCAA—the Wildcats rank fifth among all conference teams by holding opponents to 61.4 points a contest.
 
Individually, Maddy Wong is eighth in the CCAA in scoring, averaging 14.1 points a game, and stands as the conference's top 3-point shooter with 35 treys on the season. Hannah Washington is eighth among all CCAA players in free throw percentage (78.1 percent), and is ninth in rebounding, hauling in 63 boards thus far in 2019–20. Shay Stark has dished out 3.1 assists a game, ranking 10th in the conference.
 
Cal State Monterey Bay, Chico State's Thursday night opponent, comes to Acker Gym 1-5 on the season and tied with the Wildcats and Cal State Dominguez Hills for ninth place in the CCAA with a 1-3 conference mark. Last week, the Otters dropped a 62-48 decision to Stanislaus State before scoring their first victory of the year Saturday with a 62-55 triumph over Humboldt State.
 
Monterey Bay is winless in its two road games this season.
 
The Otters average 58 points a game on offense, while allowing 64.2 points on the defensive end. Monterey Bay is led by freshman guard Katie Fitzgerald, who ranks fifth in the CCAA with a 15.3 points-per-game average. Junior forwards Sylvia Vartazarian and Camille Parker have combined to score over 20 points and grab 13 rebounds a contest.
 
Chico State won last season's lone meeting with Monterey Bay 77-69 in overtime January 17 in Seaside. The Wildcats have beaten the Otters nine straight since 2013 and lead the all-time series 23-6.
 
Sonoma State, which hosts the Wildcats Saturday, is currently riding a four-game winning streak, improving its season record to 7-2 while owning a share of second place in the CCAA with a 3-1 conference mark. The Seawolves collected a pair of road wins last week, knocking off Cal State San Marcos 55-49 and Cal State Dominguez Hills 74-70.
 
Sonoma State is averaging 63 points a game, but the Seawolves have really been getting it done defensively, allowing just 56.9 points a contest—second-best among CCAA teams.
 
Sonoma State has won two of three this season on its home floor, the Wolves' Den.
 
Senior forward Ugochi Anudokem, a First Team All-CCAA selection a year ago, is the Seawolves' top scorer, averaging 15.7 points a game while pulling down a whopping 13.2 rebounds a contest. Senior guard Kylie Kiech averages 14.1 points per contest and is second in the conference in free throw percentage (92.9 percent).
 
The Wildcats and Seawolves met just once last season, with Sonoma topping Chico State 71-59 March 2 at Acker Gym. The 'Cats have won five of the last eight matchups and lead the all-time series 67-21.