Head coach Brian Fogel got his 200th victory on Saturday in a game against the Cal Poly Pomona Mustangs.

This was Chico State Women’s Basketball’s first victory since Nov. 16 when they edged Holy Names University and then lost four straight. 

“I’m proud of the accomplishment,” Fogel said. “What makes me the most proud is the fact that I have an administrator that believes in women’s basketball and supports me and has allowed me to coach the way I want to coach.”

After the game, players threw Fogel a celebration to mark this accomplishment.

“When he came up, we were all sitting there waiting for him to give us our after game talk and then we started splashing water all over him,” senior guard Bailey Jones said. “We drenched him in water and celebrated the 200th win with him.”

According to Chico State Athletics, Fogel is in his 14th season as head coach. During that time, he has led the Wildcats to nine postseason appearances and four National Collegiate Athletic Association Championship Tournament berths. 

“It just shows that he’s respected and they trust him and what he’s doing with the team that he’s been with throughout the years he’s been at Chico,” Jones said.

With the previous season canceled by COVID-19, some players have only known Fogel for a matter of weeks.

“Just being back on the court in general is fun in having an actual experience,” sophomore guard Morgan Mathis said. “He (Fogel) is a great coach and his words mean a lot. To hear him and be coached by him is a great experience.”

The Wildcats now turn their attention to what’s ahead. Their Dec. 11 game was cancelled, resulting in a forfeit, giving Chico State an automatic conference win. The game will not affect their overall record. 

The Wildcats next opponent will be the Humboldt State Lumberjacks on Saturday, Dec. 18 at 5:30 p.m. in Acker Gym.

They currently hold a record of 4-4 (2-2 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association), and are the sixth best team in the CCAA. Fogel acknowledged some tough losses, but expressed optimism about the team’s future.

“We’re a young, inexperienced team that has played a lot of close games,” Fogel said. “We just need to continue to push forward, we need to support one another, we have to learn together. If we do that, I think that the future is bright. It’s a very talented group.”

Alex Martin and can be reached at [email protected] or @alexmartinjour on Twitter.