Summer class an 'active time' for NVC women's basketball program
Photos: Paul DeBolt, head coach of the Napa Valley College women's basketball team
Photos by Marty James
By MARTY JAMES
A white board, stationed near the trophy case, catches your eye when you enter the lobby of the Napa Valley College gym this month.
On it are a list of goals for the players in the NVC women's basketball program.
At the very top of the list, it reads: "NVC women's bball summer goals:"
For the players, who started their summer class on July 1, there are four goals that are listed:
"1. Get to know each other on and off the court."
"2. Get into good habits that will prioritize well being."
"3. Get acclimated to our style of bball."
"4. Grow our program in numbers and value."
There is a lot going on for NVC women's basketball, with the program offering a summer class that meets four days a week, Monday through Thursday, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., until August 8.
"I want them to know what it is we're trying to accomplish this summer. We may not have everybody together all the time. But we can still put in a lot of good work and get a lot done, so we're not starting from scratch with the freshmen in the fall," said Storm head coach Paul DeBolt.
"So, it's an important time for them to kind of get the feel for what it is we do."
Players are in the weight room, lifting weights, twice a week.
Players are involved in conditioning.
Players are getting in a lot of individual skill work, offensively and defensively.
That's not all.
"We're still recruiting for this year and for next year. And so, it's an active time right now," said DeBolt.
Inside DeBolt's office is another white board, with the names of the eight players, a combination of three returners and five incoming freshmen, who are in the program.
"We've got eight right now. We've got a couple more that are close. A couple more close to committing," said DeBolt.
"It's fun coming to the gym every day. It's a good group. They work hard."
Rose Jamison, a guard-forward, is the Storm's top returner. She was granted a medical redshirt after being limited to playing in only three games last year, averaging 8.0 points and 4.7 rebounds per game.
Jamison was a unanimous first-team All-Bay Valley Conference selection as a freshman, as she averaged 15.8 points, 8.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game, during the 2022-23 season.
She was also named to the California Community College Women's Basketball Coaches Association 2022-23 All-Academic Team.
Jamison had surgery on her left knee on Aug. 16, 2023.
She played in the Storm's spring program. She is not in the summer class and will return in August, when the fall semester starts and the Storm begins its fall session.
"She tried to come back last year and her knee just wouldn't let her," said DeBolt. "She was working out with us in the spring; that's when we had to shut her down. She got some inflammation in her knee again. In the offseason, it's more, let's not force the issue with her. Let's make sure that for her own well-being, and in her own confidence, that she feels that she's 100 percent."
Jamison is someone that NVC can build its team around, said DeBolt.
"She is doing well. She is that player – a strong rebounder, a solid defender. So, she's got that aspect of her game," said DeBolt. "And then, she can score at all three levels. She can make 3's. Great mid-range game. She can finish around the basket. So, with what we're doing offensively this year, we'll be able to utilize her a lot, in a lot of different ways."
DeBolt said Jamison is ready to have a big year for the Storm.
She scored 19 points, helping NVC to a 92-80 win over host College of the Siskiyous-Weed in a Round 1 game in the California Community College Athletic Association-Northern California Regionals during the 2022-23 season.
"There were lots of times her freshman year where we would just move her. She's out in the corner making 3's. And we pop her to the high post, post her up. She can score in the post," said DeBolt. "Hopefully, we can get a few players around her and take advantage of her skills."
Even though she was not able to play due to injury last year, Jamison was connected to the team, going to both practices and games throughout the season, providing support.
"She was here all the time. She just loves the game. She's a true hooper," said DeBolt.
Also returning for NVC is Kamilah Tiongco, a guard, and Bella Merritt, a guard.
Tiongco played in 27 games last year and averaged 6.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.7 steals per game.
Merritt played in 26 games last year and averaged 4.0 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game.
New commits to the program are:
* Jazmine Fontilla, American Canyon High, freshman. Fontilla is a transfer from UC Merced.
* Teira Greenwood, Vallejo High, freshman.
* Arianna Aguilar, St. Patrick-St. Vincent High of Vallejo, freshman.
* Ashley Torres, Pinole Valley High, freshman.
* Monica Vega, Napa High, freshman.
"We have a nice core of kids," said DeBolt. "It's a good group. It's nice to have Kamilah and Rose and Bella back.
"We have a group that I think can be a good team, can be a playoff team, can challenge for the conference championship."
NVC's summer class is designed to help the players develop good habits and for them to also get to know each other, while adding to the roster.
"We're still looking for players," said DeBolt. "And, then, just want to avoid having setbacks in the summer, so not overdoing it. We're just teaching some basic concepts. It's really a teaching time. In my mind, I've always used it to teach a little bit of something every day."
It's also what DeBolt sees as an "acclamation time," where players get acclimated to what goes on and what goes into each day.
"How we approach practice, how we approach conditioning, kind of our mindset of around teaching the game, because I think everybody teaches the game differently. We rely on reading the defense and reacting and learning how to play basketball," said DeBolt.
"It's challenging for them because most of them haven't done much for the last three months."
Last year, the Storm averaged 56.5 points, 41.4 rebounds and 13.8 assists per game.
Aguilar averaged 15.6 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game this past season for St. Partrick-St. Vincent.
Fontilla was named as the 2020-21 and 2022-23 Napa County Girls Basketball Player of the Year, as selected by the Napa Valley Register.
Fontilla averaged 12.1 points, 4.4 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.7 steals per game during the 2022-23 season for American Canyon.
Fontilla averaged 18.4 points, 4.9 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 3.8 steals per game during the 2021-22 season for American Canyon.
Fontilla did not play for UC Merced this past season due to a knee injury.
It was in May when NVC women's basketball announced on Twitter, @nvcwbb, that Torres has committed to the Storm program. Torres scored 21 points and had six steals in Pinole Valley's 70-29 CIF North Coast Section playoff win over Vallejo.
"She's just a tough kid," said DeBolt. "I've always liked the way she plays basketball and really recruited her hard. You'll see she doesn't give in. She plays hard. She plays very good defense. And she can play. She's going to get better and better offensively. She's a nice addition to our program."
NVC's assistant coaches are Zack Cook, Angelita Hutton and Monica Lloyd.
After finishing in third place in the Bay Valley Conference, NVC advanced to the California Community College Athletic Association Regional Championships last year. The Storm (16-13 overall, 10-4 Bay Valley Conference), the No. 24 seed, lost in the first round to host San Jose City College, 83-45.
Prior to taking over at Napa Valley, DeBolt led the Contra Costa College-San Pablo program for 30 years (1986-2016), directing the Comets to 11 Bay Valley Conference titles and 19 postseason appearances. The Comets finished as the state runner-up at the California Community College Athletic Association state tournament in 2001 and 2003. Contra Costa advanced to three state final four berths, four state elite eight berths, and seven state Sweet 16 berths.
DeBolt is a three-time California Community College Women's Basketball Coaches Association Junior College Region 8 Coach of the Year and an eight-time BVC Coach of the Year.
He was named as the CCCWBCA State Coach of the Year during the 2000-2001 season.
DeBolt stepped down as Contra Costa's coach in 2016. He took over as NVC's coach in 2019.
Napa Valley College Athletics honored DeBolt on his 1,000th career game as a head coach in January of 2023. He became only the fourth head coach in California community college history to coach 1,000 games and the first one to do it in Northern California.
DeBolt said a personal goal of his is to do all he can to add to the value of the program.
"We want it to be a valuable asset to the college, trying to build value into the program that will make it attractive, will make players want to come here, and will help players understand that there is a lot of value here for them, that they can get a lot out of the program, and it will truly be an asset to them for their whole lives," he said.
"We want to continue to move in a positive direction, to get the program really on its feet. We're close.
"You have got to stay gritty. Grit is a combination of passion and perseverance. And that's what we've really had to do here."
More information about the NVC women's basketball program can be obtained by contacting head coach Paul DeBolt by email at Paul.Debolt@napavalley.edu.
* Marty James is a freelance writer who makes his home in Napa. He retired on June 4, 2019 after spending 40 years as a sports writer, sports editor and executive sports editor for the Napa Valley Register, a daily newspaper in Napa County. He is a 1979 graduate of Sacramento State and a member of the California Golf Writers & Broadcasters Association. He was inducted into the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Hall of Fame in 2016, the Vintage High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2019, and the Napa High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2022.