After building one of Division II’s most-successful programs, Ryan McCarthy is seeking the same results in his first season at Fresno State. In 13 seasons with Alaska Anchorage he posted a 309-67 record, and the Seawolves were ranked in the top 16 in Division II for 95-consecutive polls. The 2016 team went 38-3 and reached the national championship game. He inherited the Bulldogs this spring from Jaime White, who retired after 11 seasons at FSU.
“The biggest challenge is taking over a new job in general,” McCarthy told The IX Basketball. “Because you have to start over a little bit. What has happened here, is we had to build it up from scratch and sign a bunch of players pretty late.”
While UAA is in Division II, its athletics teams are the main sporting entertainment in town, if not the entire state. Coach McCarthy noted the Fresno community also embraces its collegiate teams, albeit it in a warmer climate.
“We were in a similar market to Division I from a publicity standpoint,” he said about UAA. “From the basketball side of things, it’s been similar.”
It helped that five players made the trek south with McCarthy: Emilia Long, Ashlyn Rean, Jaisa Gamble, Hedda Köehne, and Kenzie Sirowich.
“It meant a lot to me,” McCarthy said of the players coming with him. “We didn’t sit down with individual players with a sales pitch. It was an unspoken thing that we came down here and they still wanted to be a part of it. To me, it was ingrained in the culture of our team, where it is like a family. We were moving the family down from Anchorage to Fresno, but I am forever indebted to those five ladies for making that move. We probably would be in the mix for a national championship if we had stayed there.”
McCarthy’s wife, Jenna — a former star at Florida Gulf Coast — also continued to be on his coaching staff.
Only sophomore guard Danae Powell and junior forward Avery Watkins return from the 2024-25 Fresno State team that went 19-15 and 8-10 in the Mountain West Conference. Mia Jacobs and her 18.3 points per game transferred to Oregon, leaving much room for new scorers.
The Bulldogs brought in transfers Morelia Chavez from Florida State, Indiya Clarke from Wofford, Djessira Diawara from San Jose State and Diarrah Sissoko from New Mexico State.
This season, the team is 6-5 to conclude its non-conference schedule. FSU lost by double figures at power conference teams BYU and Washington, but came to life at the Big Easy Classic in New Orleans. Powell scored 18 points in a 15-point win over New Mexico State, and FSU followed with a 13-point victory over Louisiana-Lafayette. The Bulldogs are holding opponents to a meager 23% shooting from three-point range, which is sixth in Division I.
Long leading Bulldogs in scoring
Long has adjusted to the transition well and scored a career-best 23 points against Pepperdine. The 5’9 grad student from Port Angeles, Wash., was the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year last season and scored 12.2 points with four steals per game. She began her career at Peninsula College, a two-year junior school, then played both basketball and soccer at Cal Poly Humboldt, a Division II program.
“I have been everywhere,” Long told The IX Basketball. “I started from the bottom to [make] it to the top. I have really enjoyed this process and journey. I have seen what all of the different levels look like. To grow as an athlete and as a human, that is something I really enjoy being a part of. This is the best basketball that I have been a part of and playing as an individual, as well. I have never seen so much growth as I have under McCarthy’s coaching. I really enjoy playing for him and the coaches. I am excited to see where our year takes us. I think it’s a process and I just have to trust that.”
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Long is tied with Rean, the sophomore forward from New Zealand, for the team high 12.7 points per game. Rean went down with an injury in a recent game, and McCarthy mentioned how proud of his team he is for excelling through adversity.
“We are playing with a roster that we did not anticipate,” he said. “We are learning about ourselves. My hope is that they continue to grow and develop. If we can establish that for this year and build some of the ladies that don’t get much time, I think we will be just fine.”
Marr emerging as freshman
Freshman guard Ava Marr already owns three Mountain West Freshman of the Week awards. The Brier, Wash., native scored nine points to lead FSU over the Ragin’ Cajuns of University of Louisiana Lafayette. More recently, she scored 20 — with six three pointers — to pace the team over Chicago State, 81-62.
“Ava is a really good kid,” McCarthy said. “She is tough and a coach’s kid, so her IQ is high. She brings a skill set to this team that we didn’t have with her shooting ability. Teams are starting to key in on her a little bit, so that has made her grow. From day one to where she is now, she is a completely different person and player, and I am really proud of her.”
Jaisa Gamble’s long road back to Division I
Gamble, who is from San Bruno, Calif., has witnessed her career come full circle. She sat on the bench as a freshman at UC San Diego in 2021-22 — the Tritons’ second year in Division I. Now, the senior is starting most of the games and scoring nine points per game for the Bulldogs.
“I started at DI, then went to Laney, which is a community college,” Gamble told The IX Basketball. “I spent two years at Alaska Anchorage under Coach McCarthy, and now I am back at Division I. I really enjoyed the journey. Over the course of the past five years, I have seen a lot of growth in myself. I started at the DI level playing zero minutes, now I am back at the DI level, playing 38, so it has been a crazy journey.
“The main difference is that every night is a true competition,” Gamble continued. “At the Division II level, especially with the team we had last year, there were nights where our average game could pull out a win, and here, we really have to be on top of our game every night. But there is never a disparity where we don’t have a chance, so if we bring our best, our best is enough. I think this process is getting to what our best is.”
The Bulldogs open up Mountain West play with San Diego State and Wyoming at home this week. They will play at UNLV on New Year’s Eve.
