CSUN center Ari Feldman had seen the bright lights before. The roaring crowds. Their loud cheers following the punishing of an impotent rival. It was all so familiar for Feldman Saturday at the Matadome as CSUN blew out Cal Baptist 86-51 in exhibition play. The only difference was the missing net in the middle of the court. In its place, two basketball hoops had been placed at each end. Feldman, a former middle blocker for the CSUN volleyball team who… Read more

After a surprise 2010-11 season in which the Matadors finished third in the Big West Conference and had a freshman class play a pivotal role in their success, the future looked promising. But that was quickly put on hold. The NCAA decided in May to ban Northridge from all postseason play for the 2011-12 season for its continuous subpar marks in the Academic Progress Rates (APR) report, an account that measures eligibility and retention for Division-I student athletes and is… Read more

Santa Barbara – Trailing 1-0 and down 23-17 in the second set, CSUN decided it was time to make its move Wednesday night at the Thunderdome.The Matadors scored four of the next five points, drawing them within 24-21 of UC Santa Barbara. Then they got a block, making the Gauchos cringe on the floor at the thought of a possible collapse. The cringing didn’t last long, however. The block was waved off almost immediately due to a touch of the net… Read more

Boxing great Joe Frazier died Monday night of liver cancer at age 67. It’s likely the general public will remember him best as the fighter on the losing end in two of three fights against Muhammad Ali, including “The Fight of the Century” and the brutal classic “Thrilla in Manila.” And though that’s enough for the casual observer to think Ali was the superior fighter, those who examine the sport closely will tell you neither of their legacies will ever… Read more

The Matadors have won five of their last six games. Four of those wins have come at the Matadome. Their lone loss in the span took place at Long Beach State, the Big West Conference’s leader that’s currently riding a nine-game winning streak. While the 49ers (17-6, 11-2 Big West) are just one win away from clinching the outright league championship and an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, the Matadors are still fighting for their own postseason dreams, mainly… Read more

After a heartbreaking loss Thursday to Long Beach State in the Big West Conference Tournament semifinals to end the year, the Matadors chose to look at 2011 as a stepping stone for future seasons. “Our year went really well,” CSUN defender Chloe McDaniel said. “We played a bunch of tough teams so it’s hard coming away with a lot of losses, but I’m not ashamed of any of it.” After going 12-9-0 last year, the Matadors finished this season with… Read more

With CSUN sweeping its conference series over Cal State Fullerton in a 2-1 victory Saturday night, the Matadors ended their season with an overall record of 8-8-3, 4-4-2 in the Big West Conference. Overtime was the problem that plagued Northridge for the entire season as the Matadors only went 0-4-3 in games that went beyond 90 minutes. Defender and co-captain Joe Franco doesn’t want to think about those stats heading into next season. “We can brush it off. We don’t… Read more

CSUN outside hitter Mahina Haina was having one miserable game and referee Rick Olmstead wasn’t helping her state of mind. With the Matadors leading 1-0 and ahead 26-25 in the second set of their Saturday night match-up against Pacific, CSUN setter Sydney Gedryn put down an apparent set-winning point to the opposite side’s deep corner. Haina, her teammates and most of the Matadome started to celebrate. Olmstead, however, blew his whistle, called the hit out of bounds and overturned the… Read more

CSUN guard Josh Greene was the designated sixth man during the Matadors’ Saturday afternoon exhibition game against Cal Baptist, making his anxious return to the courts just a bit longer than he was hoping for. He finally went in five minutes into the game. Two minutes later, he took his first shot, a 3-pointer. He swished it. “Been waiting for this moment all week,” Greene said afterwards. The trey was the first of four for the sophomore in the midst… Read more