SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Senior guard Nika Bagatelos has committed to continue her basketball career at Chapman University in the fall and attend the school.
"I am super excited," said Bagatelos. "I am happy. I was looking at Division I schools for a while but I think Division III is better for me. I get to have the college experience but not have sports be a job. But I still will work hard at it."
Bagatelos will play for Head Coach Carol Jue. Under her guidance, the Panthers have been considered amongst the elite programs in the West Region. Since 2003, Jue has led Chapman to at least a winning record every year, including nine NCAA Division III playoff berths (2004-09, '11, '14, '18) and nine 20-win seasons. Now with an overall record of 290-116 at Chapman, her teams have won over 70 percent of their games. She has coached four All-West Region selections, three Academic All-Americans, six Academic All-District honorees and two SCIAC Athletes of the Year.
"I had a really good connection with the coach which was a positive," said Bagatelos. "They have been doing well in their league and are in a competitive league. I think it is going to be fun."
Chapman is a Division III school that plays in the competitive Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC).
"I went down to visit last summer," said Bagatelos. "Coach Jue went to Claremont where my Dad and all his brothers went to school. So we made the family connection right away when we got there. I loved the campus and Orange County. I love Anaheim and Los Angeles."
Bagatelos plans to study business with a focus on marketing and potential film minor.
She played in 101 career varsity games for the Troubadours, helping the team to three Delta League Championships, a Northern California Division I regional title and section and CIF state runner-up finishes in 2016.
"I will take away the amount of support and friendships I got from the program," said Bagatelos. "Overall it was a positive experience all four years. The excitement of freshmen year going to state to start my freshman year and the challenge to get back each year (was fun) working towards that goal. Being friends with all those seniors my freshman year was a great way to start my high school experience."
Bagatelos earned first-team Delta League honors for the second consecutive season in 2019 after leading the team in scoring at 11.7 and ranking fifth in scoring in the league. She led the league in three-pointers per game at 2.8 and ranked fourth in the Division I in the state.
"Nika is a talented and gifted basketball player," said Head Coach Heather Volek Brownholtz. "Her talents were recognized immediately at St Francis as she was moved up to Varsity as a freshman. During her 4 Varsity seasons Nika continued to work on her 3 point shot, she developed a deep range 3 and her accuracy was evident in the records she set at St Francis and in the State for 3 point shooting this season. I had the great pleasure of Coaching Nika this season, her basketball IQ is extremely high and I am thrilled that she accomplished her dream to play in college at Chapman! I am so proud of Nika in that she set high goals, put in the work necessary to accomplish her goals and now she is reaping the rewards of her labor."
Bagatelos' 82 three pointers led the league, ranked as the second-best total in school history and were the fourth-best total in Division I. It was her third league honor after earning second-team honors as a sophomore. She was also named the team's Offensive Player of the Year.
She finished her career with 203 career three-pointers, the second-best total in school history.
"When I was in the seventh grade my dad tried to make me a point guard," said Bagatelos. "In the summer between my seventh and eighth grade years, every day going to shoot was something I had to do. I could skip out on it or I would not have achieved any of this."
She capped off her senior season with Sacramento Bee All-Metro honorable mention honors.
"Our Sacramento region is insane with the number of athletes in the area so to be part of the All-Metro team is awesome," said Bagatelos. "Like (Sacramento Bee writer) Joe Davidson said, "You are All-Region for life". It is something to be proud of and talk about to my kids one day."
