Winning formula: Central Catholic girls basketball is one of two SJS undefeated teams
This is the group the Central Catholic girls basketball program has waited years for.
After shuffling lineups, having players play out of position and finishing the past few seasons with losing records, the Raiders are enjoying the benefits of health, patience, a fast-paced style of play and an unmatched work ethic.
The dream started when most of the players on the current roster were in middle school.
Raiders head coach Alison Murata Nichols had her eye on a group of young multi-sport athletes that included her daughter Samantha, Hannah Garcia, Ayla Parcon and others who, if all went according to plan, would play local AAU ball, gain chemistry and take on the high school basketball scene at Central Catholic as freshmen.
Then injuries hit.
Garcia tore her ACL and Parcon missed time on the basketball court and softball diamond with stress fractures in her left and right tibia, delaying their high school debuts.
But now, they’re healthy and off and running, just one of two undefeated teams in the Sac-Joaquin Section and off to the best start in school history at 14-0. Their current win total is already more than last season’s total. They are two wins shy of tying their most wins in the past five seasons (16-13 in 2018-19).
“We’ve anticipated this group playing together since they were in eighth grade,” Nichols said after a game at the MST Gallo Tournament at Central Catholic in late December. “I’ve known them and seen them play, it’s just been injuries that haven’t allowed them to. We were all champing at the bit. We’re excited to see them together on the floor.”
The Raiders play fast, pressuring opponents from baseline to baseline, forcing turnovers and converting them into layups. The team is ranked No. 19 in the Sac-Joaquin Section and has not allowed 45 points in a game this season.
Samantha Nichols, an All-VOL First Team selection last season as a sophomore, gets to play with her friends.
She and Garcia played on the game travel team when they were younger and is teammates on the softball diamond with a number of the other girls.
The Raiders have a team full of high-level athletes. Even if basketball is not their main sport.
Samantha Nichols is committed to play softball at the University of Florida. Stephanie Garcia, a guard, is the Raiders’ ace on the diamond and is a University of the Pacific softball commit. Hannah Garcia is committed to play soccer in the West Coast Conference at Pepperdine. Those are just a few. Nearly every player on the team plays at least one other sport.
They know about the grind. They know how to prepare. And that has helped them bond on and off the court.
“We’re athletic and we like to play defense. Just seeing them play together is fun to watch,” Alison Nichols said.
Samantha Nichols says the hardwood provides a much-needed change of pace.
“It’s not all just softball, softball, softball,” she said. “When I’m playing basketball, I’m less hard on myself. It doesn’t stress me out as much.”
In practice and games, they can get on each other because players know it is not malicious. It is done out of a desire to win.
“We’re all competitive. Even if it’s not their main sport,” Samantha Nichols said. “When we play bad, we’re all thinking how we could have done better. There’s higher expectations on us.”
Joining Samantha Nichols as returners are Stephanie Garcia, Carsyn Lomeli-Garcia and last season’s All-VOL Honorable Mention honoree Mia Cardoza.
They meshed the new players returning from injury and their returners and it was off to the races. They knew when the season opened with their Foundation Game against Modesto High that they could do something special. Samantha Nichols, Hannah Garcia and Parcon lead the team in several statistical categories and set the tone offensively and defensively.
“It didn’t count for anything but it was emotional for all of us because we’ve been waiting for that day for them to be able to be on the court for the past three years,” said Alison Nichols.
Word started buzzing around the Mark Gallo Health and Fitness Center as Central Catholic took on Central Valley in the third game of the opening day in the MST Gallo girls basketball tournament.
“Oh that’s Central (Catholic), they’re good this year.”
Though the statement is accurate, it still doesn’t accurately describe the Raiders’ turnaround to start the 2025-26 season.
They went perfect in their 13 non-league games, and opened league play with a 77-19 win over Manteca.
They won two tournaments and knocked off some of the teams that occupied spots at the top of the Stanislaus District’s girls basketball rankings in convincing fashion.
The Raiders beat Escalon twice in championship games at the Escalon and MST Gallo tournaments and beat Ceres in overtime. They also battled to a 44-43 win over Bret Harte, last season’s Division V section champion.
But their next, and most important, challenge lies ahead: the Valley Oak League.
The VOL has some of the best teams in the southern part of the Sac-Joaquin Section. Manteca, Patterson, defending league champion and D-I playoff qualifier Mountain House and a CIF-SJS Division III semifinalist in East Union will all fight with the Raiders for the league’s top spot.
Central Catholic qualified for the postseason last year but as a 12-seed. They were knocked out in the first round on the road by No. 5 Bear River.
“I’m excited to play some good competition,” Samantha Nichols said.
This story was originally published January 8, 2026 at 7:00 AM.
