‘I’m not fragile.’ Vulcans’ Barrett healthy, better than ever
Courtesy of California University of Pennsylvania
After sitting out last season because of injuries, California University’s Seairra Barrett (5) is back in the lineup, healthy and leading the PSAC in scoring.
Courtesy of California University of Pennsylvania
Seairra Barrett is leading California University’s women’s basketball team this season.
Seairra Barrett, the standout redshirt senior forward on the California University women’s basketball team, rattled off the injuries she’s suffered in the past year with the ease and speed of somebody making a routine grocery list.
“There was my shoulder. Then, my ankle. This year, it was my hand, my finger,” Barrett said.
“I tore my labrum in my shoulder. I fell under the basket. That was why I was redshirted last year. Then I broke my ankle. I was out rebounding shots at a game and jumped and landed wrong. Then I was in a cast this fall with a broken hand. I broke a knuckle.”
All of that came after a junior year when Barrett tore her meniscus and sprained her knee during a pickup basketball game prior to the season. The injury hindered her play somewhat that season but did not keep her out of the lineup.
So when Barrett fell hard to the Convocation Center court last week after being fouled during a game against Central State, a voice could be heard in the crowd. “Watch my baby – she’s fragile.”
Barrett didn’t hear the comment, but when informed about it she couldn’t contain her laughter.
“That had to be my mom,” she said. “I’ll have to tell her about that. I’m not fragile. … I keep breaking everything although I take vitamins and drink milk. Yes, I do all of that.”
This season, Barrett is healthy. And she’s been dominant. She’s playing the best basketball of her career.
Barrett is the leading scorer in the PSAC, averaging 27.8 points per game, and will lead undefeated California (4-0) into a nonconference game this afternoon at West Virginia State (2-2).
After sitting out last season as a redshirt because of the injuries, Barrett played her first game in 20 months when California opened the season with an exhibition against Division I Cincinnati and scored 14 points. A week later, in the Vulcans’ regular-season opener against West Liberty, Barrett made up for lost time by scoring a career-high 41 points on 19-of-36 shooting with seven rebounds in Cal’s 84-68 victory. She became the first Call player in nine years to score 40 points.
The next day, Barrett had 34 points, six rebounds and four steals in a win over Charleston (W.Va.).
Shepherd, the Vulcans’ next opponent, noticed what Barrett was doing and made her the focal point of the Rams’ defense. She was held to eight points but teammate Gina Vallecorsa went 8-for-8 from three-point range and Cal improved to 3-0.
“You watch the video and you can tell stopping Seairra was Shepherd’s game plan,” Cal coach Jess Strom said. “They were holding her, bumping her, holding her jersey. They didn’t want her to beat them.”
Barrett scored 25 points against Central State and was the dominant player on the court, using her athleticism to get to the rim and speed past defenders. The former Central Valley High School standout also showed a soft mid-range jump shot.
“Seairra has expanded her game away from the rim,” Strom pointed out. “When she got here as a freshman, she couldn’t make a 15-foot jump shot. Now, she can make that shot. She’s so much more athletic and can go past defenders. Even with the year off, her game has gotten better and better.”
Last season was difficult for Barrett, who was also a standout on the Vulcans’ volleyball team. All she could do was watch her Cal teammates play and practice.
“Last year,” Barrett said, “was terrible. It put me in such a low state. Knowing that I couldn’t contribute was hard to deal with. I never sat still. I knew if I was out there playing and scoring, then the team could have gone further than it did.”
Cal rode a breakout season by then-senior Shatara Parsons to an 18-4 record in the PSAC and 24-7 mark overall last year. The Vulcans lost in the first round of the NCAA Division II tournament.
Barrett was a key reserve as a freshman on Cal’s national championship team in 2014-15, averaging 7.1 points and 5.5 rebounds per game.
Now back in the lineup, Barrett knows what the goal is for this Cal team. She often reminds her teammates about why she is still playing.
“I make sure this team knows what it will take to get another (championship) ring,” Barrett said. “My leadership is going to be important.”