1981-1982 Linden High Girls Basketball Team

In the rich athletic history of Linden High School, there has been multiple Sac-Joaquin
section championships won in sports such as volleyball, baseball, and softball. But there has
been only one Sac-Joaquin basketball section championship brought back to the Linden
High campus and that special achievement belongs to the 1981-1982 Girl’s basketball team.
Led by Coach Barbara Bicocca, six returning senior letter winners and fueled by a bitter loss
in the 1980-1981 section finals to Mother Lode league rival Bret Harte, this group of
determined young ladies earned their special place in Linden High School athletic history
during the 1981-1982 season.

The 1981-1982 season began with a challenging pre-season schedule that saw the Lady
Lions go 7-3 including a 2 nd place finish in the Linden Tournament, and a 3 rd place finish in
the Livingston tournament. As the defending MLL champions, the Lady Lions knew their
biggest challenge during the MLL season would come from the Bret Harte Bullfrogs. Those
expectations came to fruition, as both Linden and Bret Harte would go 12-0 against all the
other MLL teams. Earning the MLL championship would come down to how the two teams
fared against each other in their three head-to-head match-ups. The teams split their first
two regular season games with Bret Harte winning at home 40-32 and the Lady Lions
returning the favor in Linden with a thrilling overtime victory, 56-53. This meant the last
match-up would determine the league champ. Bret Harte prevailed on their home court in
with a 58-43 victory, earning the MLL crown. As the MLL runner-up, the Lady Lions did
earn a berth in the section tournament.

The Lady Lions headed into the Sac-Joaquin Section tournament with their goal to reach the
finals again and, this time, be victorious. Nothing short of a section championship was going
to be acceptable. They seemed well on their way with a 23 point first round win over
Turlock Christian, 56-33. Next up was Trans-Valley League champion Hilmar. The Lady
Lions earned a hard fought 46-42 victory to move on to the section semi-finals. There they
faced SCAL champion, Justin Sienna. Justin Sienna proved no match for the Lady Lions as
they won going away, 57-30. They were headed to the section finals for the 2 nd year in a row
and waiting for them there would be the familiar face of the Bret Harte Bullfrogs, setting up
a rematch of the 1980-1981 finals.

From the moment guard Connie Dalrymple sank a 20-foot jumper in the first 27 seconds of
the game, Linden would never trail. They led by as many as 10 points late in the 3 rd quarter
but had to hold off one last comeback effort by a proud Bret Harte team to ultimately prevail
with a 48-47 victory. A blue Sac-Joaquin section basketball championship banner was
headed to Linden for the first time in school history. Dalrymple was named the
tournament’s Most Valuable Player for her outstanding play in all four games of the
tournament and was joined on the All-Tournament team by forward Shannon Del Nero.
Mother Lode League All-League center, Vickie Freeman, was also a major contributor
throughout the tournament. Following the game, Coach Barbara Bicocca reflected on the
reversal of fortune from the previous season and said, “We would much rather win the
section championship than the league championship”.

The following week, as Sac-Joaquin Section champs, the Lady Lions headed to Arbuckle for
the Nor-Cal tournament. Paired up against the North Section champion, Willows, the Lady
Lions lost a hard fought game, 69-53. Softening the blow of the loss to some degree was the

fact that Willows would go on to take the Nor-Cal Championship. The Lady Lions completed
their season with an outstanding record of 24-6. For bringing home to Linden the only Sac-
Joaquin Section Basketball Championship, the Linden Athletic Hall of Fame is proud and
honored to induct the 1981-82 Linden High Girl’s Basketball Team in the Class of 2013.

1981-1982 Season Results