Nine Teams, Nine Days – Over the next nine days we’ll take a look at each of the America East’s nine women’s basketball programs in a lead up to the 2023-24 season. The regular season begins on Monday, Nov. 6 with eight teams in action and the full schedule of contests can be found here.
UMBC head coach Johnetta Hayes put together one of the best seasons in recent program memory as her fast-pace Retrievers surprised all the prognosticators in 2022-23. After being picked to finish ninth, UMBC had a slow start in non-conference action but turned it on in #AEHoops play, finishing 10-6 and reaching the #AEHoops Semifinals as the No. 4 seed.
Last year Hayes relied on a strong group of transfers to run one of the best offenses in the league and this year the team will again try to do that while also being sure to play strong defense.
“I think we’ll be a better defensive team, we definitely turned it up on the defensive end,” said Hayes. “Our goal is to get more stops, play harder all the time and we inherited a group of you ladies who have bought into that and understand how important it is.”
Leading the team this year will be junior guard Laycee Drake. The team’s top returning scorer came into her own last year, averaging 7.9 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game while being just one of two players to start all 29 contests. Hayes expects her to be a leader for the group on and off the court.
The six newcomers to the program should all find ways to contribute, with Anna Blount, Jordan Lewis and Jaliena Sanchez expected to be three of the most high profile. Blount averaged 8.0 points and 4.6 rebounds at UC Riverside, while Lewis put up 4.4 points and 1.8 rebounds per game at La Salle. Sanchez, meanwhile, is no stranger to the league after playing four seasons at UMass Lowell and last year led the America East by averaging 37.0 minutes per game with 8.5 points per contest.
UMBC begins the season with a tough test just down the road at Towson, before coming home for three straight contests. The Retrievers head west to play Oregon State on Nov. 22 and battle Manhattan, Morgan State and America on the road, before finishing conference play at home against Saint Francis (Pa.). UMBC begins conference play on Thursday, Jan. 4 against Binghamton on the road at 6:07 p.m.
UMBC – Roster - Schedule
Head Coach: Johnetta Hayes
2022-23 Record: 14-15, 10-4 (4th)
Scoring Offense: 63.5 points per game (1st)
Scoring Defense: 66.1 points per game (9th)
Steals/Game: 7.3 per game (3rd)
Returning Starters (1)
Laycee Drake, G – 7.9 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 2.5 apg
Notable Newcomers (6)
Anna Blount, F – transfer from UC Riverside
Jordan Lewis, G/F – transfer from La Salle
Jaliena Sanchez, G – transfer from UMass Lowell
Fans will once again be able to watch every #AEHoops home game on The AE on ESPN with all games airing on ESPN+ or ESPN3 domestically and AmericaEast.TV internationally.
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