Monday, November 4
Bowling Green, Ohio / Stroh Center
6 p.m. CT (7 p.m. ET)
Southern Miss
at
Bowling Green
Photo by: Joe Harper/bgnphoto.com
Lady Eagles Begin Season With MAC-SBC Challenge at Bowling Green
11/3/2024 10:40:00 AM | Women's Basketball
HATTIESBURG, Miss. – Southern Miss women's basketball begins its 50th season of competition on Monday, Nov. 1, at Bowling Green as part of the MAC-SBC Challenge. Tipoff at the Stroh Center in Bowling Green, Ohio, is set for 6 p.m. CT (7 p.m. ET) and will be broadcast on ESPN+.
Game One // Southern Miss (20-14 in 2023-24) at Bowling Green (13-15 in 2023-24)
Monday, Nov. 4, 2024 // 6 p.m. CT
TV: ESPN+ // Brad Woznicki (PxP) and Samantha Momeyer (Color)
Radio: Southern Miss Sports Network (92.7 FM) // Jason Baker (PxP)
Stroh Center (4,387) // Bowling Green, Ohio
Starting Five
1) Southern Miss returns just five from last season's WNIT Super 16 squad, including four starters from the postseason run. In total, the Lady Eagles lost 55 percent of their scoring from last season and 44 percent of minutes played.
2) Melyia Grayson (Hattiesburg, Miss.) leads the group of five returners while riding a 59-game starting streak dating back to the 2022-23 season. Grayson is joined by fellow Mississippian Jacorriah Bracey (Drew, Miss.) and sophomore sharpshooter Morgan Sieper (Tampa, Fla.) as the three Lady Eagles to start the majority of their games last year. Also returning is postseason point guard Nyla Jean (Tampa, Fla.) and reserve guard Mikaylah Manley (Lake Charles, La.).
3) With just five returners, Southern Miss added eight newcomers in the offseason spread between high school signees, junior college transfers and one Sun Belt Conference veteran. Freshmen include Micah Cooper (Carrollton, Texas), Jaime Gallatly (Maffra, Australia), Whitney Hart (Baton Rouge, La.), Trinity Rowe (Pikeville, Ky.) and Ava Shields (Hammond, La.). From the junior college ranks comes Je'Mya Evans (Gulfport, Miss.) via Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College and Samantha Shanks (Webbers Falls, Okla.) from Connors State College. Former ULM Warhawk and Arkansas State Red Wolf Bre Sutton (New Orleans, La.) reunites with her former coaches for her final season of eligibility to lead the newcomers.
4) The Lady Eagles are riding an 11-game winning streak in season openers dating back to 2013. Southern Miss also has a 10-game November and looks to move that streak to 11 consecutive games.
5) Head coach Joye Lee-McNelis is back for her 21st season at the helm of the Lady Eagle program. She sports a 329-287 record at Southern Miss and a 558-443 career record in 34 seasons as a head coach. Bowling Green will be the 161st opponent McNelis has coached against in her 34-season career.
About the Falcons
Bowling Green enters the second season of the Fred Chmiel era after a 16-15 debut in 2023-24 that netted the Falcons a berth in the Postseason WNIT. Chmiel returns seven letterwinners from that squad in addition to five high school signees and two junior college transfers to round out his roster. The Falcons also hope to get last year's leading scorer prior to injury Lexi Fleming.
In their 102-47 exhibition win over Wittenberg, five Falcons finished with double-figure scoring efforts led by Erika Porter's 25 points in 17 minutes on the floor. BGSU played 13 players on the day with each scoring. Of the Falcons' 102 points, 31 game at the free throw line on 36 attempts.
The Bowling Green Series
Monday marks the first meeting between the two programs and between head coaches in either's history. In fact, the game is Southern Miss' first true road game in Ohio since Feb. 20, 2005, a 66-57 loss at Cincinnati in Conference USA action.
Southern Miss is 18-13 all-time against six Buckeye State programs. Bowling Green has only played one game against a Mississippi-based team, a Nov. 26, 2999, meeting against Ole Miss in Bozeman, Mont.
After This
Southern Miss returns home for its home opener against Blue Mountain Christian on Thursday, Nov. 7, with tipoff set for 11 a.m. at Reed Green Coliseum. The Lady Eagles will also mark the day with their annual Education Day game with over 4,000 local elementary and middle school students already RSVPed for the day.
Celebrating 50 Seasons of Southern Miss Women's Basketball
The 2024-25 season of Southern Miss Lady Eagle Basketball marks a major milestone for the program and for The University of Southern Mississippi as the women's basketball program celebrates its 50th season of competition. Following the adoption of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Southern Miss added women's basketball and women's tennis as official athletic programs beginning in the 1975-76 season. Since then, the Lady Eagles have laid out five decades of excellence on and off the court. To celebrate this golden jubilee, Southern Miss women's basketball will host its 50th Season Celebration and Reunion on Saturday, January 18, against South Alabama at Reed Green Coliseum.
Follow The Lady Eagles
Follow the Lady Eagles on Twitter (@SouthernMissWBB), Instagram (@southernmisswbb) or on Facebook (/SouthernMissWBB) to stay up-to-date on Southern Miss women's basketball. Fans can visit Southern Miss.com or download the Southern Miss GameDay app to see full schedules, releases and more.
Game One // Southern Miss (20-14 in 2023-24) at Bowling Green (13-15 in 2023-24)
Monday, Nov. 4, 2024 // 6 p.m. CT
TV: ESPN+ // Brad Woznicki (PxP) and Samantha Momeyer (Color)
Radio: Southern Miss Sports Network (92.7 FM) // Jason Baker (PxP)
Stroh Center (4,387) // Bowling Green, Ohio
Starting Five
1) Southern Miss returns just five from last season's WNIT Super 16 squad, including four starters from the postseason run. In total, the Lady Eagles lost 55 percent of their scoring from last season and 44 percent of minutes played.
2) Melyia Grayson (Hattiesburg, Miss.) leads the group of five returners while riding a 59-game starting streak dating back to the 2022-23 season. Grayson is joined by fellow Mississippian Jacorriah Bracey (Drew, Miss.) and sophomore sharpshooter Morgan Sieper (Tampa, Fla.) as the three Lady Eagles to start the majority of their games last year. Also returning is postseason point guard Nyla Jean (Tampa, Fla.) and reserve guard Mikaylah Manley (Lake Charles, La.).
3) With just five returners, Southern Miss added eight newcomers in the offseason spread between high school signees, junior college transfers and one Sun Belt Conference veteran. Freshmen include Micah Cooper (Carrollton, Texas), Jaime Gallatly (Maffra, Australia), Whitney Hart (Baton Rouge, La.), Trinity Rowe (Pikeville, Ky.) and Ava Shields (Hammond, La.). From the junior college ranks comes Je'Mya Evans (Gulfport, Miss.) via Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College and Samantha Shanks (Webbers Falls, Okla.) from Connors State College. Former ULM Warhawk and Arkansas State Red Wolf Bre Sutton (New Orleans, La.) reunites with her former coaches for her final season of eligibility to lead the newcomers.
4) The Lady Eagles are riding an 11-game winning streak in season openers dating back to 2013. Southern Miss also has a 10-game November and looks to move that streak to 11 consecutive games.
5) Head coach Joye Lee-McNelis is back for her 21st season at the helm of the Lady Eagle program. She sports a 329-287 record at Southern Miss and a 558-443 career record in 34 seasons as a head coach. Bowling Green will be the 161st opponent McNelis has coached against in her 34-season career.
About the Falcons
Bowling Green enters the second season of the Fred Chmiel era after a 16-15 debut in 2023-24 that netted the Falcons a berth in the Postseason WNIT. Chmiel returns seven letterwinners from that squad in addition to five high school signees and two junior college transfers to round out his roster. The Falcons also hope to get last year's leading scorer prior to injury Lexi Fleming.
In their 102-47 exhibition win over Wittenberg, five Falcons finished with double-figure scoring efforts led by Erika Porter's 25 points in 17 minutes on the floor. BGSU played 13 players on the day with each scoring. Of the Falcons' 102 points, 31 game at the free throw line on 36 attempts.
The Bowling Green Series
Monday marks the first meeting between the two programs and between head coaches in either's history. In fact, the game is Southern Miss' first true road game in Ohio since Feb. 20, 2005, a 66-57 loss at Cincinnati in Conference USA action.
Southern Miss is 18-13 all-time against six Buckeye State programs. Bowling Green has only played one game against a Mississippi-based team, a Nov. 26, 2999, meeting against Ole Miss in Bozeman, Mont.
After This
Southern Miss returns home for its home opener against Blue Mountain Christian on Thursday, Nov. 7, with tipoff set for 11 a.m. at Reed Green Coliseum. The Lady Eagles will also mark the day with their annual Education Day game with over 4,000 local elementary and middle school students already RSVPed for the day.
Celebrating 50 Seasons of Southern Miss Women's Basketball
The 2024-25 season of Southern Miss Lady Eagle Basketball marks a major milestone for the program and for The University of Southern Mississippi as the women's basketball program celebrates its 50th season of competition. Following the adoption of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Southern Miss added women's basketball and women's tennis as official athletic programs beginning in the 1975-76 season. Since then, the Lady Eagles have laid out five decades of excellence on and off the court. To celebrate this golden jubilee, Southern Miss women's basketball will host its 50th Season Celebration and Reunion on Saturday, January 18, against South Alabama at Reed Green Coliseum.
Follow The Lady Eagles
Follow the Lady Eagles on Twitter (@SouthernMissWBB), Instagram (@southernmisswbb) or on Facebook (/SouthernMissWBB) to stay up-to-date on Southern Miss women's basketball. Fans can visit Southern Miss.com or download the Southern Miss GameDay app to see full schedules, releases and more.
– #McNelisStrong | #SMTTT –
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