Women's Basketball | October 17, 2019

Mountain MacGillivray exhales when he talks about having his rookie year behind him.

Last season marked the Philadelphia native's first as a head coach after a successful career as both an assistant and associate head coach at Quinnipiac. "It was all newness," he said. "Now I've got that feeling of excitement rather than nausea."

He touts his returning Explorers, especially senior Shalina Miller and Sofilia Ngwafang, for buying into the culture of the program he's building and putting in the off-court hours that should pay off in the win column.

"Sofilia and Shalina are in a totally different place than they were last year," he said. "Shalina is in the best shape of her entire life and is as motivated as she's ever been. She experienced some success last year and figured out she can be successful even when she doesn't have a high scoring night."

Miller is a difference-maker on the boards and blocking shots; her 64 deflections set a single-season program mark last year. That broke a 33-year-old record; Miller achieved it by finishing out the regular season with six in a 77-71 overtime win over George Mason.
 
Miller's improved conditioning should make the 6-2 center an even more imposing matchup this season.

"Sofilia has also had a strong preseason," MacGillivray said. "One of our six wins last season was directly on her back. She has the ability to be a game-changer."

The 6-4 center scored 18 points in La Salle's victory over Rhode Island last year.

Guard Deja King started 12 of 14 games before an ankle injury ended her season. She emerged as a leader during her rehab, MacGillivray said, and "became an extension of me and our staff on the floor. She's the model of what we want our team to be in terms of work ethic, court intelligence, skillset, and unselfishness."

Plus, she's healthy again, ready to contribute at point guard, the sore spot of this program a year ago. When King went down, the Explorers lost their experience at point, and the losses snowballed.

Her return and the addition of Rutgers transfer Kate Hill, eligible after sitting out last season due to NCAA rules, gives La Salle options at the 1 spot.

One more point is on the roster in Kayla Braxton-Young, a freshman from Newark, Delaware.
 
"She's explosive," said MacGillivray, who anticipates she and the other four freshmen to contribute early.
"Last year in conference, we had no point guard," he said. "Now we have three kids who are natural point guards."

The roster reflects La Salle's commitment to perimeter shooting. MacGillivray expects all his players to be 3-point threats and is already impressed with 5-10 freshman guard Christina Kline. The 1,000-point scorer from West Orange High in Winter Garden, Florida, "is the best shooter on the team," he said.
                                                              
Noting the collective depth of these Explorers, MacGillivray envisions a team with a dozen players capable of scoring 15-20 points a night.

A look at the Explorers:

Coach: Mountain MacGillivray, 2nd year, 6-25 at La Salle and overall

Last year: 6-25, 3-13 in the Atlantic 10 (lost to Dayton 65-38 in the first round of the A-10 Championship)
 
They'll miss: Leading scorer and rebounder Jeryn Reese (8.8 ppg) graduated. Rayshel Brown,
who led the Explorers in 3-point shooting, has transferred to Siena.

Impact returners: Miller set the single-season program record for blocks (64) last year, led the Explorers in steals and was second in points. Ngwafang started one game last year and averaged 7 ppg. King returns after breaking an ankle last season. The junior guard led the team in points, assists, and steals prior to the injury.

Newbies of note: Grad transfer Carley Lytton from East Tennessee State, shot 34 percent from beyond the arc last season. Kate Hill, who made four starts at Rutgers two years ago, is eligible. Braxton-Young might be the best athlete on the team. The all-time leading scorer at her high school in Newark, Delaware, the 5-7 guard also starred in lacrosse, softball, and volleyball.

Reasons to be optimistic: After one year of growing pains under a first-year coach, the Explorers should be primed to continue the building process. Having three-point guards after weathering a conference season without one will feel like a luxury.

Circle the date: Nov 9, Robert Morris; Nov. 15, Harvard; Dec. 4, Penn. "Those teams blew our doors off last year, and we weren't even competitive," MacGillivray said. "Those are the games that will be our barometer for this team. La Salle didn't have a Big 5 win last year. We want to change that."

Bottom line: With five freshmen and the foundation set, La Salle is moving in the right direction and could sneak up on a few teams by conference season.