AUBURN, Ala. – Jacksonville State women's basketball will begin its eleventh season under head coach
Rick Pietri on Monday at Auburn. The Gamecocks will make the short trip down to the Plains to take on the Southeast Conference foe Tigers with tip-off at Neville Arena set for 7 p.m.
"As we begin our eleventh season at Jacksonville State, I'm both excited and anxious," Pietri said. "We have so many newcomers that there's a sense of the unknown as far as what's to come. I'm looking forward to continuing to learn who we are as a team."
Jax State rolled to a dominant win in Wednesday's Kids Education Day exhibition versus Montevallo. A one-point halftime lead quickly grew in the second half as the Red-and-White poured it on in an 85-55 victory. Now, Pietri's team is set to face a tough test as they travel to Auburn for the first time in four seasons.
The 2023-24 Gamecocks are comprised of a healthy mix of returners and newcomers. Four-year starter
Keiara Griffin and fellow senior forward
Madison McCoy look to lead an experienced group of familiar faces that includes juniors
Shaquice May and
Bre'Anna Rhodes and sophomore
Brooklyn McDaniel. In addition, junior college standouts
Kristol Ayson (Arizona Western JC),
Asia Barclay (Shelton State CC),
Mya Barnes (Shelton State CC),
Elsie Harris (Mississippi Gulf Coast CC), and
Jaz Spencer (Hillsborough CC) and Division I transfers
Rachel Johnson (Georgia Southern) and
Samiya Steele (Alabama State) have joined the fold to round out this year's roster.
Auburn has already impressed in several outings in preseason action. The Tigers went 3-0 in their European Tour in mid-August after defeating the Paris All-Stars, Swiss All-Stars, and professional club Monaco Basket. They beat a pair of Division II opponents at Neville Arena last week, drubbing West Georgia, 77-49, on Monday and downing Columbus State, 94-65, on Thursday.
Third-year head coach Johnnie Harris guided AU to a 16-15 record and a 5-11 mark in league play in 2022-23. Two starters return this season, highlighted by graduate guard Honesty Scott-Grayson who has over 1,000 points in her career and averaged 12.7 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 2.3 steals last year. In total, six letterwinners and eight newcomers make up Auburn's 2023-24 squad.
"Auburn is super athletic and can be extremely disruptive on defense," Pietri said. "They also have some exceptionally talented offensive players. They will be an incredible challenge to face."
The Gamecocks are 1-13 all-time versus the Tigers. The only win in the series for Jax State came at Pete Mathews Coliseum on Jan. 2, 2005, in a 71-66 upset. Auburn is 9-0 in Lee County against the Red-and-White, including a 62-53 result in the previous meeting on Dec. 29, 2019.
Monday's matchup in Auburn will be broadcast on SEC Network+ and Logan Maddox will have the call of the contest on YouTube Live (@JSUGamecocks). Links to listen to, stream, or follow along with live stats will be provided at JaxStateSports.com. In addition, score updates will be posted on Jax State Women's Basketball's X account (@JaxStateWBB).
To stay up-to-date with the Gamecocks, follow their Facebook (Jacksonville State Women's Basketball), Instagram (@JaxStateWBB), and X (@JaxStateWBB) accounts.
