Preview: Miami women’s basketball opens 2025-26 season on road against Coastal Carolina

The Miami University RedHawks women’s basketball team will start its four-month journey through the 2025-26 season with a road matchup against the Coastal Carolina University Chanticleers. The season opener tips off tonight in Conway, South Carolina.

Miami had its best season since 2018-19 last year, winning 19 games overall and going 11-7 in Mid-American Conference (MAC) play. The RedHawks earned a bid in the conference tournament and lost in the first round to the Kent State University Golden Flashes.

As head coach Glenn Box enters his third year, he said the team’s success from last season allowed the coaching staff to recruit heavily in the transfer portal.

“Our first year, we lost two kids to JUCO’s,” Box said. “Now, we have really quality kids who call us. That’s a big thing. Another thing is I’ve been fortunate to coach real pros, and people are aware of that. People understand that you’re going to develop when you come here. You look at every single kid that we’ve had here as a transfer – they’ve all done better than where they’ve been the year before.”

The RedHawks lost their top two scorers from last season, with Enjulina Gonzalez transferring to the University of Georgia and Maya Chandler graduating. Chandler returned this year as an assistant coach.

Junior forward Amber Tretter returns with two years of experience as a starter after averaging 11.2 points and 9.2 rebounds (third in the MAC) in 2024-25. Sophomore guard Tamar Singer also dons the Red and White again after averaging 6.3 points and leading the roster with 63 total steals.

Miami filled the holes on the roster with five players from the transfer portal. Those new faces include senior guard Amber Scalia, who averaged 14.8 points at St. Thomas University, and redshirt junior forward Brooke Blumenfeld, who averaged 9.1 points at Northern Illinois University, a fellow MAC school.

Fourth-year head coach Kevin Pederson led Coastal Carolina to its best record in six years and second-most wins in program history. The Chanticleers finished 23-9 overall and ranked fourth in the Sun Belt Conference (SBC). They earned a bid to the conference tournament quarterfinals and beat the Georgia State University Panthers but fell to the James Madison University Dukes in the semifinals.

The team’s leading scorers, senior guard Savannah Brooks and junior forward Alancia Ramsey, transferred after averaging 13.1 and 12.3 points per game, respectively. In total, Coastal Carolina lost five players to the transfer portal and another five to graduation.

Graduate student guard Kristin Williams (10.8 points per game) returns as the only Chanticleer who averaged double-digit points in 2024-25. She also led the roster with 82 made 3-pointers. The Chanticleers shopped around in the transfer portal and brought in seven players, including former RedHawk Hennessey Luu-Brown, as well as another three recruited out of high school.

Tonight’s matchup, the first of two MAC-SBC challenges this season, marks the first time the RedHawks will face the Chanticleers. Tipoff for the game is at 6 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+.

@kethanbabu_04