In the age of college athletics where the transfer portal and name, image and likeness deals have transformed team dynamics, Tracy Mason and the Southern Utah University women’s basketball team have opted for a more homegrown core. As they prepare for the new season with new and old faces alike, SUU is ready to fight for the Western Athletic Conference title.
“This is one of the most competitive, high-energy groups I’ve ever coached,” said Mason. “I think this is a very motivated group and they’re putting in the work to prepare for a successful season.”
Schedule review
With all the changes happening to the WAC, SUU is playing their final season in this conference before they officially switch to the Big Sky conference in August 2026.
To kick off the final year in the WAC, Southern Utah will compete in a six-team conference. Some notable games Southern Utah is looking forward to are:
— Season opener against Park University Gilbert on Monday, Nov. 3 at 6:30 p.m.
— Loyola Marymount University Christmas Tournament starting on Saturday, Dec. 20.
— Conference play kicks off on Monday, Dec. 29 against Utah Tech University.
— Home finale against Abilene Christian University on Sunday, Feb. 22.
— Season finale against California Baptist University on Saturday, March 7.
With a small conference, Southern Utah will play every WAC opponent three times during conference play, totaling 18 games.
Key departures
Some major holes this team will need to fill come from the departures of two of SUU’s all-time leaders in Samatha Johnston and Daylani Ballena. Not only did they play pivotal roles for this university, but they were the last two players from the championship run in the 2022-23 season.
Ballena played all five years for the T-Birds, starting in four of those five. She led the team in scoring in back-to-back seasons and appeared in 138 games in her five years at Southern Utah.
Along with Ballena through those years was Johnston. The guard from Cedar City, Utah is SUU’s all-time leader in career games played with 140 and three-pointers made with 264. Johnston is also third all-time in minutes played with 3,870.
Along with Johnston and Ballena, SUU lost guard Sydney Gandy, forward Lexi Bull and forward Jaeden Brown to graduation. Those five players combined for 36.2 points per game.
Returning players
With many starters and role players from a season ago no longer with the team, coach Mason will need to rely on many players that haven’t seen much playing time. There are four main players SUU will depend on.
Ava Uhrich, a junior from Burlingame, California, will be the engine of the T-Bird offense. Uhrich was second on the team averaging 10.5 points per game on 47.4% shooting from the field. Uhrich was second on the team in total rebounds last season with 145 and leads all players on the team in career points and rebounds at the Division 1 level.
Another player coach Mason will rely on is guard Sierra Chambers. The sophomore from Danville, California was recently named a co-captain for SUU. Chambers came soaring onto the scene, scoring 15 points in her first collegiate game, and played in every game last year.
SUU is also returning one of their most versatile defenders in Kortney Doman. The sophomore appeared in all 30 games for Southern Utah and played every position.
Ashley Banks, the only senior on the team, will look to play an accelerated role for coach Mason after spending the previous two years as the backup center. Banks averaged 3.4 points a game last year and finished second on the team with 21 blocks before going down with an injury.
New faces
Looking to fill a few holes in the roster, coach Mason brought in a flurry of backcourt depth paired with a trio of forwards. One of those forwards is Brooklyn Fely, a transfer from Umpqua Community College where she’s the all-time leading scorer and rebounder. Fely was also named co-captain.
A few other notable incoming transfers and freshman are:
— Joss Baker, a freshman wing from Salt Lake City who averaged 20 points and 11 rebounds her senior year of high school.
— Morgan Trigueiro, a sharpshooter junior guard that transferred from College of the Sequoias.
— Nike Borg, a freshman from Stockholm, Sweden who plays for the Swedish National team
— Emily Scholtes, a redshirt freshman from Victoria, Australia.
— Devyn Kiernan, a freshman from Orange, California who had a decorated career at Mater Dei High School.
— Vallory Kuelker, a freshman guard from Boulder Creek, California who went to Pinewood High School and was once teammates with Uhrich.
Author: Jack Paul
Photographer: SUU Athletics
Editor: Payson Davis
