All the changes made to the Cowgirls roster may have been noticed logically, but they seem to have been missed by the rest of the Southland Conference.

The McNeese State women’s basketball team learned they have been picked for 11th out of 12 teams in the SLC preseason poll released Thursday.

That was after the Cowgirls finished just 6-25 last season and missed the postseason tournament.

“The expectations within our locker room goes well beyond six wins,” said graduate transfer Tyrielle Williams (South Alabama). “We have a lot of expectations for this year.”

Williams is one of eight newcomers to the roster, seven of those transfers with six have ties to Louisiana.

“We wanted to change the way we do things,” said head coach Lynn Kennedy. “We have been trying to get more players from Louisiana and this year we were able to do it.”

The addition of associate head coach Mike Pittman has been a big part of that. Now the Cowgirls hope it pays off. 

“Building programs is never easy, especially with the portal,” Kennedy said. “It will pay off even more. It is a process.”

McNeese finished with just 61 points, just 10 more than Houston Christian.

Lamar was the winner of the with 236 points and 19 of 24 first-place votes. Southeastern received five top votes and 213 overall.

The Cowgirls are hoping to catch some folks by surprise this year thanks to the newcomers and five returning letterwinners including three starters. All five freshmen from last year’s team returned despite the portal.

“I think we got the right mix,” said Kennedy. “But we have to go out and do it on the court. We want to go out there and make a statement.”

Kennedy hopes that getting local players, like Saint Louis High standout Paris Guillory (Louisiana Tech) could have long-lasting benefits to the program.

“We wanted to open the door with this group and keep being an option for players from the area to come play at,” said Kennedy.

The Cowgirls will open their season at home on Nov. 4 against Ecclesia at 11 a.m.

 

2024 Southland Women’s Basketball Preseason Poll

1. Lamar (19)                                       236
2. Southeastern  (5)                            213
3. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi          200
4. SFA                                                    193
5. UIW                                                   149
6. Texas A&M-Commerce                  112
7. Nicholls                                             108
8. New Orleans                                     102
9. UTRGV                                                92
10. Northwestern State                          67
11. McNeese                                             61
12. HCU                                                      51