Cowgirls learn SLC schedule

Published 2:54 pm Tuesday, August 5, 2025

Guillory likely out of season

McNeese State’s women’s basketball team will open its Southland Conference schedule at home on Friday, December 12, against East Texas A&M.

The Cowgirls learned their league slate Tuesday when the SLC released its conference schedule. The men’s schedule will be released on Wednesday. 

Also on Tuesday, the new McNeese head coach, Ayla Guzzardo, told the American Press that star guard Paris Guillory underwent surgery on her right knee and likely will miss the upcoming season.

“It’s sad news, but we are not going to rush her back,” said Guzzardo. “It is tough for her, but we feel she will bounce back.”

Guzzardo said she expects Guillory to have a full recovery and return the following season.

Guillory missed 13 games last season because of issues with the same knee. She was the only Cowgirl to average in double figures at 13.8 points. She was also the only player returning on the McNeese roster.

Guillory was a high school standout and local fan favorite at St. Louis Catholic in Lake Charles.

As for the SLC schedule, the opener will be a rare Friday night home game for the Cowgirls and will come a little over a month after they begin the Ayla Guzzardo era at home on Nov. 3 with their annual Kids Game against Pensacola Christian College. After the Kids Game, McNeese will head to Alabama on Nov. 6.

Unlike last season, the Cowgirls will play all of their non-conference games before they begin Southland action. That’s in part due to the new 22-game league schedule, as all teams will play each SLC foe on a home-and-home basis.

“I didn’t mind playing just the 20 conference games,” Guzzardo said. “That gave us two more non-conference games, but whatever the league wants to do, I’m good with.”

Guzzardo comes to McNeese after a successful run at rival Southeastern, where she led the Lady Lions to the regular season title twice over the last three years. She brought most of her team with her to Lake Charles as she goes for a repeat.

“We are considering this a team repeat,” said Guzzardo, who came with 14 members of her roster and staff from SELA. “We just want to win both the regular season and tournament titles this time.”

After the league opener against ETAM, McNeese will host Northwestern State the following Monday, Dec. 15, before taking off until after Christmas. When they return, the Cowgirls will travel to Incarnate Word on Dec. 29 before finishing out 2025 on New Year’s Eve at Houston Christian.

The fun will begin after the new year when the Cowgirls play three straight at home, starting with Lamar on Jan. 3, followed by Nicholls five days later. 

Two days after that, on Saturday, Jan. 10, Southeastern will come to the Legacy Center to take on its old head coach in what should be an emotional contest. Guzzardo will return to Hammond on Jan. 22 at the end of a three-game road trip that goes from Corpus Christi, Texas, through Texas-Rio Grande Valley and ending at Southeastern.

“That will be a fun reunion with a lot of friends down there,” said Guzzardo. “We had eight great years there and have a lot of fans.”

By the end of January, the Cowgirls will have gone through a gauntlet that has them laying five of six on the road, including all the expected contenders.

“It will be tough, but that will get us battle-tested for the tournament,” said Guzzaro. “With our preleague schedule, we should be ready for it.”

McNeese will play just two of its nine nonconference games at home to start the season.

McNeese will end the regular season with a home game against Stephen F. Austin on March 2. A week later, the Legacy Center will host the Southland Conference Championships with a trip to the NCAA Tournament on the line.