It’s a year of change in Nacogdoches as Leonard Bishop takes over the SFA women’s basketball program after Mark Kellogg’s departure for West Virginia.

Under Kellogg, the Ladyjacks became one of the nation’s mid-major women’s basketball powers, routinely winning conference regular season titles and tournament.

Sustained success was the mantra. And while Bishop wants to keep that, the first year head coach is also adding to it.

“It’s been about ‘sustained success’ under Mark Kellogg,” Bishop said. “Now it’s about ‘sustained effort’. And a sustained mentality.”

20-win seasons have been the norm for the Ladyjacks over the past eight years. Will that continue under Leonard Bishop, who has been Mark Kellogg’s right-hand man since 2015-16?

Here is a look at the Ladyjacks.

2022-23 Season Record

27-7 Overall/15-3 WAC (2nd Regular Season)

Postseason

Lost in both the WAC tournament semifinals and WNIT 2nd round 

Departures:

• Jordan Harrison (WAC Freshman of the Year)- transfer to West Virginia 

• Avery Brittingham- transfer to UT Arlington 

• Angel Scott- transfer to Missouri State 

• Aiyana Johnson- graduated and is playing internationally 

• Zya Nugent- transfer to West Virginia

• Brionna Scott- currently in portal

Returners:

• Zoe Nelson - 6’1, Junior

• Tyler McCliment-Call - 6’0, Senior

• Avery Van Sickle  - 5’10, Redshirt Sophomore

• Destini Lombard - 5’9, Senior

• Kurstyn Harden - 6’3, Redshirt Senior

• Kyla Deck- 5’9”, Sophomore

Newcomers:

• Trinity Slocum - 5’9, JUCO Transfer

• Jasmyne Boles - 6’1, Redshirt Junior, Transfer from North Texas

• Trinity Moore - 6’0, Junior, Transfer from Oral Roberts

• Ituau Tuisaula  - 6’1, Junior, JUCO Transfer

• Mimi Gatewood - 5’6, Sophomore, Transfer from Kansas State

• Lydia Cooke-Wiggins - 5’7, Freshman

• Mele Finau - 5’11, Graduate, Transfer from UC Riverside

• Atalia Ballesteros - 5’11, Freshman

Boles and Finau combined to average 37 minutes per game a year ago so Bishop will have proven Division I experience in his first class.

Boles shot 49 percent from the field in her limited minutes as a member of the Mean Green and should be able to give Kurstyn Harden some help down low in the post. North Texas was 11-20 overall but just 8-12 in CUSA.

Meanwhile, Finau, the sister of CBU graduate Sila Finau, played across town at UC Riverside under former GCU head coach Nicole Powell and was part of a Highlander team that struggled mightily with one D2 loss and a near scare in another game. In 26 minutes per contest, Finau averaged 4.4 PPG and shot just under 25 percent from three point range. UC Riverside was just 3-17 in the Big West with six total wins a year ago.

Tuisaula shot 54 percent at the JUCO level a year ago and averaged 10 points per game for Peninsula Junior College in Washington, a program that reached the NWAC conference championship game.

Slocum was a solid distributor at Whatcom Community College in Washington, averaging 3.8 assists per game while scoring 7.2 points per game and grabbing six rebounds a game.

Gatewood was a 2022 McDonald’s All-American game nominee who appeared in four games at Kansas State a year ago. In high school, she helped lead DeSoto to a 28-2 mark and 6A UIL title.

Cooke-Wiggins won a 6A TAPPS state title in her high school career and was a double digit scorer for John Paul II HS.

Bishop rounded out his class with a little international flare in adding Ballesteros, a 5’11’ guard from Barcelona, Spain. International players have thrived in the WAC in recent years and SFA is hopeful Ballesteros continues that trend.

Outlook:

There’s no denying that losing four starters at any program in the country will hurt and that’s exactly what Leonard Bishop will step into this season, his first at the Ladyjack helm after Mark Kellogg’s departure for West Virginia.

Tyler McCliment-Call (7.3 PPG and 35% 3-point shooter last year) is the only returning starter from last year’s 27 win team that reached the WNIT 2nd round and lost in the WAC semifinals.

Meanwhile, both Destini Lombard and Kurstyn Harden also saw significant time so there is some experience but also a lot of youth. They’ll begin the process of learning to play together with a trip to Italy for a trio of games this week along with some off-court adventures. 

Schedule: 

On the Straight Outta WAC podcast Bishop dropped a couple of scheduling tidbits which included home games with North Texas and Rice.

In addition to their CUSA/WAC Alliance matchups with Middle Tennessee and Liberty he said the Ladyjacks will be playing a lot of return games, mentioning a home game against Portland among that group. 

Notes:

Bishop said on the Straight Outta WAC Podcast that this team is built to play whatever style is asked of them on a given day. They have the size to be able to grind teams out in a half court game with Kurstyn Harden returning and Boles joining the fold.

If the game goes uptempo, Bishop believes the additions of Gatewood, Slocum, Finau, and Ballesteros should compliment his returners quite nicely.

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Seven straight years of 23-plus wins. Three appearances in the WNIT. Two appearances in the NCAA Tournament. 32-4 record in WAC play the past two seasons.

Former head coach Mark Kellogg had a phrase he threw around quite often.

“Sustained Success.”

Following an 18-12 record in his first season as head coach at SFA, Kellogg took the program on a seven-year stretch of sustained success. Coming off a 27-7 season in 2022-23, and an appearance in the WNIT second round, Kellogg got the call up to the Power 5 ranks, taking his sustained success mantra to Morgantown.

With Kellogg goes WAC Freshman of the Year Jordan Harrison along with 2022 WAC Tournament MVP Zya Nugent.

Angel Scott left the program for Missouri State. Avery Brittingham headed North to UT Arlington. And Aiyana Johnson ran out of eligibility. Four of five starters gone from a 27-win team.

So, can the Ladyjacks continue the ‘sustained success’ that has been prevalent in the program the past eight seasons?

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Perhaps the better question is: will new head coach Leonard Bishop carry over what his former boss preached? Or will the Bishop have a different mantra he wants to instill in Nacogdoches?

It will most likely be a combination of both. Bishop has been the associate head coach over the past eight seasons next to Mark Kellogg. The winning or ‘sustained success’ has been in Leonard Bishop’s blood. When SFA athletic director Ryan Ivey handed the keys of the program to Bishop on April 14, 2023, it was a no-brainer.

If you didn’t see it, go watch the video clip when Ivey made the announcement to the team. Tyler McCliment-Call was pretty darn excited.

With that being said, and after losing four starters, plus a key piece of the puzzle, can Leonard Bishop keep that sustained success going?

McCliment-Call is the lone starter who returns. And while some doubt the Ladyjacks can replicate a 27-win season, there may be a possibility SFA is in the mix for a WAC title once again despite Kellogg’s departure.

Along with McCliment-Call, Destini Lombard, Kurstyn Harden and Kyle Deck return. Zoe Nelson and Avery VanSickle both return after seeing limited minutes in 2022-23.

Bishop and his staff brought in UC Riverside transfer Mele Finau along with three other Division I transfers Trinity Moore (Oral Roberts), Michayla Gatewood (Kansas State), and Jasmyne Boles (North Texas).

The Ladyjacks added a pair of JUCO guards to the mix, as well.

Yes, SFA may not have the most size in the league in 2023-24. Kurstyn Harden stands 6’3. But, after her, no other Ladyjack stands taller than 6’1.

But, expect the Ladyjacks to play fast, in transition, and push the tempo with a 94-foot full court press.

Seven straight years of 23-plus wins. With a new head coach and some roster turnover, making it eight straight will be challenging.

However, sustained success is the mantra and the SFA Ladyjacks have had no problem achieving that goal, especially with the Bishop roaming the sidelines.

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