Women Ranked #7 in Preseason Poll
Coming off a 7th Place finish at last year's NJCAA National Tournament, it is only fitting that the Lady Greyhounds begin 2021-22 ranked #7 in this year's Preseason NJCAA National Rankings.
Coming off a 7th Place finish at last year's NJCAA National Tournament, it is only fitting that the Lady Greyhounds begin 2021-22 ranked #7 in this year's Preseason NJCAA National Rankings. They finished last season ranked #13 in the final poll before advancing to the NJCAA National Tournament and finishing 7th in the nation.
Head Coach Mercedes Corona returns for her fourth year at the helm after constructing one of the greatest turnarounds in sports. In 2018-19, her first season, ASU Mid-South lost their first 10 games in a row before having to cancel the remainder of the season as the team had only four eligible players after the first semester. Her second season showed tremendous progress despite a 7-21 record against a tough schedule as the Lady Greyhounds ended the season in the Region Tournament semifinals, dropping a close 4-point game to the eventual region champions.
But those first two seasons culminated in last year's 25-2 record as the Lady Greyhounds won the Region 2 Championship by 30 points, won their first District Championship in program history and advanced to their first-ever NJCAA National Tournament in Hickory, North Carolina, where they went 3-1 for the tournament.
And this season, the Lady Greyhounds could be even better as they return the program's first All-American, center Aaliyah Lee, a 6'1" center from Atoka, Tennessee, who averaged 12.5 points and team-highs of 8.2 rebounds and 2.3 blocked shots per game. Also returning is leading scorer Meleanna Williams, who averaged 13.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.4 steals per game while earning First Team All-Region honors. And rounding out the returning starters is point guard Keiana Delaney who averaged 9.6 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game and earned All-NJCAA National Tournament honors after averaging 16.25 points in 4 National Tournament games.
The Lady Greyhounds are back to playing a full schedule after last season's pandemic-induced short season. The Lady Greyhound Classic resumes this year November 12-13, and the Lady Greyhounds play familiar non-conference foes Northeast Mississippi, Northwest Mississippi, Itawamba, and Dyersburg State while adding Mississippi Delta and Jones and also playing in the Moberly Area Classic in Missouri against State Fair and the host team. Region 2 play begins in January with 10 region games that conclude with the Region Tournament held February 22-27 at Harding University in Searcy, Arkansas.
Check out the full Preseason Poll here: https://www.njcaa.org/sports/wbkb/rankings/DII/index
