EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — UTEP women’s basketball held its first official practice Wednesday as the Miners prepare for the 2022-23 season.
UTEP women’s basketball head coach Kevin Baker enters this season with six returning players from last year’s team and nine newcomers. Miners hope to use these practices to see what tools they will have for the upcoming season.
“We have a lot of new faces, a lot of different levels of talent, we got them from a lot of different places,” Baker said. “They can do a lot of different things. We already have tremendous depth in this squad so we’re excited about that and the fact that if we can put them together, like we think we can, we can end up having something really special.
The Miners are releasing six players (Mahri Petree, Grace Alvarez, Avery Crouse, Elina Arike, Eliana Cabral and Adhel Tac) from last season’s squad. Meanwhile, nine newcomers (Jazion Jackson, Erin Wilson, Veonce Powell, Zhane Thompson, N’Yah Boyd, Thaniya Marks, Sabine Lipe, Soleil Montrose and Adela Valkova) make the roster.
The Miners’ goal heading into the regular season will be to make sure everyone is on the same page.
“We have to mesh, we have to get some chemistry. That’s the hardest thing,” Baker said. “You can have a full team of talent, but if you don’t team up and come together, it wouldn’t be as good as it gets. We have to come together as a unit and that just comes from getting together in a gymnasium, working hard for two and a half hours every day, learning to play with each other. I think we’re fine.
UTEP will open its season with an exhibition against Western New Mexico on Nov. 5 at the Don Haskins Center.
