MONTEVALLO, Ala. – The University of Montevallo women's basketball team is ready to start the 2023 season on Friday, Nov. 10 at the Gulf South Conference-Sunshine State Crossover Classic.
 
Montevallo will open their season against Embry-Riddle on Friday, Nov. 10 at 1:00 p.m. and will play Nova Southeastern on Saturday, Nov. 11 at 11:00 a.m.
 
"We are looking to give a good showing against the Sunshine State Conference so we can represent the Gulf South Conference well," said Head Coach Olivia Chapman. "We had two scrimmage games and an exhibition in preseason so we could see where we were at and to get some nerves out of the way before our first game."
 
The Falcons will continue out of conference play as they host Birmingham-Southern in their first home game of the season on Tuesday, Nov. 14.
 
Montevallo will play a 24-game conference schedule this season, playing everyone in the league twice. UM will host Shorter (Dec. 1), Lee (Dec. 3), West Georgia (Dec. 15), Union (Dec. 31), Christian Brothers (Jan. 2), West Alabama (Jan. 17), Alabama-Huntsville (Jan. 24), Delta State (Feb. 1), Mississippi College (Feb. 3), Valdosta State (Feb. 22), West Florida (Feb. 24) and Auburn Montgomery (Mar. 2).
 
On the road, the Falcons have scheduled UAH (Nov. 25), UWA (Nov. 27), MC (Dec. 8), DSU (Dec. 10), UWF (Jan. 6), VSU (Jan. 8), AUM (Jan. 13), UWG (Jan. 20), Lee (Jan. 27), Shorter (Feb. 8), CBU (Feb. 15) and Union (Feb. 17).  
 
"It's going to be a really fun team to watch," said Chapman. "All our returners came back better than they were last season. Isabel Grimes is relentless at everything she does on the court. She's going to have the ability to push our offense in transition and be able to put her teammates in positions to succeed."
 
Along with Marisa Snodgrass who was named to the Preseason All-GSC Team, the Falcons return seniors Anna Katherine Eastman, Leisha Steger and Michaella Edwards.
 
Isabel Grimes comes back to Montevallo after having the sixth most points on the team with 110, sixth with 22 steals and sixth with 426 minutes played in the season.
 
"These young women have been working extremely hard and I'm proud of the effort they've put in so far," said Chapman. "I'm looking for us to be super competitive, tough and gritty on defense, and to execute on offense."
 
Snodgrass returns as the leading scorer from a year ago as she averaged 12.1 points per game while she contributed 4.1 rebounds per game and totaled 110 assists last season. Edwards and Eastman come back after both had three-point shooting percentages of over .340. Leisha Steger returns to the purple and gold after averaging 5.5 points per game and 3.2 rebounds per game while shooting .260 from the floor.
 
As for the newcomers, Montevallo is bringing in freshman Cali Smallwood, Lia Edwards and Ramie Reid who were all name to the GSC Newcomer Watchlist.
 
"One person that really stood out this preseason is Cali Smallwood," said coach Chapman. "Against Jacksonville State, she was one of the best players on the floor that game. Going up against a Division I opponent, it was impressive because she wasn't afraid to shoot the ball, wasn't afraid to put the ball on the floor and wasn't afraid to lock in on defense."
 
The Falcons will open the year in Fort Lauderdale, UM will host their first home contest on Tuesday, Nov. 14 at 1 p.m. inside Trustmark Arena.