The Montclair State University women’s basketball team is off to a red-hot start, taking their first four opponents down with ease.
Head coach Karin Harvey, who is coaching in her 17th season as the head coach for the Red Hawks, kept it simple when asked about her goals for the young season.
“[We want to] compete for a championship, win a [New Jersey Athletic Conference] championship,” Harvey said. “I think our team culture is what we’ve been working on the most. I think when you’re close-knit, the team culture is good, [there’s a] positive environment, you work harder, you have a better connection that’s allowing us to defend well, to rebound well. It’s all off-the-court stuff that’s been allowing us to play better basketball.”
“And then, you know, we’ve got some talented recruits as well,” she adds.
The Montclair State University Women’s Basketball team is off to a red-hot start. Taj Roberts | The Montclarion
The Red Hawks have rebooted their lineup with several new recruits and transfer students as they look to rebound after not qualifying for the NJAC Tournament in the last two seasons.
Harvey said that the new Red Hawks have meshed well together up to this point.
“They get along really well,” Harvey said. “They’re fun in practice, they hang out off the court. So their team chemistry is really starting to build, and that’s one of the things that I really like, it’s been a real positive.”
The Red Hawks have rebooted their lineup with several new recruits and transfer students. Taj Roberts | The Montclarion
The strongest returning Red Hawk is senior forward/center Olivia Vero, who had a hot start to the season, recording a double-double in each of the first three games of the season. She has already captured multiple NJAC Player Of The Week awards thanks to a string of strong performances.
Vero said that Montclair State, which was picked to finish seventh in the NJAC preseason coaches poll, had been underestimated.
“We were ranked low [in the poll] this season,” Vero said. “So we’re coming in together with a chip on our shoulder, trying to get as far as we can.”
Vero said that she wants to key in on rebounding and blocks, actions she believes are all centered on effort.
“I go out every time that I got to get to the rebound for my team and that’s the only way that we’re going to be able to go forward,” Vero said. “So that’s just really an effort thing for me. And blocking, that’s kind of just been my thing since high school, and I think it really helps. We got to get the rebound to go [to] the end of the floor. So, yeah, the blocking is fun too. It gives us a spark [of] energy.”
Vero is a great defender and led Montclair State in rebounds and blocks during the previous season. She said that she worked hard in the off-season to become a more serious scoring threat.
“Over the last few years, I’ve developed more in my game, as I think we’ve really needed it,” Vero said. “We lacked scoring last year. So over the summer, I really worked on scoring in the low post, my free throws, being more mobile on my feet and getting quicker.”
Montclair State is stacked with new players. Of the 16 players on the roster, eight were not on the team last season. Vero said that as a senior, she has had the responsibility of bringing Montclair State basketball culture to the newcomers.
“We spend a lot of time together building our relationships,” Vero said. “I think that that’s been the most important thing, building trust and having, the younger girls kind of latch on to the experience of the veterans, and that’s been the most important thing.”
Montclair State beat their first four opponents in the 2024-25 season. Taj Roberts | The Montclarion
One newcomer who is making a splash is freshman forward Alyssa Craigwell. The Secaucus native was nominated for North Jersey Player of the Year, along with earning first-team All-State and All-Conference honors in high school. She has averaged 11.8 points through the first four games and completely took over against Drew University, scoring 19.
She said that the Red Hawks have embraced her completely.
“It’s been really good,” Craigwell said. “I got close to the girls, they’re all nice. They remind me of my AAU team, they’re like family to me. This team feels like that too.”
