City of Basketball Love

By Owen McCue
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Ed. Note: This article is part of our 2025-26 season coverage, which will run for the six weeks preceding the first official games of the year on Nov. 4. To access all of our high school and college preview content for this season, click here.)

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The continuity doesn’t happen by accident in the Drexel women’s basketball program.

Out on the recruiting trail coach Amy Mallon and her staff make the vision clear.

“When we’re recruiting players, we talk about development,” said Mallon, now in her sixth year as head coach and 21st year overall with the program. “Every year we can document players in our program who get better every year. It doesn’t always mean accolades, but they’re part of the piece. … It’s something people want to be part of.”

Led by the experienced backcourt of graduate guard Amaris Baker (Cardinal O’Hara) and senior guard Grace O’Neill (Archbishop Carroll), the Dragons have nine returners (three starters) and three newcomers on this year’s roster.

Drexel returns 68 percent of its minutes and 70 percent of its scoring, including Baker’s 17.0 ppg, from a roster that went 17-13 (12-6 Coastal Athletic Association) and went to the CAA semifinals.

“I think a really big thing for us going into this year is that we have so many returners,” O’Neill said. “We had no people transfer out last year, which I think really gives us a big advantage and gives us an opportunity to kind of build on what we had from last year, which is something I’m really excited about.”

Baker, O’Neill and senior 5-9 forward Jalyn McNeill, who appeared in 13 games last season, are the lone holdovers from Drexel’s 2024 championship team.

O’Neill has started in 93 of the 94 games she has played in over her career, averaging 5.2 ppg, 3.6 apg and 5.6 rpg last season. Baker, a 5-foot-8 guard, transferred to Drexel in 2023-24 and has been the team’s leading scorer in each of the past two seasons. She averaged 17.0 ppg, 1.9 apg and 4.2 rpg to earn first team All-CAA honors in 2024-25.

Junior forward Deja Evans, an Archbishop Wood grad, is the third starter back from last year’s group. She averaged 9.4 ppg, 6.1 rpg and 2.3 bpg last season and was on the All-CAA Defensive team after transferring from Albany.

“We know what we’re expected to do. We know the standard,” Baker said. “Just implementing that into out transfers and the freshmen of course. It’s been very exciting, and I know that having the experience that we all have together, it’ll definitely have the brains of our newcomers moving, but we’ll get them on board with us as well.”

Cara Mccormack (9.4 ppg, 3.3 apg) and Chloe Hodges (8.3 ppg, 5.7 rpg) are the only Dragons gone from last year’s roster after graduation.

Junior 5-10 guard Laine McGurk (West Chester Rustin) and senior 6-2 forward Molly Lavin both averaged double-digit minutes off the bench last season. Sophomore 6-foot forward Irona Gravley was another one of the team’s top reserves. Mallon, O’Neill and Baker all mentioned McGurk as a player they are anticipating to take a leap forward this season.

Sophomore 5-10 wing Emilee Jones played in five games last season. Sophomore 6-0 wing Mariah Watkins was injured most of last season, but is expected to be able to come in and play multiple positions on the court. 

“The versatility,” Baker said of what stands out about this year’s group. “We have bigs who can shoot the ball outside the 3-point line. We have the paint open, we have drivers, three-level scorers, overall. We just have confidence this year for sure, and definitely we have a defense.”

New to the mix this season is junior guard Julia Garcia Roig, a transfer from Xaivier who averaged 2.9 ppg in 30 games (six starts) last season for the Musketeers. 

The Dragons also added a pair of freshman Cardinal O’Hara grad Molly Rullo and Bria Watkins, a versatile 6-0 wing from Rochester, N.Y. and Mariah’s younger sister.

Both sound like they could carve out roles on this year’s team. Rullo’s IQ has already impressed her veteran teammates and her head coach.

“(Rullo) knows what’s going on in the game and I always say the biggest thing for her is she’s going to have to learn not to fear telling people what to do as a freshman when she sometimes knows the right thing to do,” Mallon said.

O’Neill said she can sense a desire in this year’s Drexel team. Along with the tight bond she said stands out, the group might be the most well-conditioned team she’s been a part of during her time with the Dragons, as highlighted by their mile times this preseason.

“It shows that work ethic,” she said.

With so much back from last year’s group, external expectations are high on the Dragons. They were picked second in the league’s preseason coaches poll behind College of Charleston.

It’s not different internally as the standard during Mallon’s tenure at Drexel is to compete for a league title. She’s captured one regular season CAA crown and two league tournament championships and NCAA appearances in her tenure as head coach.

A season-ending loss to William & Mary in the CAA semifinals last season didn’t sit well with a group that knows what it’s been like to hoist a trophy at the end of the season.

“No matter what, we always judge ourselves on our last result,” Mallon said. “For us, last year we ended up obviously not being in a position to be in the championship game. For us, we judge ourselves on that result, not necessarily what we’re voted to be this year. That’s kind of where we build. We’re going to improve every day and continue to get better, and I think that puts you in a position to be successful. … I think that’s what we use for motivation everyday to get better.”