LAKE CHARLES – A new era in McNeese Cowgirl basketball was officially launched on Monday when new head coach Ayla Guzzardo met with hundreds of fans and media for her introductory press conference and was quick to the point on why she chose to leave Southland Conference rival Southeastern Louisiana for McNeese.
 
"I'll be straight up honest. I'm working for a basketball guy (Athletic Director Heath Schroyer)," said Guzzardo. "I'm working for a school that puts men's and women's basketball at the forefront of a lot things that we do here. Resources, facilities. All you really have to do is walk through the Legacy Center and you'll see why.
 
"This is a big move for me. This is a career move for me. I've seen what Heath is able to do here. Proven facts. This is a professional and personal move. You have everything to win here."
 
Guzzardo spent the last nine years at Southeastern, eight as the head coach, and won the league title in 2023 and this past season. She guided her 2023 team to the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament and this past season, qualified for the WBIT. In addition, she was named the league's Coach of the Year for those stellar seasons.
 
She compiled an 93-47 record her last four years in Hammond, including 67-18 mark in conference play and five straight appearances in the league tournament semifinal round.
 
"I'm so excited to be here," she said. "I've got people who want to be here because they know how special it is. That's what attracted me to this place. Hosting the (Southland Conference) tournament here every year, it's a blessing.
 
"I got to see the facilities, got to meet great people. The media has been unreal. Unruly, but unreal. It's going to be a great atmosphere to have my kids grow up in. You invited my mother and people around me, and they're starting to see it too. You have turned a bunch of Southeastern fans in green and gold and they're buying blue. Blue is sold out in Hammond."
 
Guzzardo wasted little in assuring a crowded Kleckley Room that championships are near.
 
"We will win games here. We will win championships. We will get McNeese State University into the NCAA Tournament where it is supposed to be."
 
Guzzardo led Southeastern to a near-perfect conference record last season, rolling to a 19-1 record and a 26-6 overall mark.
 
Two of her players earned All-Conference honors, graduate guard Alexius Horne (first team) and junior guard Jalencia Pierre (second team). Pierre was also named the league's defensive player of the year and is one of several players from that championship team that could follow Guzzardo to McNeese.
 
McNeese is coming off a 10-21 season and missed the conference tournament for the second straight year. The Cowgirls have not had a winning season since 2015-16 and last played in the NCAA Tournament in 2012.
 
Guzzardo will hit the ground running to put together her roster and coaching staff to complete the formula for a title run.