Riverdale, NY - Manhattan Women's Basketball Head Coach
Heather Vulin announced Thursday that junior
Gabby Cajou (Stony Point, NY / North Rockland), as well as sophomores
Courtney Warley (West Chester, PA / Bishop Shanahan) and
Nyala Pendergrass (Jackson, NJ / St. Rose) have been selected as team captains for the 2018-19 season.
"I am really excited about this year's captains," said Vulin. "I firmly believe that people don't follow titles, but follow leaders, and Gabby, Courtney and Nyala have stood out and embody our #playGREEN mentality on and off the court. As a group, they will bring out the best in each other and lead our team to a special season. I also feel they have earned the trust and respect necessary to lead from their teammates."
Cajou is the reigning Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Sixth Player of the Year, the first player in program history to win the award. The guard finished the season ranked second in the league in field goal percentage (.476), and fourth in both assists per game (3.5) and steals per game (2.1). Cajou posted the fourth-best assist/turnover ratio in the conference (1.5) and ranked in the league's top 25 for minutes played per game (29.5).
"The coaches challenge me to be a vocal leader," said Cajou, who played in all of the Jaspers' 31 contests last season, coming off the bench in 30 of them. "We have a young team and I've been challenged to step up."
Warley finished her freshman campaign as a member of the MAAC's All-Rookie squad. The 6'3" center saw action in 31 games, with 21 starts, averaging 3.9 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. Warley also finished the season ranked seventh in the MAAC in blocked shots per game (0.9).
"Last year gave me a lot of confidence," she explained, "and I feel like I learned a lot from [former team captain
Amani Tatum] on how to lead on and off the court."
Pendergrass, a guard/forward who saw action in 17 games last season, is known as the Jaspers' on-bench spark plug and motivator.
"I'm just grateful that the coaches thought I was honorable," she said. "They emphasize being vocal on and off the court, and I think my interactions on the bench definitely give the team a boost."
Manhattan graduated four seniors in 2018, including three-year captain and point guard Tatum and
Kayla Grimme, the program's all-time leading shot blocker who ranks fifth on Manhattan's all-time scoring list with 1,433 career points and third in rebounding with 961 boards. The duo, along with
Mikki Guiton and
Taylor Williams, combined for 444 games played during their Manhattan careers, and contributed 3,501 total points.
This year, the Jaspers welcome four freshmen to the program, including
D'yona Davis (Bronx, NY / Truman),
Kania Pollock (Queens, NY / The Mary Louis Academy),
Diamond Shavis (Bronx, NY / South Shore), and
Sydney Watkins (Wanaque, NJ / Saddle River Day). Manhattan has also added graduate transfer
Candela Abejon (Gijon, Spain / USC) from the University of Southern California.
The Jaspers return nine letterwinners, as well, and will also be able to utilize junior guard/forward
Tuuli Menna (Helsinki, Finland / Makelanrinne), who sat out the 2017-18 season after transferring from the University of Richmond.
"Last year we all looked upon Amani, and then, as the summer sessions went on, we came together as a group," said Cajou. "We figure things out together as a family. We all chip in ideas, and we all give each other opinions on how we can do better."
"Even the freshmen aren't afraid," added Pendergrass. "They speak their minds."
