OXFORD — The championship banners hanging inside Millett Hall serve as a reminder of what the Miami University women’s basketball program accomplished last season.
They also represent the standard the edHawks intend to maintain.
Coming off a historic 2025-26 campaign that included a Mid-American Conference championship and the program’s first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2008, Miami enters the new season with heightened expectations, a revamped roster and a determination to establish itself as a perennial contender.
Fourth-year coach Glenn Box isn’t interested in celebrating last season’s accomplishments for too long.
“It’s all new again,” Box said. “Our expectations have always been our expectations. Our standards have always been our standards. We just have more new pieces this year, and each kid who came here, they came here to win championships.”
Miami opens its 2026-27 season Monday, Nov. 2, against James Madison at 7 p.m. inside Millett Hall. The matchup is part of the MAC-Sun Belt Challenge and will be streamed on ESPN+.
The RedHawks enter the season with a roster featuring several returning contributors, an influx of newcomers and one of the conference’s most productive players in senior forward Amber Tretter.
Tretter, who helped lead Miami to the NCAA Tournament last March, understands that maintaining the program’s success will require more than relying on last year’s accomplishments.
“We’ve been just trying to, kind of, me and Núria (Jurjo) have been leading the way and helping create the culture that we want here in order to win and create the same thing that we did last year — but even better,” Tretter said. “Everyone came in with a good mindset of working hard and really wanting to learn.”
That mentality has become a defining characteristic of Box’s program, which has experienced a significant transformation during his tenure.
Miami’s breakthrough last season culminated in an NCAA Tournament appearance, where the RedHawks fell to fourth-seeded West Virginia in the opening round.
The challenge now is proving the success wasn’t a one-year achievement.
“We win championships here,” Box said. “We felt like there’s a lot more out there for us. And it’s my job — I’ve been paid to do it — to make it happen.”
Tretter leads experienced returning core
Tretter enters her senior season as the centerpiece of Miami’s championship defense.
The 6-foot-1 forward from Ferdinand, Indiana, earned first-team All-MAC honors last season after averaging 14.4 points and eight rebounds while starting all 35 games.
She has accumulated 1,152 career points and 788 rebounds, ranking 21st and seventh, respectively, in program history. Her 31 career double-doubles rank third in school history, and she has an opportunity to become just the second Miami women’s basketball player to reach 1,000 career points and rebounds.
Tretter also was selected to the preseason All-MAC first team, reinforcing her standing among the conference’s top returning players.
“Just being a leader overall and just trying to help my teammates if they’re struggling with something or if they just don’t know how to do something correctly,” Tretter said. “And then personally, too, just trying to be consistent.”
Tretter and senior guard Núria Jurjo have taken prominent leadership roles as Miami integrates its newcomers.
Jurjo appeared in 31 games last season, averaging 6.6 points and 4.2 rebounds. Guard Addison Baxter, a sophomore transfer from Butler, averaged 5.9 points and 2.7 rebounds in 23 appearances.
Box has been particularly encouraged by Baxter’s development.
“She’s evolving as a player,” Box said. “She’s learning how to do things, how to not do things. She’s learning what it’s like to be challenged.”
Box sees significant potential in Baxter as she becomes more comfortable with the responsibilities of an experienced contributor.
“I think that she has a chance to be elite amongst our league, guards in our league,” Box said.
Miami also returns senior guard Amber Scalia, who averaged 13.7 points and three rebounds while starting all 35 games last season. Her presence provides another experienced scoring option alongside Tretter.
Newcomers provide size, depth and versatility
Although Miami returns several important contributors, the roster underwent considerable changes during the offseason.
Box emphasized adding athleticism, size and dependable production from the bench, areas he identified as necessary improvements following the NCAA Tournament appearance.
“First and foremost, we were trying to accumulate more talent than what we had even last year,” Box said. “We needed to be able to go to the bench and get some production. I feel like we have an opportunity to do that this year.
“We needed to get bigger. We needed to get more athletic. I felt like we did those things through the transfer portal.”
One of Miami’s most notable additions is senior forward Julianna LaMendola, a 6-foot-1 transfer who previously played at Indiana and Grand Canyon.
LaMendola averaged 11.5 points and 6.4 rebounds last season at Grand Canyon and earned preseason second-team All-MAC recognition. She brings experience from 92 career collegiate games.
Other additions include senior guard Jaya McClure, who previously played at UIC and Ohio, along with freshmen Brooke Zartman, Laia Jové, Dominika Ullmann and Adela Plans Bellavista.
The newcomers give Box additional lineup possibilities, although establishing chemistry remains an ongoing process.
Tretter said the players have embraced the challenge of learning their responsibilities.
“People are starting to learn their roles more, especially now,” Tretter said. “It makes it easier for people to excel in those roles now, especially if they know what they’re needed to do and get their job done.”
Box expects Miami’s playing style and rotations to evolve throughout the season as the coaching staff evaluates the roster.
“What you see in November may not be what you see in January, February,” Box said. “When you have so many pieces right now, and they’re new, you have to figure them out.
“You’re gonna see a bunch of kids play really hard and ultimately, eventually, be really disciplined. That’s our MO here.”
Championship expectations remain
Miami’s rise under Box has been one of the MAC’s most notable turnarounds.
The RedHawks finished 9-20 during his first season in 2023-24 before improving to 19-12 the following year.
Last season, Miami established a program record with 28 victories, finished 16-2 in conference play and captured both the MAC regular-season and tournament championships.
The RedHawks also set school records with 299 made 3-pointers, 368 steals and 555 assists. Box earned MAC Coach of the Year honors and received a contract extension through the 2031-32 season.
Despite that success, Miami wasn’t selected as the conference’s preseason favorite.
The RedHawks were picked second in the MAC coaches poll with 108 points and four first-place votes, trailing Ball State, which received 111 points and five first-place votes. UMass finished third with 103 points, followed by Toledo with 98.
The narrow margin illustrates the competitive conference race awaiting Miami.
Miami’s immediate attention, however, turns to James Madison and the chance to begin another season in front of its home crowd.
“We’re very excited,” Box said. “It’s an opportunity to showcase who we are. I think I speak for everyone, everyone’s looking forward to that.”
The season opener also provides another opportunity for Miami’s returning players to appreciate how dramatically the program has changed.
During the recent banner ceremony during the men’s basketball team’s exhibition game against Indiana University East on Monday at Millett Hall, Tretter watched as the program’s newest accomplishments were recognized in the rafters.
“That was really cool,” Tretter said. “Even seeing how two of them only had two years on it, and it was like, we did that. I think that was the most special part of that. Just seeing all the hard work go up in the gym, and now we have a mark on our gym.”
