Mount St. Mary’s women’s basketball graduate student Michaela Harrison recently chatted with PressBox about winning back-to-back conference titles, moving to the MAAC and more. The 5-foot-7 guard averaged 11.2 points and shot 36.6 percent from 3-point range for the Mountaineers last year. Harrison is a native of Cleveland and graduate of Lake Ridge Academy.
PressBox: How did you become interested in basketball?
Michaela Harrison: I’ve been playing since the age of 3. Obviously, it’s the normal thing when parents just put their kids in little rec leagues, YMCA leagues. They said that’s just the one I fell in love with. Tried softball, didn’t like it because it was too hot. It was outside. Tried soccer, wasn’t for me, either. They just said I fell in love with basketball.
PB: Who was the biggest influence on your game growing up?
MH: Oddly enough, I would say my older brother, [Kenneth]. He didn’t play in college but because he did all the sports I literally just wanted to be like him. As far as a pro athlete, I really loved Dwyane Wade when I was younger. I’m a LeBron fan now, but before LeBron it was Dwyane Wade for me.
PB: Why did you choose to come to Mount St. Mary’s?
MH: I just fell in love with how close-knit everyone was. When I came on my visit, I loved our staff. When I met the team when I did my overnight they were just so fun, so welcoming, like open arms. It was just so easy to connect with everyone. And I like that it is a smaller campus, so you get as far as the classroom that attention to detail and you can get that one-on-one time with the professors.
PB: What’s your favorite memory so far at the Mount?
MH: Definitely winning back-to-back [Northeast Conference] championships. It doesn’t get any better than that, having the opportunity to go to March Madness two years in a row.
PB: You won titles with two different coaches in Maria Marchesano and Antoine White. What was the common theme from each season that allowed your team to win conference titles?
MH: We’re so close as a team, we just played together as a unit. We played for each other, that was the main thing. Being mentally tough and just playing for each other.
PB: Why did you decide to come back for a fifth year?
MH: For one, COVID granted me an extra year, so why not take advantage of that and further my education by getting a master’s? And two, I just want to be able to try to win another championship. I want to be able to take advantage of my opportunities to play college sports because once I’m done, I’m done. I don’t get these memories back.
PB: The Mount is now in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. What are the challenges you expect in a new conference?
MH: Just going into the unknown. Obviously we’re playing [10] new teams, just the unknown. But also on the same end, teams don’t know who we are, either, so it’s going to be a learning curve for any team we play and for the other teams. That’s the main thing, just making sure we stick to our game plans and trust each other and trust our stuff.
PB: What’s your favorite thing about the Mount?
MH: I would just say how friendly everyone is. Everyone will wave, just saying hi all the time. It’s just a very close-knit area.
PB: What’s your favorite thing about Emmitsburg?
MH: Honestly, it’s probably just hanging out with my team and doing whatever. There’s actually a place called High Rock, which is actually really pretty. That’s cool, so probably that.
PB: Who’s your best friend on the team and what’s a story that underscores your friendship?
MH: I have a good amount of close friends on the team. Aryna Taylor would be one of the just because we’ve roomed together [for five years]. Just a lot of funny stories with Aryna. Sometimes we’ll be in the room and we’ll put on one of our old games and just watch her mannerisms. That’s hilarious. If you know Aryna, then you watch her mannerisms on the court. Or just watching WNBA games with her and Jessica Tomasetti and Isabella Hunt. Honestly I have so many stories, but just spending time with all my teammates is one of my favorite things.
PB: Who did you look up to early in your college career?
MH: In a sense, Juliette Lawless. She was our point guard four years ago now. I was a freshman. She just played so hard. She was just mentally tough. She always did the right thing.
PB: What advice would you give to younger players?
MH: Just stay the course. Please communicate with your coaches. If you have anything on your mind, don’t hold it in. And just constantly get in the gym. Coaches are never going to get upset any time you ask them to go shoot or get a workout in. Definitely just stay the course and be mentally strong.
PB: What are your goals for after basketball, whenever it ends?
MH: Definitely want to get into marketing because my undergrad degree was in business and marketing and my master’s is going to be business administration, so I definitely want to get into that.
Photo Credit: David Sinclair
Issue 277: October/November 2022
Originally published Oct. 19, 2022