# 2023–24 Mid-American Conference women's basketball season

The 2023–24 Mid-American Conference women's basketball season was the season for Mid-American Conference women's basketball teams. It began with practices in October 2023, followed by the start of the 2023–24 NCAA Division I women's basketball season in November. Conference play began in January 2024 and concluded in March 2024. The 2024 MAC tournament was held at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, Ohio for the 24th consecutive season.
Toledo won the regular season championship with a 17–1 record Sophia Wiard of Toledo won player of the year. In the 2024 MAC women's basketball tournament, Kent State defeated Northern Illinois, Ball State, and Buffalo to win their fourth MAC tournament title and first since 2002, and advance to the 2024 NCAA tournament. Katie Shumate was the tournament MVP.

## Head coaches
### Coaching changes
#### Akron

On February 21, 2023 Akron announced that Melissa Jackson's contract would not be renewed at the end of the season. On March 29, 2023, Illinois assistant Ryan Gensler was named as the next head coach.

#### Bowling Green

On March 31, 2023, Robyn Fralick left the head coaching position at Bowling Green after a 31 win season to become the head coach at Michigan State On April 8, 2023, South Carolina assistant Fred Chmiel was named as the new head coach.

#### Central Michigan

Central Michigan fired Heather Oesterle on April 6, 2023, after win totals of four and six in her last two seasons. On April 20, 2023, they hired Michigan State assistant coach Kristin Haynie who, like Oesterle, had been an assistant at Central Michigan under head coach Sue Guevara when she retired in 2019.

#### Miami (OH)

On April 26, 2023 DeUnna Hendrix resigned after four seasons at Miami having posted a 35–80 record with the RedHawks after text messages led to allegations that she was in a relationship with a player. On May 8, 2023, Indiana associate head coach Glenn Box was announced as the new head coach.

#### Eastern Michigan

On December 11, 2023 Fred Castro was fired as Eastern Michigan's head coach after a 1–7 start. Assistant coach Ke'Sha Blanton was named as interim coach.

### Coaches

| Team | Head coach | Previous job | Years at school | Overall record | School record | MAC record | MAC titles | MAC Tournament titles | NCAA Tournaments | NCAA Final Fours | NCAA Championships |
| Akron | Ryan Gensler | Illinois (Asst.) | 1 | 0–0 (–) | 0–0 (–) | 0–0 (–) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ball State | Brady Sallee | Eastern Illinois | 12 | 345–250 (.580) | 209–140 (.599) | 127–72 (.638) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bowling Green | Fred Chmiel | South Carolina (Asst.) | 1 | 0–0 (–)† | 0–0 (–) | 0–0 (–) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Buffalo | Becky Burke | USC Upstate | 2 | 125–71 (.638) | 12–16 (.429) | 7–11 (.389) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Central Michigan | Kristin Haynie | Michigan State (Asst.) | 1 | 0–0 (–) | 0–0 (–) | 0–0 (–) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Eastern Michigan | Fred Castro | Washington (Asst.) | 8 | 79–121 (.395) | 79–121 (.395) | 40–84 (.323) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kent State | Todd Starkey | Indiana (Asst.) | 8 | 276–183 (.601) | 122–88 (.581) | 72–54 (.571) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Miami | Glenn Box | Indiana (Assoc HC.) | 1 | 64–31 (.674) | 0–0 (–) | 0–0 (–) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Northern Illinois | Lisa Carlsen | Lewis | 9 | 303–286 (.514) | 119–122 (.494) | 69–77 (.473) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ohio | Bob Boldon | Youngstown State | 11 | 283–210 (.574) | 185–122 (.603) | 106–74 (.589) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Toledo | Tricia Cullop | Evansville | 16 | 448–273 (.621) | 325–163 (.666) | 177–87 (.670) | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Western Michigan | Shane Clipfell | Michigan State (Assoc. HC) | 12 | 231–220 (.512) | 160–173 (.480) | 87–113 (.435) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Notes:
* Appearances, titles, etc. are from time with current school only.
* Years at school includes 2023–24 season.
* MAC records are from time at current school only.
* All statistics and records are through the beginning of the season.
* †Chmiel's overall record does not include his coaching record at Feather River College and Lassen College because it is unknown to the author

## Preseason

The preseason coaches' poll and league awards were announced by the league office on November 2, 2023. Defending 2022–23 regular season champion Toledo was named the favorite.

### Preseason women's basketball coaches poll

Women's Basketball Preseason Poll :
| Place | Team | Points | First place votes |
| 1. | Toledo | 121 | 11 |
| 2. | Ball State | 110 | 1 |
| 3. | Kent State | 102 | -- |
| 4. | Bowling Green | 77 | -- |
| 5. | Northern Illinois | 72 | -- |
| 6. | Akron | 69 | -- |
| 7. | Eastern Michigan | 66 | -- |
| 8. | Buffalo | 50 | -- |
| 9. | Ohio | 40 | -- |
| 10. | Western Michigan | 38 | -- |
| 11. | Central Michigan | 24 | -- |
| 12. | Miami | 23 | -- |
MAC Tournament champions: Toledo (10), Ball State (2)

### MAC Preseason All-Conference

| Honor | Recipient |
| Preseason All-MAC First Team | Ally Becki, Forward, Ball State, Junior |
| Preseason All-MAC First Team | Chelby Koker, Guard, Northern Illinois, Fifth Year |
| Preseason All-MAC First Team | Katie Shumate, Guard, Kent State, Redshirt Senior |
| Preseason All-MAC First Team | Quinesha Lockett, Guard, Toledo, Fifth Year |
| Preseason All-MAC First Team | Reagan Bass, Forward, Akron, Junior |
| Preseason All-MAC Second Team | Lachelle Austin, Guard, Eastern Michigan, Junior |
| Preseason All-MAC Second Team | Lexi Fleming, Guard, Bowling Green, Senior |
| Preseason All-MAC Second Team | Nyla Hampton, Guard, Ball State, Junior |
| Preseason All-MAC Second Team | Sammi Mikonowicz, Guard/Forward, Toledo, Senior |
| Preseason All-MAC Second Team | Sophia Wiard, Guard, Toledo, Fifth Year |

## Rankings

| | | Pre | Wk 12 | Wk 13 | Wk 14 | Wk 15 | Wk 16 | Wk 17 | Wk 18 | Wk 19 |
| Akron | AP | | | | | | | | | |
| Akron | C | | | | | | | | | |
| Ball State | AP | | | | | | | | | |
| Ball State | C | | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV |
| Bowling Green | AP | | | | | | | | | |
| Bowling Green | C | | | | | | | | | |
| Buffalo | AP | | | | | | | | | |
| Buffalo | C | | | | | | | | | |
| Central Michigan | AP | | | | | | | | | |
| Central Michigan | C | | | | | | | | | |
| Eastern Michigan | AP | | | | | | | | | |
| Eastern Michigan | C | | | | | | | | | |
| Kent State | AP | | | | | | | | | |
| Kent State | C | | | | | | | | | |
| Miami | AP | | | | | | | | | |
| Miami | C | | | | | | | | | |
| Northern Illinois | AP | | | | | | | | | |
| Northern Illinois | C | | | | | | | | | |
| Ohio | AP | | | | | | | | | |
| Ohio | C | | | | | | | | | |
| Toledo | AP | | | | | | | | RV | RV |
| Toledo | C | RV | | | | | | | RV | RV |
| Western Michigan | AP | | | | | | | | | |
| Western Michigan | C | | | | | | | | | |
Legend :
| | Improvement in ranking |
| | Drop in ranking |
| | Not ranked previous week |
| | No change in ranking from previous week |
| RV | Received votes but were not ranked in Top 25 of poll |
| т | Tied with team above or below also with this symbol |
Source - AP:
Coaches:

## All-MAC Awards
### Mid-American women's basketball weekly awards

| Week | Player(s) of the Week | School |
| Nov 13 | Reagan Bass | Akron |
| Nov 20 | Reagan Bass (2) | Akron |
| Nov 27 | Reagan Bass (3) | Akron |
| Dec 4 | Reagan Bass (4) | Akron |
| Dec 11 | Corynne Hauser | Kent State |
| Dec 18 | Morgan Sharps | Bowling Green |
| Dec 25 | Ally Becki | Ball State |
| Jan 1 | Chellia Watson | Buffalo |
| Jan 8 | Ally Becki (2) | Ball State |
| Jan 15 | Chellia Watson (2) | Buffalo |
| Jan 22 | Ally Becki (3) | Ball State |
| Jan 29 | Chellia Watson (3) | Buffalo |
| Feb 5 | Chellia Watson (4) | Buffalo |
| Feb 12 | Chellia Watson (5) | Buffalo |
| Feb 19 | Quinesha Lockett | Toledo |
| Feb 26 | Amy Velasco | Bowling Green |
| Mar 4 | Katie Shumate | Kent State |
| Mar 11 | Alex Richard | Ball State |

## Postseason
### Mid–American Tournament

Kent State defeated Northern Illinois, Ball State, and Buffalo to win their fourth MAC tournament title and first since 2002

### NCAA tournament

Kent State was seeded 15th in the Albany 1 region and fell to second-seeded Notre Dame in the first round to finish the season at 21–11.

### Women's National Invitation Tournament

Buffalo and Bowling Green accepted bids and both lost in the first round

### Postseason Awards

* Coach of the Year: Tricia Cullop, Toledo
* Player of the Year: Sophia Wiard, 5th, Guard, Toledo
* Freshman of the Year: Kirsten Lewis-Williams, Guard, Buffalo
* Defensive Player of the Year: Nyla Hampton, Junior, Guard, Ball State
* Sixth Player of the Year: Annie Rauch, Senior, Forward, Ball State

### Honors

| Honor | Recipient |
| Postseason All-MAC First Team | Ally Becki, Junior, Guard, Ball State |
| Postseason All-MAC First Team | Chellia Watson, Redshirt Senior, Guard, Buffalo |
| Postseason All-MAC First Team | Katie Shumate, Redshirt Senior, Guard, Kent State |
| Postseason All-MAC First Team | Sophia Wiard, Fifth-Year, Guard, Toledo |
| Postseason All-MAC First Team | Quinesha Lockett, Fifth-Year, Guard, Toledo |
| Postseason All-MAC Second Team | Reagan Bass, Junior, Forward, Akron |
| Postseason All-MAC Second Team | Nyla Hampton, Junior, Guard, Ball State |
| Postseason All-MAC Second Team | Amy Velasco, Junior, Guard, Bowling Green |
| Postseason All-MAC Second Team | Morgan Sharps, Fifth-Year, Guard, Bowling Green |
| Postseason All-MAC Second Team | Kaitlyn Zarycki, Graduate, Guard, Western Michigan |
| Postseason All-MAC Third Team | Madelyn Bischoff, Junior, Forward, Ball State |
| Postseason All-MAC Third Team | Erika Porter, Senior, Forward, Bowling Green |
| Postseason All-MAC Third Team | Jenna Batsch, Junior, Forward, Kent State |
| Postseason All-MAC Third Team | Brooke Stonebraker, Senior, Forward, Northern Illinois |
| Postseason All-MAC Third Team | Sammi Mikonowicz, Senior, Guard/Forward, Toledo |
| Postseason All-MAC Honorable Mention | Kirsten Lewis-Williams, Freshman, Guard, Buffalo |
| Postseason All-MAC Honorable Mention | Amber Tretter, Freshman, Forward, Miami |
| Postseason All-MAC Honorable Mention | Taylor Williams, Redshirt Junior, Forward, Western Michigan |
| Postseason All-MAC Honorable Mention | Jaya McClure, Sophomore, Guard, Ohio |
| Postseason All-MAC Honorable Mention | Kennedi Watkins, Junior, Guard, Ohio |
| All-MAC Freshman Team | Kirsten Lewis-Williams, Guard, Buffalo |
| All-MAC Freshman Team | Paige Kohler, Guard, Bowling Green |
| All-MAC Freshman Team | Amber Tretter, Forward, Miami |
| All-MAC Freshman Team | Janae Tyler, Forward, Kent State |
| All-MAC Freshman Team | Bailey Tabeling, Guard, Ohio |
| All-MAC Defensive Team | Ally Becki, Junior, Ball State, Guard |
| All-MAC Defensive Team | Nyla Hampton, Junior, Guard, Ball State |
| All-MAC Defensive Team | Tayra Eke, Junior, Center, Eastern Michigan |
| All-MAC Defensive Team | Katie Shumate, Redshirt Senior, Guard, Kent State |
| All-MAC Defensive Team | Kaitlyn Zarycki, Graduate, Guard, Western Michigan |