The university’s women’s basketball team has started off the 2020-2021 season with a 3-3 record and several canceled games. Senior guard and forward Morgan Carrier, native of New Iberia,, has played no small role in the Lady Lions’ successes this season, scoring a total of 67 points so far.

Within the first three seasons of her career with the Lady Lions, beginning as a freshman in 2017, Carrier has collected a total of 463 points, 107 turnovers and 166 rebounds.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many student-athletes had to say goodbye to the 2019-2020 season, which was cut short last March. Carrier, who wears No. 3, described how that experience influenced her motivation for this season. probably been the most rewarding. She’s grown as a person and as a player, on and off the court.”

“It was an overwhelming type of feeling,” said Carrier. “We didn’t really know what to feel. It was surreal, kind of, because as hard as we worked to get there, it was like it was taken away from us. So, it made the players who returned want to go harder and realize, at any point, it could be taken from us again. We just go as hard as we can because we remember what happened last year.”

Head coach Ayla Guzzardo, named to the position in April 2017, has been alongside Carrier’s journey at the university since her freshman year. Guzzardo described her experience with coaching Carrier throughout the years.

“It has been a rollercoaster ride,” said Guzzardo. “No, it’s been fun. I’m not gonna lie, it’s always eventful. Watching her grow these past four years has probably been the most rewarding. She’s grown as a person and as a player, on and off the court.”

Guzzardo shared how Carrier has improved her game since the season ended last year.

“She’s gotten better defensively. She’s taken it personal. Offense is where she really shines, so defense is where she’s picked it up and she’s worked a lot harder at practice,” Guzzardo said.

The first women’s basketball game of this season took place on Nov. 25, 2020 – 258 days since the last athletic event for the university. Carrier explained how she utilized the extended break to keep up her athletic drive and prepare for the current season.

“Mentally, I just try to stay level-headed, even though sometimes my teammates have to bring me back down because I’ll either get too high or too low,” shared Carrier. “Mentally, I just try to stay the course because, like I said, we never know what’s gonna happen. Physically, I just have to make sure I’m getting in the gym, eating right, putting the right things in my body.”

Carrier shared what she has enjoyed the most during her time with the Lady Lions — the relationships she built with her team.

“We’re more of a family than just teammates, so that’s the best part, being able to play with girls that I actually like and trust,” said Carrier.

Guzzardo had much to share regarding Carrier’s impact on the team, including what she feels the rest of the season has in store for the senior.

“Our team is going to be better because of Morgan. She’s that type of player,” Guzzardo noted. “She’s an energy player. You feed off of it. She’s a leader. One thing that helps us is that she’s able to shoot the three and she’s able to get to the rim this year. With her being on the floor, our progress has exceeded our potential. We gotta make sure we stay on track, and with Morgan at that lead, we’ll be alright.”

As her unpredictable senior season continues, Carrier is looking forward to playing as many games with her teammates as she can.

“Since corona came around, we never really know what’s gonna happen, so we just take it day by day, just go as hard as we can every day and hope that we can play the next game,” said Carrier.