Giaratano Joins Southeastern Women’s Basketball Staff – Southeastern Louisiana University Athletics

HAMMOND, La. – After five seasons with the Southeastern Louisiana University women’s basketball team as a student-athlete, Hailey Giaratano will join head coach Ayla Guzzardo‘s women’s basketball coaching staff for the 2024-25 season.
 
Giaratano’s hire is pending approval of the University of Louisiana System’s Board of Supervisors. Giaratano will serve as an assistant coach for the program, along with aiding in duties as the director of player development. This addition to Coach Guzzardo’s staff offers another level of experience as Giaratano was a part of several successful seasons at SLU.
 
“Hailey’s impact to our program started when she stepped foot on campus and I’m happy it will continue now in a different role,” Coach Guzzardo stated. “She has been a leader on and off the court. What she brought to our program was much more than her points, assists or rebounds, she brings leadership and will contribute to a positive culture.”
 
During her collegiate athletic career with the Lady Lions, Giaratano helped Southeastern to four consecutive winning seasons. She aided SLU to a 21-10 overall record, including a 14-4 mark in conference, in the 2022-23 season, when the Lady Lions won the Southland Conference regular-season and tournament championship for the first time in program history on the way to SLU’s first appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
 
Giaratano led Southeastern in scoring, field goal percentage and minutes played the past two seasons. Regarded as one of the top players in the conference, Giaratano gained many awards throughout her career at SLU among being SLC Tournament MVP, a three-time SLC All-Conference selection, two-time Player of the Week, two-time All-Louisiana nominee and three-time SLC All-Academic selection.
 
“Hailey’s basketball IQ is very high and she has played every position on the court, which will help her to relate to our players in many ways,” Guzzardo said. “She has been around us for five years so she knows what to expect. We are excited to see her grow in this new position and our coaching staff has gotten better with her addition.”
 
In her final season, Giaratano reached 1,000 career points and broke a program record with 109 consecutive starts throughout her career. The veteran guard led the team with 12.2 points per game, 4.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists per contest. Giaratano ended the season with 23 games in double-digit scoring and secured a career high of 27 points. She ranks first in school history in free throw percentage (80.0) and will look to incorporate her experience and leadership on the court to her coaching style.
 
“I will continue the championship mindset that my coaches instilled during my five years as a student-athlete and work beside them to bring consistent excellence through player development to Hammond, America,” commented Giaratano.
 
The Ponchatoula, Louisiana native earned her bachelor’s degree in Health Sciences in 2022 before attaining her master’s degree in Business Administration in May.
 

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