Abela to play NCAA Division Two with Mountain Lions

Malta international Sophie Abela has successfully transferred to National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division Two side the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs (UCCS), the team has announced on Saturday. 

The guard who averaged 8.4 points per game, with a 77.8% free throw percentage in her sophomore year at Otero Junior College last season, as the side went into the post-season tournaments after cruising through the regular season, stays in Colorado for her college ball experience. 

Mountain Lions coach Lynn Plett had words of praise for Abela when speaking to the team’s website, saying that: “After playing an important role for a successful junior college team the past two years, Sophie has the potential to impact our team in a very positive way.”

“She has the ability to play the point position and create opportunities for her teammates to score, and with her length she can also be a very effective offensive threat at the basket, creating miss matches for opponents.  I believe Sophie has the potential to be a very good guard in our conference and will be a great addition to our team.”

Coming off a fourth-place finish with the Malta National team this month at the FIBA European Small Countries Championships, Abela will be warmed up and ready after playing an average of 25.3 minutes per game and making an average 24% of her shots per game.

The Mountain Lions play in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) and have won its tournament back in 2017. However, the side will be looking to do better this year after finishing the 2020-21 season with a 4-12 record. 

The team is set to open its season on November 12 against Midwestern State University where Abela will be looking to make her college debut.