Howard and Manning look to become leaders for AU women’s basketball program

By Shelbie Summerlin | Sports writer  

The Augusta University Women’s Basketball team have found 2021-2022 team captains this season in senior Kiera Howard and junior Kennedi Manning. 

AU Head Coach Millette Green wants her leaders to understand her expectations, communicate with their teammates and hold their teammates accountable.  

Both Howard and Manning “possess qualities on and off the floor that could help us become the team I want for this program,” Green said. “When I say lead, I want them to be able to hold each other accountable before the coaches have to step in.”  

Howard is a member of Green’s first recruiting class and her tenure at AU has been very impactful.  

“During her first three years here, she has played significant minutes and emerged as our vocal and energy leader,” Green said. “Last year, we tended to go as she goes, especially with her being a point guard.”  

This past summer, Green was very impressed with Howard’s efforts into becoming a better leader by being engaging with the newcomers and organizing virtual meetings. Green sees Manning as an “emerging leader.”  

“I believe she has the potential to be a great leader,” said Green.  “After two years of college playing experience under her belt, I want to see her step up in a leadership role.”  

As a prospective leader, Howard said her mindset is to do whatever it takes to help her teammates be successful and win. She said she’s been trying to focus on others, not just herself.  

If the team hits any bumps in the roads, Howard is prepared to make sure her teammates remember why they are there.  

“I can help my teammates get through obstacles by reminding them of our goals on a regular basis, encouraging them and continuing to lead by example,” said Howard.  

Howard is really pushing her team to be as prepared as possible for the upcoming season.  

“This year, our focus as a team is on playing with passion over perfection. This meaning being able to find it within ourselves when things are tough to finish, even when we make mistakes or things don’t go as expected,” Howard said. “In preparation for this season, we are looking to apply that mindset also while being consistent, paying attention to details, being a good communicator and having good energy with everything we do.”  

Manning hopes to be able to hold her teammates accountable and keep a positive mindset.  

“Personally, I would like to work on holding more people accountable including myself,” said Manning. “I want to be able to provide that sense of calmness to the team, so that whenever things are getting heated or intense, I want to be that voice to refocus everyone’s attention to prioritize what is really important.”  

Manning also wants to be able to help push her team through the struggles they might face over their season.  

“I plan on helping us keep a positive mindset and being that levelheaded person to bring everyone together when it feels like things are falling apart,” said Manning.  

Both Manning and Howard look at each other for guidance and are eager to be leaders together.  

“Kennedi is a huge part of our team and does a great job of leading by example, therefore I’m really looking forward to being able to being in a leadership role with her,” Howard said. “Her grit is a constant source of motivation for the team, and it’s one of the many reasons I feel we’ll be successful this season.”  

Manning says Howard is a more energetic and assertive type leader, while she thinks of herself as a leader to give more constructive criticism and lead by example.  

“I believe that we get along really well and almost balance each other out,” Manning said. “But when it comes to game time we are more on the same page when it comes to getting our message across.”  

Both players are really looking forward to seeing how the team works together this fall.  

“I believe we have a great group of individuals that have been added to the team and they have already brought so much competitive energy and great hustle with them,” Manning said. “With such a scrappy and energetic group, I can’t wait to see what we do to teams defensively.”  

For Howard’s senior season, she is most excited about seeing her team play in front of their fans.  

“What I'm most looking forward to this season is having fans in the stands. This is my senior year, so having friends and family there to cheer me on will be awesome,” Howard said. “In addition, I am looking forward to a successful season with my squad. We haven't forgotten about last season's adversity, and we're trying to use that as fuel each day, as well as playing with a passion over perfection mindset in each game. I'm very excited, and I'm looking forward to shocking a lot of people.”  

The Jaguars kick off the regular season next Friday, Nov.12 as they host the Peach Belt Conference/Conference Carolinas Crossover tournament at Christenberry Fieldhouse. They’ll face Southern Wesleyan University that Friday at 8:30 p.m. and Barton College the next day at 3 p.m. 

Contact Shelbie Summerlin at ssummerlin@augusta.edu 

Kiera Howard goes up for a layup against a Francis Marion defender during the 2020-21 season. (photo by Justin Brosemer, special to The Bell Ringer). At the top of the page, Kennedi Manning shoots a jumper against North Georgia. (photo by Carlos Rodriguez).