Mansa El-Ward

Title:

Head Coach
Phone:

713-443-1420
Email:

mansa.elward@stthom.edu

Before joining the St. Thomas Celts in the Summer of 2023, Coach El was an assistant coach at the University of Houston. There, under Coach Ronald Hughey, she was the program's recruiting coordinator. Prior to joining the Cougars, she served as an assistant coach at the University of South Alabama, where she managed the defensive game plan, player substitutions and time-outs. Off the court, El also oversaw the academic standing of all student-athletes and acted as a marketing liaison for the program.

Coach El is also well-known throughout the Houston area as she was the head coach for the Junior Varsity and acted as the Varsity Assistant Coach for the Cy-Springs Boys Basketball Program. In her first season with the team, the Panthers finished 24-10 overall and secured a first-round victory in the UIL Regional Tournament. Then in the next season, her efforts helped CSHS go 27-10, including sharing the district title with a 14-2 mark, as the Panthers advanced to the second round of the regional tournament. During her time at Cy-Springs, El spent her summers as the Head 15U boys coach for the FAM Elite Basketball program and assisted with the 16U and 17U squads.

"Mansa El is a star in the making!" UH Women's Basketball Head Coach Hughey said. "St. Thomas struck gold with the hiring of Coach El. She is a teacher by nature so coaching and building relationships is nothing new to her. Coach El is disciplined, determined, knowledgeable and a fabulous motivator. The future is bright for St. Thomas Women's Basketball."

Coach El was also a student-athlete for the South Alabama Jaguars. She was a two-time letter winner from 2011-13, and finished her career with 691 points, 247 rebounds, 162 assists, and 78 steals in 69 career appearances. El received her bachelor's degree in Interdisciplinary Studies from South Alabama in 2013 and her master's in Human Resource Development from the University of Houston in 2016.