Ber’Nyah Mayo officially became the first UMass women’s basketball player to announce a new school after entering the transfer portal during the offseason. 

On Tuesday evening, Mayo announced on her social media that she would be playing for St. John’s next season. 

The junior announced that she was entering the transfer portal on April 7, though she did mention that she was open to returning to UMass if “that’s what’s meant for me.” 

“I want to thank my UMass coaches for giving me an opportunity to play the game I love… in front of amazing fans and with some of the best teammates an athlete can ask for. I want to thank my family for always showing up for me and all your support especially the last two years packing the A10s!” Mayo wrote when she first entered the transfer portal. 

St. John’s plays in the Big East and finished the 2022-23 season with a 23-9 record. The club fell in the Big East quarterfinals but still qualified for the NCAA tournament as a No. 11 seed. They bested No. 11 Purdue 66-64 in one of the First Four games in the tourney before falling to No. 6 North Carolina, 61-59. 

The Wilmington, Del. native started in every game she played for the Minutewomen. She finished her career at UMass with 975 points, just 25 shy of the 1,000 mark, along with 280 assists and 213 steals.

In just three seasons, she’ll still leave UMass with her name in the record books – her 85 steals in 2022-23 was the most ever in a single season, breaking her own record of 79 from the previous year. Her 213 career steals are third all-time, her 136 steals in the 2022-23 season are tied with Christel Zullo for No. 11 all-time, and her 280 career assists are 14th-best. 

Hannah Bevis can be reached at hbevis@gazettenet.com. Follow her on Twitter @Hannah_Bevis1.]]>