Drexel University Athletics
Women's Basketball Finalizes 2026-27 Roster
9/2/2026 2:00:00 PM | Women's Basketball
PHILADELPHIA – Janet E. & Barry C. Burkholder Family Head Women's Basketball Coach Amy Mallon has finalized the Drexel women's basketball roster for the 2026-27 season. The incoming class features four freshmen and two graduate transfers who bring championship experience, collegiate success and international competition experience to University City. The class includes freshmen Miley Malcolm, Ava Fajardo, Emma Montanari and Megan Rullo, along with graduate transfers Aisha Dabo and Meliah Van-Otoo.
The six players will join returning players Mariah Watkins, Julia Garcia Roig, Laine McGurk, Molly Rullo, Bria Watkins, Emilee Jones and Molly Lavin.
Miley Malcolm | F | Fr. | Indian Trail, N.C. | Porter Ridge
Malcolm comes to Drexel following a four-year varsity career at Porter Ridge High School in Indian Trail, N.C. She currently holds the county record for assists in a game with 17 and served as a team captain for the Pirates. Malcolm earned All-Conference honors in 2025 while helping Porter Ridge capture a conference championship. She was selected All-Conference again in 2026 and helped lead the Pirates to a second consecutive conference title.
Ava Fajardo | G | Fr. | Randolph, N.J. | Blair Academy
Fajardo joins the Dragons after spending her freshman season of high school at Gill St. Bernard's before completing her career at Blair Academy. A four-year varsity player, she also competed on the JV girls lacrosse team. Internationally, Fajardo represented the Philippine National Team three times and helped the program earn first-place finishes in the FIBA U16 Division B Asia Championship in 2023 and the U18 Division B Asia Championship in 2024. She also earned Game MVP honors at the Mecca Showcase in both 2024 and 2025 and was named Game MVP at the Rose Classic and HoopGroup events in 2025.
Emma Montanari | G | Fr. | Denver, N.C. | East Lincoln
Montanari arrives at Drexel after a highly successful four-year varsity career at Est Lincoln High School. She earned All-Conference honors three times and was named Conference Player of the Year once. Montanari also collected All-District recognition twice and was selected to the High School OT All-State Team on two occasions. During her prep career, she helped her team reach the state regional finals and was part of four High School Christmas Tournament championship teams. In 2025, Montanari was named the High School Christmas Tournament Most Valuable Player.
Megan Rullo | G | Fr. | Drexel Hill, Pa. | Cardinal O'Hara
Rullo comes to Drexel following an accomplished multi-sport career at Cardinal O'Hara. A four-year member of the basketball team and three-year field hockey player, she helped lead the Lions to the 2024 PIAA 6A Girls Basketball State Championship while earning Third Team All-Catholic and Second Team All-Delco honors. On the field hockey pitch, Rullo garnered Second Team All-Catholic and All-Delco recognition. As a senior, Rullo earned First Team All-PCL, First Team All-Delco and Third Team All-State honors after leading Cardinal O'Hara in points, rebounds and assists. She was selected to compete in both the Philadelphia All-American Game and the Philly Labor Classic All-Star Game and was recognized with the Heart of a Lion Award.
Dabo and Van-Otoo make up the Dragons' incoming transfer class, bringing more than 140 games of collegiate experience to the roster.
Aisha Dabo | F | Gr. | Cumming, Ga. | Forsyth Central | Hampton
Dabo joins the Dragons after spending the last three seasons on the court at Hampton following two seasons at Massachusetts. In 2025-26, she appeared in all 31 games and averaged 6.2 points and 3.5 rebounds per contest while recording 21 blocked shots and 18 steals. She scored in double figures six times, including a 27-point performance against Radford that also featured seven rebounds and four blocked shots. During the 2024-25 campaign, Dabo started 30 of 31 games, averaged 8.1 points and 4.4 rebounds per game, scored in double figures 14 times and recorded three double-doubles while finishing second on the team with 21 three-pointers. She earned CAA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll with High Honors recognition in 2023-24. Prior to her collegiate career, Dabo was ranked as the No. 3 wing player and No. 24 overall prospect in Georgia as a senior at Forsyth Central High School, earning two First Team All-Region selections and preseason Second Team All-State honors.
Meliah Van-Otoo | G | Gr. | Westtown, Pa. | Westtown School | Loyola Maryland
Van-Otoo arrives in University City after four seasons at Loyola Maryland, where she appeared in 81 career games and made 16 starts. During the 2024-25 season, she played in 27 games and averaged 3.9 points per game while tying her season high with 14 points twice against American. She also recorded a season-best five assists against Haverford. In 2023-24, Van-Otoo appeared in 30 games with 10 starts and posted career highs of 4.8 points and 1.6 assists per game. She scored a career-best 15 points against Bucknell and registered six steals against Lafayette. Before college, Van-Otoo was a standout multi-sport athlete at Westtown School, competing in basketball, track and field and softball. She earned Friends Schools League Honorable Mention honors from 2019-22, was selected as a Philly All-American in 2022, helped Westtown claim the 2021-22 PIAA State Championship and won Friends Schools League titles in 2019-20 and 2021-22.
Drexel is set to open its season at home on Monday, November 2 against Marist. Season ticket packages are now available starting at $85. To see the women's season ticket plan, please click here.
The six players will join returning players Mariah Watkins, Julia Garcia Roig, Laine McGurk, Molly Rullo, Bria Watkins, Emilee Jones and Molly Lavin.
Miley Malcolm | F | Fr. | Indian Trail, N.C. | Porter Ridge
Malcolm comes to Drexel following a four-year varsity career at Porter Ridge High School in Indian Trail, N.C. She currently holds the county record for assists in a game with 17 and served as a team captain for the Pirates. Malcolm earned All-Conference honors in 2025 while helping Porter Ridge capture a conference championship. She was selected All-Conference again in 2026 and helped lead the Pirates to a second consecutive conference title.
Ava Fajardo | G | Fr. | Randolph, N.J. | Blair Academy
Fajardo joins the Dragons after spending her freshman season of high school at Gill St. Bernard's before completing her career at Blair Academy. A four-year varsity player, she also competed on the JV girls lacrosse team. Internationally, Fajardo represented the Philippine National Team three times and helped the program earn first-place finishes in the FIBA U16 Division B Asia Championship in 2023 and the U18 Division B Asia Championship in 2024. She also earned Game MVP honors at the Mecca Showcase in both 2024 and 2025 and was named Game MVP at the Rose Classic and HoopGroup events in 2025.
Emma Montanari | G | Fr. | Denver, N.C. | East Lincoln
Montanari arrives at Drexel after a highly successful four-year varsity career at Est Lincoln High School. She earned All-Conference honors three times and was named Conference Player of the Year once. Montanari also collected All-District recognition twice and was selected to the High School OT All-State Team on two occasions. During her prep career, she helped her team reach the state regional finals and was part of four High School Christmas Tournament championship teams. In 2025, Montanari was named the High School Christmas Tournament Most Valuable Player.
Megan Rullo | G | Fr. | Drexel Hill, Pa. | Cardinal O'Hara
Rullo comes to Drexel following an accomplished multi-sport career at Cardinal O'Hara. A four-year member of the basketball team and three-year field hockey player, she helped lead the Lions to the 2024 PIAA 6A Girls Basketball State Championship while earning Third Team All-Catholic and Second Team All-Delco honors. On the field hockey pitch, Rullo garnered Second Team All-Catholic and All-Delco recognition. As a senior, Rullo earned First Team All-PCL, First Team All-Delco and Third Team All-State honors after leading Cardinal O'Hara in points, rebounds and assists. She was selected to compete in both the Philadelphia All-American Game and the Philly Labor Classic All-Star Game and was recognized with the Heart of a Lion Award.
Dabo and Van-Otoo make up the Dragons' incoming transfer class, bringing more than 140 games of collegiate experience to the roster.
Aisha Dabo | F | Gr. | Cumming, Ga. | Forsyth Central | Hampton
Dabo joins the Dragons after spending the last three seasons on the court at Hampton following two seasons at Massachusetts. In 2025-26, she appeared in all 31 games and averaged 6.2 points and 3.5 rebounds per contest while recording 21 blocked shots and 18 steals. She scored in double figures six times, including a 27-point performance against Radford that also featured seven rebounds and four blocked shots. During the 2024-25 campaign, Dabo started 30 of 31 games, averaged 8.1 points and 4.4 rebounds per game, scored in double figures 14 times and recorded three double-doubles while finishing second on the team with 21 three-pointers. She earned CAA Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll with High Honors recognition in 2023-24. Prior to her collegiate career, Dabo was ranked as the No. 3 wing player and No. 24 overall prospect in Georgia as a senior at Forsyth Central High School, earning two First Team All-Region selections and preseason Second Team All-State honors.
Meliah Van-Otoo | G | Gr. | Westtown, Pa. | Westtown School | Loyola Maryland
Van-Otoo arrives in University City after four seasons at Loyola Maryland, where she appeared in 81 career games and made 16 starts. During the 2024-25 season, she played in 27 games and averaged 3.9 points per game while tying her season high with 14 points twice against American. She also recorded a season-best five assists against Haverford. In 2023-24, Van-Otoo appeared in 30 games with 10 starts and posted career highs of 4.8 points and 1.6 assists per game. She scored a career-best 15 points against Bucknell and registered six steals against Lafayette. Before college, Van-Otoo was a standout multi-sport athlete at Westtown School, competing in basketball, track and field and softball. She earned Friends Schools League Honorable Mention honors from 2019-22, was selected as a Philly All-American in 2022, helped Westtown claim the 2021-22 PIAA State Championship and won Friends Schools League titles in 2019-20 and 2021-22.
Drexel is set to open its season at home on Monday, November 2 against Marist. Season ticket packages are now available starting at $85. To see the women's season ticket plan, please click here.
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