The562’s coverage of Cabrillo Athletics is sponsored by the Cohn Family.
Cabrillo is no stranger to change.
For another year, the Head Coach for the Jags is a fresh face on the West Side. But Keyla Morgan is no stranger to the Long Beach basketball scene.
“I want to create a name for myself,” Morgan said. “I want everybody to know me for my coaching style, so I felt like Cabrillo was a great opportunity for that.”
Morgan is a Long Beach Poly alum. After winning state her senior year, she went on to play at Kentucky before turning to coaching. Now at Cabrillo, Morgan is focused on growth before anything else.
“I’m just looking to build and develop my girls,” Morgan said. “What that looks like is getting 1% better each and every day.”
There are a couple of returning Jags for Morgan’s first year. Sophomores Jade Kingsley, Camilla Soto and Etemane Pese are three emerging leaders on the West Side that Morgan is looking to pour into.
From running floor structures to bringing athleticism and energy to the court, Morgan is expecting all three of these underclassmen to step up in different ways. This trio of leaders will have a packed roster around them featuring players from each grade.
One of their fellow sophomores is Yarezmin “NeNe” Castro. Morgan said Castro knows the game, but they’re working on sharpening her basketball IQ for future years.
“We’re gonna pour into her more so next year, she’s a different ball player,” Morgan said. “She knows her things that we’re talking about – the basketball lingo, and she already has a better IQ – but she’s one I feel like could have a really good season.”
Morgan’s roster this year features a lot of young ballers, with nine of her 13 players being underclassmen. While having less experience on the varsity level can bring its own challenges to a team, Morgan said with her program’s mission, their age doesn’t matter.
“You shouldn’t let nobody outwork you,” Morgan said. “We have to have confidence. We can’t have somebody come to your gym and they have more confidence.”
Castro said no matter the players’ age, you can see what Morgan is bringing to Cabrillo by the way she coaches. Even with an array of ages, the team has been closely brought together this year in a way Castro hasn’t seen in any other sport before.
“She knows how to coach very well. She has us very disciplined,” Castro said.
Fans can expect to see more change at Cabrillo in the coming years under Morgan. While she settles into her first year, Morgan said she wants to continue building on the West Side.
“Being an underdog is great because you’re underestimated,” Morgan said. “People underestimate you and then you outperform that. I just want to let everybody know that Cabrillo is going to be coming up, maybe not this year, but we’re building a legacy.”
