Former Veterans Warhawk basketball player returns to Middle Georgia as a Mercer Bear

"It feels so good," Stacie Jones said. "There's no separation from me and my family."

MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) — The Mercer women’s basketball team experienced a significant setback with the departure of nine student-athletes due to graduation or transferring to other schools. In response to this substantial loss, the Bears swiftly turned to the transfer portal to rebuild their roster, and in the process, they successfully recruited a talented hooper from Middle Georgia.

“It feels so good. There’s no separation from me and my family,” said Stacie Jones, former Veterans Warhawk. “Like they get to see everything that I’m doing. So they can come to every single game and just stop by, and I can just go home for dinner. It just feels really good.”

Unknowingly, Mercer’s recruiting process for Stacie Jones has been going on for a couple of seasons now.

“We have played against Stacie for two years, and she really played well against us. She’s a great rebounder, great athlete, and hurt us statistically,” said Susie Gardner, Mercer women’s basketball head coach. “So we thought when she went in the portal, we knew that she was right down the road at Veterans High School. And just a great person, and we like great people in our program.”

Stacie spent the first three years of her collegiate career at Kennesaw State University. The Owls have yet to secure a conference title since becoming a Division I program. However, the senior now joins a Mercer team with expectations set no lower than winning a conference championship year in and year out.

“At first, it was like a smack in the face because it’s always what somebody wants. But when you actually get there and then feel the atmosphere, things are actually truly different,” said Jones. “So she’s (Coach Gardner) used to going to the tournament playing against those Power Five, those top teams that be in the tournament. So it’s like she knows the atmosphere and knows what to do, so she’s going to bring that wherever she goes. She most definitely is pushing us, but I’m loving it. I’m soaking it all in for real.”

In addition to Jones, the Bears added four more transfers to their roster for this upcoming season.