10/27/2026 12:00:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Daynia Benton, Ally Lovisolo and Kymani Edwards join the Red Storm for 2026-27 campaign
QUEENS, N.Y. – St. John's women's basketball Head Coach Joe Tartamella announced the addition of Daynia Benton as an assistant coach, along with Ally Lovisolo and Kymani Edwards as graduate assistants for the 2026-27 season.
Benton returns to the Red Storm with more than two decades of collegiate coaching experience, including 14 seasons as a head coach at the NCAA Division I and Division II levels. The veteran coach previously served as the Johnnies' first assistant coach and recruiting coordinator from 2002-05.
Benton brings an extensive coaching resume highlighted by conference championships, NCAA Tournament appearances and multiple Coach of the Year honors. Her experience also extends to the professional ranks, having served as an advanced scout and volunteer coach with the WNBA's Connecticut Sun in 2019 before joining the Atlanta Dream as an assistant coach in 2021.
At the collegiate level, Benton most recently spent five seasons as the head coach at Rhode Island from 2014-19, where she engineered the largest single-season turnaround in program history. She was URI's first minority women's head coach in any sport, one of the many achievements Benton earned during her coaching career. Under her leadership, the Rams finished with a 17-13 record, a 10-win improvement from the previous season, and captured their first Ocean State Tournament Championship. Benton also guided Rhode Island to consecutive first-round victories in the Atlantic 10 Tournament and recruited A-10 Rookie of the Year Charise Wilson.
Prior to Rhode Island, Benton spent eight seasons at the helm of Northeastern from 2006-14. During the 2012-13 campaign, she led the Huskies to 17 victories and a fifth-place finish in the Colonial Athletic Association, the program's highest finish in its CAA era. Her efforts earned her 2013 CAA Coach of the Year honors, while she recruited and coached 10 All-CAA selections throughout her tenure in Boston.
Benton began her head coaching career at New Haven during the 2005-06 season, guiding the Chargers to a 24-7 overall record and both the New York Collegiate Athletic Conference regular-season and tournament championships. The successful campaign culminated in an NCAA Tournament appearance, while Benton earned conference Coach of the Year recognition.
The veteran coach previously spent three seasons on the St. John's sidelines from 2002-05, helping the Red Storm reach consecutive BIG EAST Tournaments. During the 2004-05 campaign, Benton helped guide the Johnnies to a 20-11 record, marking the program's first 20-win season in 17 years. She began her collegiate coaching career at LIU from 1995-2002, helping the program capture the 2001 Northeast Conference Championship and earn an NCAA Tournament berth.
Outside of collegiate coaching, Benton serves as Executive Director and CEO of the Terance Mann Complete Player Foundation (TMCPF.org) and is a co-founder of BentForce Basketball and Courtside Moms Media. A former collegiate basketball player at Georgetown, Benton was part of a Hoyas program that captured a BIG EAST Championship and advanced to the NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen. She graduated from Georgetown in 1995 with a bachelor's degree in psychology before earning a master's degree in school psychology from LIU in 2001.
Benton is married to Eddie Benton, a women's basketball associate head coach at Robert Morris University. Together, they have three sons and a daughter. Her eldest son, Terance Mann, is a guard for the Brooklyn Nets and recently began his eighth NBA season. Martin Mann works closely with the TMCPF, while her youngest son, Tre Benton, is a football athlete at Robert Morris University. Her daughter, Ny'Asia Benton, who also attends Robert Morris, runs track and field.
In addition to Benton, Tartamella welcomes Lovisolo and Edwards as graduate assistants. Lovisolo joined the Red Storm in June following a four-year playing career at Loyola Md., where she served as a team captain during her senior season in 2025-26. The Allendale, N.J., native graduated from Loyola in 2026 with a degree in communications and minors in political science and studio art. Edwards, a Brooklyn, N.Y., native, joined the staff as a graduate assistant after previously serving as a St. John's women's basketball student manager. Edwards assisted with scouting, practice preparation and team operations since joining the program in 2022. He graduated from St. John's in 2026 with a degree in sports management.
Benton returns to the Red Storm with more than two decades of collegiate coaching experience, including 14 seasons as a head coach at the NCAA Division I and Division II levels. The veteran coach previously served as the Johnnies' first assistant coach and recruiting coordinator from 2002-05.
Benton brings an extensive coaching resume highlighted by conference championships, NCAA Tournament appearances and multiple Coach of the Year honors. Her experience also extends to the professional ranks, having served as an advanced scout and volunteer coach with the WNBA's Connecticut Sun in 2019 before joining the Atlanta Dream as an assistant coach in 2021.
At the collegiate level, Benton most recently spent five seasons as the head coach at Rhode Island from 2014-19, where she engineered the largest single-season turnaround in program history. She was URI's first minority women's head coach in any sport, one of the many achievements Benton earned during her coaching career. Under her leadership, the Rams finished with a 17-13 record, a 10-win improvement from the previous season, and captured their first Ocean State Tournament Championship. Benton also guided Rhode Island to consecutive first-round victories in the Atlantic 10 Tournament and recruited A-10 Rookie of the Year Charise Wilson.
Prior to Rhode Island, Benton spent eight seasons at the helm of Northeastern from 2006-14. During the 2012-13 campaign, she led the Huskies to 17 victories and a fifth-place finish in the Colonial Athletic Association, the program's highest finish in its CAA era. Her efforts earned her 2013 CAA Coach of the Year honors, while she recruited and coached 10 All-CAA selections throughout her tenure in Boston.
Benton began her head coaching career at New Haven during the 2005-06 season, guiding the Chargers to a 24-7 overall record and both the New York Collegiate Athletic Conference regular-season and tournament championships. The successful campaign culminated in an NCAA Tournament appearance, while Benton earned conference Coach of the Year recognition.
The veteran coach previously spent three seasons on the St. John's sidelines from 2002-05, helping the Red Storm reach consecutive BIG EAST Tournaments. During the 2004-05 campaign, Benton helped guide the Johnnies to a 20-11 record, marking the program's first 20-win season in 17 years. She began her collegiate coaching career at LIU from 1995-2002, helping the program capture the 2001 Northeast Conference Championship and earn an NCAA Tournament berth.
Outside of collegiate coaching, Benton serves as Executive Director and CEO of the Terance Mann Complete Player Foundation (TMCPF.org) and is a co-founder of BentForce Basketball and Courtside Moms Media. A former collegiate basketball player at Georgetown, Benton was part of a Hoyas program that captured a BIG EAST Championship and advanced to the NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen. She graduated from Georgetown in 1995 with a bachelor's degree in psychology before earning a master's degree in school psychology from LIU in 2001.
Benton is married to Eddie Benton, a women's basketball associate head coach at Robert Morris University. Together, they have three sons and a daughter. Her eldest son, Terance Mann, is a guard for the Brooklyn Nets and recently began his eighth NBA season. Martin Mann works closely with the TMCPF, while her youngest son, Tre Benton, is a football athlete at Robert Morris University. Her daughter, Ny'Asia Benton, who also attends Robert Morris, runs track and field.
In addition to Benton, Tartamella welcomes Lovisolo and Edwards as graduate assistants. Lovisolo joined the Red Storm in June following a four-year playing career at Loyola Md., where she served as a team captain during her senior season in 2025-26. The Allendale, N.J., native graduated from Loyola in 2026 with a degree in communications and minors in political science and studio art. Edwards, a Brooklyn, N.Y., native, joined the staff as a graduate assistant after previously serving as a St. John's women's basketball student manager. Edwards assisted with scouting, practice preparation and team operations since joining the program in 2022. He graduated from St. John's in 2026 with a degree in sports management.
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