Abby Miller earned her degree, found full-time employment and was ready for the next chapter in her life.
Thing is, something was missing.
Basketball.
A standout forward with Mount Allison University Mounties in Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association play, Miller graduated with her degree in sociology from the Sackville campus. She tried to put the game behind her.
Well, that didn’t take.
Miller, 24, suited up last season with the Miramichi Hericanes of the Maritime Women’s Basketball Association.
She was not a stranger to the MWBA.
In fact, Miller sits eighth overall in the league in scoring with 250 points, averaging 8.9 points per game in the MWBA after a season with Miramichi and two with the Moncton Mystics.
The basketball world is small.
Miller found out just how small when she wore Miramichi colours in the league’s third season.
‘Last year being away from basketball was a really difficult adjustment for me where basketball is something that has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember and has always provided me with a strong community,’ said Miller. ‘To not have that constant was something I really felt. When I started playing for Miramichi, I got to experience that again. Being back in that environment and working with the girls who were still playing at Holland College and University of Prince Edward Island got me considering the possibility of using my final year of eligibility.’
Miller said she joked with Hericanes’ teammates on coming out of retirement after a remarkably successful year as an individual and as a team.
Someone was listening.
Katie Donahoe was a Canes’ teammate and an assistant coach at UPEI under head helmsman, Matt Gamblin. Miramichi’s Lauren Rainford is a star with UPEI and also earned MWBA MVP honours for her play last season.
‘I had made a few jokes about playing again and Katie Donahoe reached out and asked if I would seriously consider coming to play for the Panthers,’ Miller said. ‘Ultimately, it was Lauren Rainford telling me how much they could use a player like me on their team that solidified my decision.’
Push had come to reality.
She had a decision to make.
‘It was definitely a big decision considering after graduating from Mount Allison I had no real plans to return to school, so whether I wanted to play basketball again wasn’t really a question,’ she said. ‘The biggest decision was taking on the task of being a student again gave. That gave me some pause.’
There were other factors involved, too.
Would she return to the ACAA where she was a two-time first team all-star and Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association player of the year her final season with the Mounties? Or take a different path?
‘I decided if I was going to go back, I wanted to challenge myself to play at a level that I hadn’t before,’ she said. ‘After the success I had at the college level, I wanted to prove to myself that I could take the skills I had developed and contribute to a team in a different league.’
Miller also didn’t want to return to the ACAA and play against Mount Allison and head coach, Tom Skabar, so she stayed on PEI where she was working and committed to Gamblin and the Panthers.
The change has been solid.
Miller has started five of UPEI’s eight games entering head-to-head action Friday in Fredericton against University of New Brunswick Reds.
She is averaging 5.5 points per game and continuing to battle on the boards, earning 6.6 rebounds an outing, her bread and butter.
‘I play with a lot of grit and hustle which is what I’m hoping to bring to UPEI’s program,’ she said. ‘I just love playing basketball and it shows anytime I’m on the floor. I make it an intention with any team I am on to play with heart and energy. We have a lot of offensive threats on our team at UPEI this year so my goal is to be consistent in doing the little things and making hustle plays that will help contribute to my teammate’s success.’
Miller did play a key role for head coach Brittany Sullivan and the Hericanes.
The Miramichi squad may have been new to the MWBA last season, but they played like a veteran team in front of large and raucous fans.
‘I was really happy with my experience in Miramichi coming after two seasons with Moncton,’ she said. ‘I feel really lucky that I have had the opportunity to play with and meet the people I did in Moncton. So, I was a bit nervous about switching franchises, but I could not have felt more welcomed in Miramichi. The organization took really good care of us as players in general, but especially us travelling from the island, they always had everything organized and taken care of so we could just focus on playing.’
The chance for her and her PEI-residing teammates to stay with Miramichi’s Georgia Bell for five days allowed the players a chance to feel a part of the community.
Miller was surprised at the Miramichi reception.
‘I had heard that Miramichi loves its basketball so I was expecting support, and from playing in Moncton I knew that the gyms could really fill up, but its always exciting playing in that kind of environment,’ she said. ‘I was really impressed and grateful for the support of the fans last season and I’m excited to see it grow this upcoming year. We had some excellent basketball players on our team so I knew we were going to be competitive, but being the new franchise in the league I wasn’t sure how we were going to fit. We really hit the ground running and I can’t wait for the opportunity to be even more successful this year.’
The MWBA is preparing for its fourth season of operation in the spring of 2025.
All seven teams are confirmed to return next season and expansion is on the docket.
Through three seasons, almost 200 women have suited up for at least one game and the league itself continues to increase its talent pool and level of competitiveness.
Who will win the Pro*Line Stadium Series Legacy Cup next June is anyone’s guess.
Miller has absorbed all she can from the MWBA.
‘My favourite thing about the MWBA is the impact it has had, and is going to continue to have, on the growth and narrative around women’s basketball in this area,’ she said. ‘This league has provided so many opportunities to so many talented players who may not have thought they would get the chance to play after university. It highlights some of the best basketball in this part of the country, and through this, it shows so many young athletes that they have options and that it is worth it to continue putting in the work for the sport they love.’
The Mount Denson, NS, product also embraces playing with and against players she looked up to as a young player trying to find her way through youth, interscholastic and university basketball.
‘If you had told me at 12 years old, while I was watching them win the AUS championship, that I would eventually be guarding Jasmine Parent or Abbey Duinker in a basketball game, I would’ve said you were crazy,’ Miller said. ‘This league made that possible. It’s an incredible step in establishing a lasting, ongoing women’s basketball culture in the Maritimes. It’s a really special thing to be a part of and I have thoroughly enjoyed the experience.’
Although Miller was one of the top ACAA point producers during her four-year Mount Allison career, it’s defence she hangs her hat on.
That’s what gets her up in the morning.
‘I’ve described myself as a defence-first player although I definitely draw my confidence on offence from my defensive performance,’ she said. ‘A defensive possession isn’t over until you’ve secured the rebound. And offensively, you give your team so many more opportunities to score if you get the offensive rebound. My favourite way to score is from an O-board. I think, to put it simply, the easiest way to win a basketball game is to have the ball more. That means wanting the ball more. And that means crashing the boards.’
Miller is studying diversity and social justice at UPEI.
– Abby Miller (right) guards MWBA and AUS rival Ann Bastien last season (Fran Harris Photo)