UMass Lowell Athletics

UMass Lowell Women's Basketball Head Coach Jon Plefka has announced the final addition to his coaching staff, as new director of operations/assistant coach James Navalance joins the River Hawks after serving one season at Montverde Academy as the assistant director of scouting & video for the men's basketball team.

"I'm excited to welcome James to our staff and the UMass Lowell community," said Plefka. "He brings a great energy, strong work ethic, and a true passion for developing student-athletes. His diverse experience and steady rise through the coaching ranks speak to his dedication and love for the game. I'm confident he'll be a great fit for our culture and have an immediate impact on our program."

In Navalance's previous position at Montverde, he was responsible for dealing with practice film for the team, scouting reports for coaches and player development.  Navalance also managed the cutting and organization of film, as well as the statistical analysis. During his tenure, Montverde reached the Chipotle High School  Nationals during the 2024-25 season.  

"I'm extremely grateful and excited for the opportunity provided by Jon Plefka and UMass Lowell to be a part of the women's basketball program," said Navalance. "The vision Coach Plefka has set for the future of the program creates an enthusiasm to be a part of this community."

Prior to Montverde, Navalance served as the director of basketball operations for the women's basketball team at Rider University. Navalance oversaw the operations for the team, including travel, meals, equipment and gym setup. Other responsibilities in that role included coordinating the video and statistical organization, as well as assisting in player development and recruiting internationally.

From 2018 to 2021, Navalance got his first opportunities to work in a women's basketball program at Georgian Court University. Navalance was a student manager there for two years before taking the graduate assistant position on the women's basketball team for one year.  

Following his time as a graduate assistant at Georgian Court, he was promoted to assistant coach for the 2022-23 season. In that role, Navalance handled player development, recruiting, scouting, video and the operations of the team. 

Navalance also got an exceptional opportunity as a lead intern with Driven Basketball and the NBA Pre-Draft Process in 2022. He helped coordinate day-to-day operations and gym organization, as well as assisted in player development for college players, pre-draft players and NBA players. This experience gave Navalance the chance to work in player development with professional and NBA players, including Damian Lillard, Cam Johnson, Anfernee Simons, Doug McDermott, Max Abmas and many more.  

Navalance earned his bachelor's degree in business administration from Georgian Court in 2020 and his master's degree in communication and digital marketing, also from Georgian Court, in 2021.