Mount St. Mary basketball phenom signs with NJIT

Basketball runs deeply in Filipino culture, so much so that Mia Gestosani has played the sport since she was about five years old.

“My brother got me into it, like, as soon as I could hold the ball in my hands,” she jokes.

Last month, Gestosani, a senior at Mount Saint Mary Academy, Watchung, signed a National Letter of Intent to continue her academic and athletic career at New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark. She is the fourth basketball player in school history to earn an NCAA Division I scholarship.

During her time in high school, Gestosani has grown into a leader as well as a top scorer and playmaker. She has been a four-year starter for Mount Saint Mary with team highs in points, assists and steals during her sophomore and junior seasons while eclipsing 1,000 career points last February.

Currently sixth in program history in points, the 5-foot-8 Gestosani has a chance to move into the top three this winter. Along the way, she has received numerous All-Skyland Conference accolades and led Mount Saint Mary to three straight division titles for the first time. 

“I was a little bit taller (than others) when I was growing up, but going into high school, I developed as a point guard because of my current height,” Gestosani said. “I knew at the collegiate level that I would probably play that position.”

Gestosani was about two feet shorter than her brother when they grew up playing together with a mini hoop. The older sibling would always win, but those backyard battles made her more and more determined to work harder.

“It put that competitive spirit into me, because he was my older brother,” Gestosani said. “I always wanted to be better than him.”

Gestosani joined organized basketball when she was about seven years old playing in a Filipino league – a smooth life decision because her parents were immigrants and knew a community of people with the same heritage. She entered club basketball in the sixth grade playing for the Jersey Cardinals, who are based out of Rutgers Prep. One year later, COVID-19 shook the world and gave her a fresh perspective on sports.

“That’s when I realized I really loved basketball, because having it taken away from me made me realize how much I really love to play and how much I miss it,” Gestosani said. “I began to work out a lot more during that time.”

Gestosani entered high school with a quiet confidence after seeing her training pay off against high-level club competition. She dreamed of playing college basketball, and as a freshman she began attracting interest from schools such as Buffalo and Dartmouth.

The hoopster verbally committed to NJIT this past August because of her desire to major in data science, plus the school’s proximity and her comfortability with the basketball team.

“I think the coaching staff, everybody there was really welcoming, and that’s what I really loved about it,” said Gestosani, who has also played AAU basketball with the Adidas-sponsored New York Gauchos. “Just the fact that it’s a little closer to home and being able to have my family come to some of the games is important to me because of how I grew up. My brother was my main trainer, and I feel like it’s important for him to be able to come to some of my games and have my family close by.”

Gestosani knows she also wouldn’t be in this position without Mount Saint Mary coach Ryan Shellhammer and the seniors who guided her as a freshman. Shellhammer coached Gestosani’s older brother, so Gestosani knew she could rely on him.

“He’s always working really hard to make sure all of the girls are prepared in competition and just making it fun,” Gestosani said. “The girls here are like a family to me, and we have a great culture between everybody. I think going into my freshman year, I was able to find some seniors that I really looked up to, and I think they’ve made a lasting impact on how I decided to take lead and take action with the girls now.”

With her own senior season underway, Gestosani is proud to be a vocal leader – almost like a secondary coach – on and off the court. She firmly believes that it’s important to be there for your teammates and create a welcoming environment, and that’s the legacy she wants to forge before heading off to NJIT.

“I had a person to do that for me, and I know the impact of that now,” Gestosani said. “Scoring obviously is a big part of the game, but being able to have everybody band together is what’s important in the end because it is a team sport, and that aspect is bigger than anything I think. So I think my ability to lead a little bit different than other people, I think that’s what makes me stand out.”

Her coach can vouch for that level of commitment.

“Mia checks off all the boxes of a successful student-athlete,” Shellhammer said. “She prioritizes her family, works hard in the classroom, is self-driven to improve her individual and team skills in basketball, and most importantly truly cares about her teammates.”