Vanderbilt

[YoDore]

New toy for the old gym.

 

[YoDore]

I had thought we might be through for the '24 cycle, at least in terms of new offers. But, I stumbled upon this one from a couple days ago. She's a 5'7 point guard who scores in bunches at times. She also got offers from Michigan and Penn State this week to go along with several others from earlier, including Marquette, Seton Hall and Harvard.

 

[YoDore]

Great article by Maggie Vanoni about Kevin Demille, assistant coach and one of the recruiting coordinators for Shea Ralph at Vandy. Offers some interesting behind the scenes looks at UConn, also.

From UConn student manager to Shea Ralph's assistant: 'A diamond'

Former UConn women's basketball practice player Kevin DeMille has served under former Husky greats Jeniffer Rizzotti and Shea Ralph as an assistant coach.

www.nhregister.com

 

[Geew1992]

Great article by Maggie Vanoni about Kevin Demille, assistant coach and one of the recruiting coordinators for Shea Ralph at Vandy. Offers some interesting behind the scenes looks at UConn, also.

From UConn student manager to Shea Ralph's assistant: 'A diamond'

Former UConn women's basketball practice player Kevin DeMille has served under former Husky greats Jeniffer Rizzotti and Shea Ralph as an assistant coach.

www.nhregister.com

What a great article!

 

[EricLA]

This says it all and pretty much sums up one of the things that makes UCONN so great:

“I've always sort of been mesmerized by their level of competitiveness and level of humility, and that these people came from all over the country, in some cases all over the world, to try to pursue what they love at the highest level of doing it,” DeMille said. “And that was really special. And I never took that lightly. I never took it for granted. …

Their success meant everything to me, just like you would celebrate your friends’ success. That was sort of a function of our relationship. And so, it became really important to play whatever role I could in helping them do that since they were doing the same for me.”

 

[FormerCTrez]

Great article by Maggie Vanoni about Kevin Demille, assistant coach and one of the recruiting coordinators for Shea Ralph at Vandy. Offers some interesting behind the scenes looks at UConn, also.

From UConn student manager to Shea Ralph's assistant: 'A diamond'

Former UConn women's basketball practice player Kevin DeMille has served under former Husky greats Jeniffer Rizzotti and Shea Ralph as an assistant coach.

www.nhregister.com

@YoDore, this is really a great article. Thank you so much for positing it.

 

[YSRFrisbee]

Great article by Maggie Vanoni about Kevin Demille, assistant coach and one of the recruiting coordinators for Shea Ralph at Vandy. Offers some interesting behind the scenes looks at UConn, also.

From UConn student manager to Shea Ralph's assistant: 'A diamond'

Former UConn women's basketball practice player Kevin DeMille has served under former Husky greats Jeniffer Rizzotti and Shea Ralph as an assistant coach.

www.nhregister.com

Agreed! Great article about about Kevin! I always love hearing about all of these cool behind the scenes stories! He clearly played a vital role in team chemistry and player development ❤️ His positive energy on the sidelines (and dashing good looks) are just a bonus

“In a world where you can be anything…be KIND”

 

[YoDore]

Thought some UConn fans might get a kick out of seeing former Huskie, Anna Makurat, right, and little sis Agata having a big time in Nashville. They were at the Ed Sheeran concert at Nissan Stadium Saturday night. Not sure how long Anna will be in town, but it appears she has been here for an extended visit. I saw a video a couple weeks ago with her being worked out by Vandy's strength and conditioning coach, and about a week ago she was at a Beyonce concert with assistant coach Kevin Demille, assistant coach Ashley Earley, director of recruiting Koko Nelson and director of basketball operations Chris Brann. She has several friends here from her UConn days plus I'm sure her presence is a comfort for her sister as she learns her way in a new country and culture. Anyway, she seems to be having a blast in her off season from her professional league in Europe.

 

[YoDore]

Coach Ralph offered Layla Hays last week. She's a 6'4 class of '25 player from Alaska whose recruiting blew up after a big performance at the Nike Nationals in Chicago. She received several offers, including Vandy. She said her dream had been to play with her sister at Eastern Washington, them all of a sudden she has coaches from major programs across the nation calling her. She called it "surreal."

https://alaskasportsreport.com/2023/07/ ... -48-hours/

 

[YoDore]

She's a 5'6 guard out of the Boston area. Michigan and Penn State offered her within a day or two of Vandy. Also has offers from Marquette, Depaul and Harvard among others.

 

[YoDore]

Orlagh Gormley makes official visit.

 

[YoDore]

Vandy's team and staff took off for Italy today for a 12-day tour. They'll play three games while there, and I don't expect to get any news at all about how they look.

 

[YoDore]

Coach Ralph has an obvious affinity for Philly Rise girls. She already has Justine Pissott and Ryanne Allen from the organization. Would be a great get if she can beat the odds with Blakes.

 

[YoDore]

Vandy wins its first of three games in Italy. This was against a team called Italy All-Stars.



Coach Ralph is all business.

https://twitter.com/VandyWBB/status/1688969981667512322?s=20

 

[YoDore]

I wanted to be sure this got into the Vanderbilt thread where it belongs.

 

[YoDore]

Vandy beat Spain Select 69-62 today in Rome. Sacha Washington had 21, Justine Pissott had 17. Also, one of the notes here says this was their final game of the trip, so it appears an expected third game has been cancelled.

2023 Vanderbilt Women’s Basketball Trip to Italy

vucommodores.com

 

[ochoopsfan]

 

[YoDore]

Big pickup for coach Ralph. She's a 5'11 swing guard who plays summer ball with Bay State Jaguars and high school ball with Tabor Academy in Massachusetts. Shea has been after her hard for more than a year. Roster openings are tight for '25, and the fact that coach Ralph is willing to fill one of them with this young lady a year early says a lot about how high she is on Black.

Plus, she has my favorite name of all our recruits: Ava Jaye Black just sounds good.

 

[YoDore]

Right now, I have us with a 13-player roster for '24, and we have offers out to three guards right now. Among those 13 are one grad who currently has two years eligibility and one senior who has a covid year coming. It's going to get interesting. On the bright side, Vandy currently sits on finalist lists of the 16th ranked and 39th ranked players on Hoopgurlz. They're very similar...5'11 guards.

 

[sun]

It was previously posted to the effect that Vandy wasn't accepting transfer students unless they were freshmen.
Apparently it was the AD's policy at the time because of the value of a Vandy degree.
It's good to see that Vandy has come to their senses & agreed to join the world of modern WCBB.
The best way to improve freshmen recruitment is to win games, & transfers are required to get the ball rolling.
I'll bet that Shea let their AD know in no uncertain terms that his transfer policy was foolish.

 

[YoDore]

It was previously posted to the effect that Vandy wasn't accepting transfer students unless they were freshmen.
Apparently it was the AD's policy at the time because of the value of a Vandy degree.
It's good to see that Vandy has come to their senses & agreed to join the world of modern WCBB.
The best way to improve freshmen recruitment is to win games, & transfers are required to get the ball rolling.
I'll bet that Shea let their AD know in no uncertain terms that his transfer policy was foolish.

The policy has not and will not change. I fear my (or coach Ralph's) wording could have misled you in the beginning.

It's freshmen and grad students. Perhaps the confusion is that, with the exception of grads, she means only players who have finished freshman year (i.e. Justine Pissott this year). They're not going to let you transfer in after your sophomore or junior year, spend a year or two at the school and walk away with a Vanderbilt degree.

Shea has said she agrees with the policy. She has often talked about how she feels the degree is a big selling point to the type of recruits she wants to attract.

Sorry if I misled you.

 

[sun]

The policy has not and will not change. I fear my (or coach Ralph's) wording could have misled you in the beginning.

It's freshmen and grad students. Perhaps the confusion is that, with the exception of grads, she means only players who have finished freshman year (i.e. Justine Pissott this year). They're not going to let you transfer in after your sophomore or junior year, spend a year or two at the school and walk away with a Vanderbilt degree.

Shea has said she agrees with the policy. She has often talked about how she feels the degree is a big selling point to the type of recruits she wants to attract.

Sorry if I misled you.

Thanks for reminding me.
The transfer policy probably doesn't affect BB as much as Vandy's other sports as long as the WBB program doesn't have many outgoing transfers.
But larger team sports like Vandy baseball & football can be affected more as experienced players do routinely transfer.

What’s going on with the VandyBoys and the transfer portal? - The Vanderbilt Hustler

Since the Vanderbilt Commodores’ exit in the NCAA Regional in Corvallis, attention has turned to next season and a busy transfer portal. As with all college sports in recent years, the era of an athlete’s guaranteed full commitment to one school is over, and all programs are dealing with the...

vanderbilthustler.com

2023 Vanderbilt Football Transfer Portal

The latest 2023 college football players that have entered the transfer portal.

www.on3.com

 

[dws3665]

Also, Vandy's AD is a she, not a he.

I'll bet that Shea let their AD know in no uncertain terms that his transfer policy was foolish.

Also, Vandy's AD is a she, not a he.

Candice Storey Lee

The official athletic site of the Vanderbilt Commodores. Find rosters for all players, coaches and staff, including Candice Storey Lee, Interim Vice Chancellor for Athletics and University Affairs and Interim Athletic Director. Powered by WMT Digital.

vucommodores.com

 

[YoDore]

 

[Zanzman]

Better than Lsu