Recruiting Rundown

[MikeADore]

ESPN #91 Jada Harrison (Martin, Tn.), one of the players on our known/possible interest or offer list, has committed to MTSU. There's no evidence Vandy maintained any contact/interest in her, but it's hard to know for sure.

[MikeADore]

Elle Blatchford, another player on our known/possible interest or offer list, has committed to Southern Miss. Nice player.

[tweet][/tweet]

[MikeADore]

Chloe Clardy, one of the first players to get an offer from coach Ralph after she got the job, committed to Stanford today. She's a 5'9 guard from Conway, Ark. and is ranked #28 on Hoopgurlz in the '23 class.

[MikeADore]

Avery Treadwell, another player on our known/possible interest or offer list, has committed to Florida State.

[Nashmann]

Are we getting anybody?

[MikeADore]

Are we getting anybody?

So far just the '23 guard from Poland, Agata Makurat.

[Nashmann]

Are we getting anybody?

So far just the '23 guard from Poland, Agata Makurat.

She's a good one....hope we get some other top players. Have to close the deal!!

[MikeADore]

Mjracle Sheppard, who is on our known/possible interest list, has released her top three: Xavier, Georgia Tech and Mississippi State. I watched her play a high school game (with Montverde Academy) back in March, and the announcers were talking about her offer to play at Vandy with coach Ralph, but there was never any other indication of that. She did almost certainly have one from coach White.

[Nashmann]

Coach Ralph is a good floor coach and knows how to really coach! She will have to learn to recruit better and close the deal on some top players or the program will never advance to top level!

[HuskyT]

Coach Ralph is a good floor coach and knows how to really coach! She will have to learn to recruit better and close the deal on some top players or the program will never advance to top level!

Too bad she hasn't worked in a system that historically recruits great players. The decision process for 17 year old athletes is often hard to fathom. CSR's first team has demonstrated an extreme defense first attitude necessitated by the talent she available. If I was in competition with Vandy for a top player, my pitch would be that my school plays offense first and its a fun system to run the court and shoot fast. CSR has better players this year and will demonstrate a bit more offensive versatility

[DoreFan49]

Coach Ralph is a good floor coach and knows how to really coach! She will have to learn to recruit better and close the deal on some top players or the program will never advance to top level!

Wait at least a couple of months to evaluate how this recruiting year will go. Coach Shea appears to need to sign 5 recruits this fall, three to replace the graduate players and the 2 seniors. Shea already has 2 top quality players who have verbally committed, Agata Makurat at 6’4” from Poland and 6’ 2” Khalil Pierre from Arizona. Khamil is ranked 87 by Hoopgurlz and Agata is a potential post player with excellent guard skills who would be ranked in the top 100 if she were playing in the US.

As to Shea’s ability to recruit, Shea was instrumental as a player at UCONN in the recruitment of Diana Taurasi and as an assistant coach in recruiting Brianna Stewart, Napheesa Collier, Katie Lou Samuelson, Kaleena Mosquera-Lewis, Moriah Jefferson, Crystal Dangerfield, Megan Walker, and current UCONN players Paige Buechers, Azzi Fudd, Caroline Ducharme, and Nika Muhl to name a few.

And as to the 2022 recruiting class, Coach Shea recruited and signed Ryanne Allen a 6’ 1” guard ranked 82 in Hoopgurlz and 2022 and Amauri Williams a 6’3” post player ranked 93 in Hoopgurlz 2022 and also Jada Brown a 5’8” guard ranked in the top 100 in some polls. She also recruited 2 of the best graduate transfer guards in the portal in Ciara Harrison from St Louis University and Marnelle Garraud from Boston College.

Shea’s history of recruiting at UCONN over the past 20+ years and last year at Vanderbilt gives me confidence that this recruiting year will be successful and will help to get the Vanderbilt Women’s Basketball team where we all want it to be in the next few years.

Also, Shea and her staff have demonstrated that they are capable of developing good players into great players. The development of freshmen Ayana Moore unranked and Sacha Washington ranked 67 by Hoopgurlz 2021 last year was truly amazing!!!

[MikeADore]

Georgia point guard Diana Collins ('23) has re-opened her recruitment after committing to Georgia a few weeks ago. She had a Vandy offer. It will be interesting to see if Joani Taylor offers her at A&M. Collins obviously re-opened things when Taylor announced she was leaving Georgia.

Collins committed to Ohio State. It doesn't appear Vandy maintained contact with her after she committed to Georgia prior to Joni Taylor leaving for A&M.

[MikeADore]

NEW ESPN Rankings (10/17/22)

Vandy Targets in Class of ’23
Bailey Gilmore (unranked..Committed)
Madison Greene (unranked….Committed)
Jordy Griggs (unranked down from #86)
Agata Makurat (#15 WorldwideHoops Global Ranking….Committed)
Aiyana Mitchell (unranked) Committed
S’mya Nichols #34 (down from #21)
Khamil Pierre #63 (up from #87…Committed)

Class of ’24 (only Top 60 listed)
Avery Cain #31
Jaloni Cambridge #1 (up from #2)
Justice Carlton #3 (up from #21)
Kendall Dudley #13 (down from #4)
Joyce Edwards #2 (down from #1)
Ella Hobbs #47 (down from #40)
Shay Ijiwoye #52 (up from #56)
Kateryna Koval #17 (up from #20)
Jordan Lee #15 (down from #14)
Kendall Puryear unranked
Zania Socka-Nguemen unranked
Annika Soltau, #5 international ranking, Germany
Chloe Spreen unranked
Kennedy Ume #27 (unchanged)
Ava Watson #45 (down from #41)
Trinity Wilson unranked

[MikeADore]

Cori Allen, a Hillsboro native who plays at Montverde Academy in Florida, has committed to Illinois. Vandy showed at least passing interest in her early in the recruiting process, but there has been no indication of continued interest by either party in the last year. She dropped out of the Hoopgurlz Top 100 list in the most recent release.

[MikeADore]

Jordy Griggs, another former top-100 Hoopgurlz player on our class of '23 list, has committed to Kentucky.

[Dore2Dore]

Completely agree with our coaching staff's ability to develop players; in this day & age of NIL & some players to the highest bidders, ease of transfer portal etc - it is a totally different game. There are hidden gems out there that would love to be coached up by our staff & get a free VU education - we just have to find them.

[MikeADore]

S'mya Nichols (ESPN #34) has committed to Kansas. No surprise. Just happy she didn't wind up in Knoxville.

By the way, UT didn't manage to get a single player they went after. Had players making repeated visits only to choose another school. Only managed to sign one last year. Of course, they got some players in the portal.

[MikeADore]

Wanted to add the five players we signed just to keep as much recruiting info as possible in vandyfan52's excellent thread. Should make the info easier to find as time passes.

* Agata Makurat, 6'2, Poland
* Khamil Pierre, 6'2, Arizona
* Aiyana Mitchell, 6'4, Colorado
* Bailey Gilmore, 6'3, Georgia
* Madison Greene, 5'8, Ohio

[MikeADore]

Class of '24 player of interest Cameron Rust has committed to Penn State.

[MikeADore]

An updated list of class of '24 and '25 players who have offers along with their Hoopgurlz ranking:

Class of ’24
Imari Berry #7
Lexi Blue #31
Joyce Edwards #1
Avery Howell #45
Shay Ijiwoye #41
Kateryna Koval #5
Zania Socka-Nguemen #43
Kennedy Ume #28
Trinity Wilson unranked (Committed)

Class of ’25
Ava Black, unranked
Ciara Byars, #35
Bella Hines, #23
Leah Macy, #11
Sami Mancini, unranked
Brynn McGaughy, #15
Jordan Speiser, #17