Where two Notre Dame women’s basketball players ended up after entering the transfer portal
Two of the three Notre Dame women’s basketball players who entered the NCAA transfer portal late last month have already found their new homes.
Forward Sam Brunelle is headed to Virginia and junior guard Anaya Peoples will play for DePaul. Both respective locations are closer to home for the two 2019 McDonald’s All-Americans. Brunelle is from Ruckersville, Va., and Peoples is from Danville, Ill.
What do those destinations mean for Notre Dame? The Irish will be seeing Brunelle and Peoples up close and personal in their new uniforms. Virginia, of course, is an ACC foe. Notre Dame has played DePaul at least once in every season since 2006 (excluding the shortened 2020-21 season).
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Head coach Niele Ivey’s team is going to have to look a lot different when the Irish face the Cavaliers and Blue Demons. Notre Dame also lost senior guard Abby Prohaska to the portal. As of Friday, she had yet to announce her landing spot. Center Maya Dodson was selected by the Phoenix Mercury in the 2022 WNBA Draft.
Notre Dame is down to four returning regular contributors from the 2021-22 roster. Those four were all starters, but they still can’t do it all on their own. The Irish are going to have to do some portal plucking of their own to field a competitive team capable of building upon last month’s run to the Sweet 16.
Here’s a look at the Notre Dame roster situation entering the offseason.
Notre Dame players returning for 2022-23
Sophomore point guard Olivia Miles: The team’s leading scorer with 13.7 points per game, Miles also ranked second in the country with 7.4 assists per game. If she continues to improve her scoring ability, gets better defensively and remains one of the best playmakers in the sport, she could be one of the best players in all of women’s college basketball for years to come.
Sophomore guard Sonia Citron: The ACC Freshman of the Year, Citron merely got her feet wet in the college game last season. She still averaged 11.8 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. She’s one of Ivey’s best hustle players, but she needs to get better at locking up players on the defensive end.
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Junior forward Maddy Westbeld: The 2020-21 ACC Freshman of the Year, Westbeld seemed to struggle with a diminished role. She was Notre Dame’s third option for most of the year behind Miles and Dodson. She handled that a bit better down the stretch and finished the season with 11.8 points per game.
Junior center Nat Marshall: Another knee injury limited Marshall to 13 appearances last season. She averaged 3.2 points in 8.5 minutes per game. Whether or not she can stay healthy for an entire season remains to be seen, but Notre Dame could use all the bodies it can get.
Senior guard Dara Mabrey: By far the the team’s best three-point shooter, Mabrey made 73 of them. The upcoming season will be her last as a college player, so she’s got nothing to lose.
Notre Dame players departing from the 2021-22 roster
- Sam Brunelle: 6.8 ppg, 2.5 rpg
- Anaya Peoples: 3.8 ppg, 3.8 rpg
- Abby Prohaska: 3.6 ppg, 2.5 rpg
- Maya Dodson: 12.6 ppg, 7.3 rpg
Incoming class of 2022 freshman
KK Bransford: A McDonald’s All-American, Bransford had a decorated high school career that included two state titles at Cincinnati Mount Notre Dame. As a senior, the 5-10 guard averaged 21.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 2.3 steals per game.
