Going back in history

Paul & Nathaniel Hackett
Joe Fiack and sons Paul and Jim (my roommate at one point)

The Women's Transfer Portal is now closed, with 1553 entrants, 463 (30%) of whom have already found new homes. Assuming that Jen Gross and staff are looking for front court help (i.e. a more experienced post player), there are still 30 or so viable candidates. - based on size and position. Still a few from P5 conferences and mid-majors.

Not expecting an announcement anytime soon, though last year, the word came out in late April.

There's also the Regular Signing Period for high school seniors, which is a total mystery. The Aggies have seldom signed a high school player during the Regular period, but it has happened.

Thanks for this. Interesting - and smart - way they arrange the volleyball schedule to minimize travel. Though I'm not sure why we have a home and home vs. Nevada, but not vs. San Jose State, which is actually a bit closer.

Just saw that as well.

Juju Watkins is returning, and they have a highly regarded 6' freshman guard coming in, in addition to other returning players...she'll be the shortest player on the team. And likely, not the quickest.

Hope it works out for her. The Big10 ain't the Big West.

We'll never know. Gross plays recruiting pretty close to her vest. The staff definitely does due diligence before offering anyone, especially from the portal. Based on previous years, I'd be surprised if there are any announcements until the end of April or early May.

On the other side, I imagine Kin Caldwell at Tennessee started combing the portal very aggressively. She's got to be feeling the heat after the season-ending debacle leading to a 16-14 record. Eight straight losses, most of her team entering the portal, two assistants leaving and her top 2026 recruit de-commiting.

Since Pat Summitt, Holly Warlick was fired after 7 seasons (72% winning record), despite 3 SEC championships, 3 Elite Eights and 1 Sweet 16. Kellie Harper was fired after 5 seasons (68% winning record), 2 Sweet Sixteens. This will be Caldwell's 3rd season (63% winning record), 1 Sweet 16.

Things not looking good on Rocky Top. The portal's only been open a week, buy as of now, Tennessee isn't killing it with top transfers. Doesn't seem top be putting together a a roster that can improve on Caldwell's two previous finishes in the SEC - 6th & 8th. I hope the move works out for Peterson, but she could be looking at a new coach next season unless she and the team really out-perform.

Harper Peterson (Stanford/Whitney HS, Rocklin) ) commits to Tennessee. Wishful thinking on both parts? I thought UCD might be a good place for her. Hope it works out.

While the “Do Not Contact” tag often means that the player already has a landing spot, it also means that teams and coaches can't initiate contact with players. The player in the portal or their representative must initiate contact. The player can choose to have all negotiations handled by their representative, such as a parent or an agent. Bennett signed with Rise Sports Management in November, so there you go.

Her parents, particularly mom, are also very involved with Ryann. I’ve spoken with her at several games; she rarely misses any, home or away. She usually talks to one or more of the coaches after each game. Nice lady to speak with, but seems to have a long apron string.

Gross has always found a way, even in years where we've lost a lot. An additional challenge on top of moving to the Mountain West.

Next woman up...a chance for last year's freshman and the incoming recruits to step up. We have lots of young perimeter players on the roster. While I think a post (or maybe 2) is still the priority in the portal, now it will be interesting to see if we bring in an experienced perimeter player.

Also, interestingly, UCR guard, BW leading scorer (23 ppg) & 1st Team All-BW, Hannah Wickstrom, is also in the portal. Like Bennett was All Frosh the previous year. In 25-26: 34 mpg/49% shooting/34% from 3/83% FT/7 rpg/3 apg/3 spg. Torched UCD 2x (26/6/5; 31/7/2). I liked her game. Wonder if she might be a possibility?

When Bennett signed with Rise Sports Management in November, I thought it was a little odd. She had an outstanding freshman season, but it wasn't off the charts, even for the Big West. Maybe a red flag, even then?

Ryann Bennett is in the transfer portal with a “do not contact” stipulation. That usually means she already has a landing place. Major bummer!

So is most of the Iowa State team. Both went to the NCAA Tournament. Makes one appreciate coaches like Jen Gross. Cori Close at UCLA is apparently similar to Gross in her emphasis on the person and relationships.

We definitely did.

I'm guessing that you're referring to paying a lot for equestrian, and not seeing a string of conference championships?
For only being an ICA team for 10 years, I think equestrian has made steady, if unspectacular progress. Probably no different from many young programs at lots of universities. From a cultural standpoint - our roots in agriculture and vet med - I'm sorry to see it go. But I get the rationale.
And while I think Rocco generally does an excellent job, from what little looking into it I've done, some aspects might have been handled better. There's no easy, painless way to drop a program, so maybe it was the best option available.

What UCD WBB can offer, other than a scholarship and whatever NIL money that's available - certainly not much compared to many places?

High Quality Education
Especially if you're a grad student with little (overseas) or no prospects of playing professionally, the masters program at the Graduate School of Management implemented in conjunction with ICA should be very attractive.
The undergraduate programs aren't too shabby either.
And starting back with EVO, Aggie ICA has worked hard to develop opportunities for student athletes to prepare for life after college and athletic competition.

Playing Time
Players want to play. Most of the players in the portal have come off the bench most of their careers, often for less than half the game. Having an opportunity to play a lot should be a definite enticement.

With only 1 player currently big enough to play in the post. and that being an incoming freshman, there are definitely minutes available in the front court, including the opportunity to start. What exactly that opportunity might be depends on what the plans are for that incoming freshman, Marta Forsline, and how many post players Davis might bring in, and what eligibility they may have left.

There's also an opening on the perimeter up for grabs.
Right now, soon-to-be sophomores Emmy Ersdala and Sophie Lentfer would seem to be the leading candidates, based on their substantial experience during the 2025-26 season. Are either deemed ready for primetime by the coaching staff?
Other possibilities currently on the roster are soon-to-be sophomore Carrington Davis and 2026 recruit, Anna Bassett. Despite a high school resume very similar to Ryann Bennett and Avery Sussex, Davis got little playing time last season. But she showed flashes when given the opportunity, and certainly can't be counted out. Bassett is more of an unknown, but enrolled at the start of Winter Quarter, and has practiced with the team since, giving her a leg up on the fellow recruits..
Even more unknown are incoming freshmen Layla Dixon, Taylor Hicks and Rebecca Donnelly.
With no returning starters, and only sophomores and freshmen on the roster, an experienced perimeter player isn't out of the question.

Winning Tradition
If you're a competitor, winning is important to you...and winning is fun!!
With 11 consecutive winning seasons, 6 of those seasons of 20+ wins - including the last 3 in a row, the Aggies are definitely a program with a winning tradition. I've really only been looking at post players, since that's the biggest area of need. Most of them are intending to leave schools that haven't been winners while they've been there. Few are leaving schools with a record of winning like Jen Gross' Aggie teams.

Team Culture
If you're an athlete in the portal, sometimes it's about more than the physical aspect of the team. Sometimes, the physical part might the least of why you're looking elsewhere.
Year after year, we hear our graduating seniors talk about what a special environment the UCD Women's Basketball Team is. And we hear from incoming freshmen, as well as transfers, about how that environment sold them on accepting an offer to play at UCD. The intangibles can be significant.

For those interested, another site that one can use to find financial data is the Knight Newhouse College Athletics Database https://calmatters.org/education/higher-education/2025/03/nil-deals-california-college-athletes-sponsorships/.

One of the engineers that my dad knew at General Dynamics had worked on the Sprit of St. Louis at Ryan Aeronautical as a young man. He'd become good friends with Lindberg, who stayed with the Pearl's whenever he visited the San Diego area. Bud's last assignment was working on the General Dynamics bid for the space shuttle. His stories tended to put things in perspective.

Related, my grandmother would tell the story that when news of the Wright brothers flight at Kitty Hawk reached Boston, her teacher - probably junior high or high school - stated that man had reached the zenith of technical development. Little did he know...more perspective.

My dad was in charge of production for the Atlas rocket at General Dynamics in San Diego. I remember him getting all of us up very early on Mercury/Gemini/Apollo launch days to watch the launch. It was like a family religious ritual. Almost as important as Mass on Sundays.

I'm pretty sure Jen Gross and her staff will be looking for post players, either in the portal or the regular spring signing period. Currently, we have 1 incoming freshman to play the post and no returning post players. I doubt the plan is to go through another season with only 1 post player - an inexperienced one to boot.

There are several intriguing possibilities in the portal already, and I'm sure a few more to come. IMHO, Peterson is one of them, her time on the Farm certainly didn't boost her stock. I imagine how hard the Aggies look at her will be largely based on their evaluation of her coming out of high school.

The horses don't travel. Visiting teams use the home team horses. I'd think, Texas A&M, TCU, South Carolina, Oklahoma State, SMU - our non-conference opponents this year - have high quality horses in their stables.

The one complaint I've heard that, if accurate, would seem legit, is that the announcement came after other schools still offering equestrian had filled their recruiting classes for next year. So those kids who had accepted offers from UCD had nowhere to go. It was also my understanding that UCD wouldn't honor those scholarships, which seems out of character. I know UCD was honoring the scholarships of those students already on the team.

We have a 6'3" freshman post (Marta Forsline) from Minnesota in the 2026 recruiting class, but so far no one else with size to play that spot. Young and Tsami did their best when called on, but neither have the height (nor bulk to compensate). And neither really have the skillset or mindset for that position. Forsline seems something of a late bloomer, but reportedly has some of the same skills Megan developed.

Hopefully, we can find a grad or senior/junior transfer to bridge until the freshman is ready for prime time in the MW.