The ACC released its 2022-23 women’s basketball preseason poll on Wednesday and Virginia Tech was picked to finish second in the 15-team league. It’s the highest projected finish in program history, surpassing fourth place last season.
Here’s the full poll, with point totals for each team:
The Hokies return three starters from last year’s group: Elizabeth Kitley, Cayla King and Georgia Amoore. Kenny Brooks & Co. also added Ashley Owusu (Maryland), Taylor Soule (Boston College) and Clara Ford (Boston College) to the mix. Kayana Traylor, D’asia Gregg and Taylor Geiman are also back, while Tech has three talented freshmen: Carleigh Wenzel, Charlise Dunn and Maddie Vejsicky.
The Hokies finished tied for third in the 2021-22 ACC regular season. They knocked off five ranked foes and earned a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament, where they fell to Florida Gulf Coast.
There’s plenty of promise surrounding this group, however. Kitley and Owusu are two AP All-Americans while Amoore and Traylor earned All-ACC honors last season. Soule was an All-ACC performer with the Eagles in 2021-22, too.
Kitley Named Preseason Player of the Year
Kitley, the Summerfield, N.C. native, was tabbed ACC Preseason Player of the Year. She’s the reigning player of the year in the league after averaging 18 points and 10 rebounds last season.
Kitley, Owusu and Soule represented the Hokies on the Preseason All-ACC team, too. Virginia Tech is the first program to have three All-ACC honorees since Notre Dame in 2018.
Owusu, the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award Winner in 2021, averaged 14.3 points, 3.7 assists and 3.1 rebounds with the Terps last year. She was named to the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award watch list for the top shooting guard in America on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Soule posted 16 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game with Boston College in 2021-22. She is on the Cheryl Miller Award watch list, given to the best small forward in the country.
Though the Lisa Leslie Award watch list has not been announced, Kitley, a two-time finalist for the award, will undoubtedly be on it.
Hokies Ranked 13th In Preseason AP Top 25
On Tuesday, the Preseason AP Top 25 dropped. Virginia Tech was picked 13th, the highest-ever preseason ranking in school history. It surpasses 1999 when the Hokies were No. 17.
It’s the third time the program begins the season ranked, joining the 1999 squad and last year’s team. The Hokies ended the 2021-22 season at No. 16 in the AP Top 25.
The ACC has four other teams in the poll, headlined by No. 7 Louisville. No. 9 Notre Dame, No. 10 NC State and No. 12 North Carolina are the other three. Virginia Tech plays those four squads a combined six times, beginning with the Fighting Irish on Dec. 18 in Cassell Coliseum. Four of those games are in Blacksburg.
Moreover, two of Tech’s other foes are ranked: No. 5 Tennessee and No. 22 Nebraska. The Hokies and Volunteers meet in Knoxville on Dec. 4 in the Jimmy V Classic (televised on ESPN2), while Tech hosts the Cornhuskers in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge three days prior on Dec. 1.
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Interesting that we are ranked second in the ACC behind Louisville but three other ACC teams picked below us in ACC (Notre Dame, NC State, and UNC) are ranked above us in the national polls.
Behind 4 other ACC teams in the Top 25 rankings? Guess many voters aren’t really paying attention, huh?
Basketball cannot start soon enough!
I repeat here what I’ve repeated before: PUT THEIR SCHEDULE ON THE HOME PAGE when football season is over!
Two All-ACC level players transfer to VT. Wow.
Coach Brooks has made it a destination spot.
Testimony to the patience we need to afford Coach Pry
Seems like only yesterday when some were calling for Brooks to be replaced. Wonder what those people are thinking now.
Well, when you were handing out playing time to your daughters that’s what happens.
Hope a lot of their games make it to TV. Should be fun to watch.
Well right now it is all potential. Ask after they match or exceed the prediction. I like the new recruits will they play at the all ACC level here?
LET’S GO, LADIES!!
Seriously, has any VT basketball team had this much talent, at least since the days of Dell Curry?
The Women’s Basketball program has come so far!
Go Hokies !