Story By: Erin Zollars
Photos By: Sol Tucker
College Park, MD–
After a disappointing exit from the NCAA Womens Tournament, today the Maryland women’s program has announced that three players have been granted transfers from the program.
The most notable comes in Destiny Slocum, but Kiah Gillespie and Jenna Staiti have also been granted permission to transfer.
Slocum, who made Sports Center Top 10 highlights during the first round of the tournament with her three quarter length court sht at the half buzzer made the biggest impact on this team and perhaps will be the biggest loss to the program for Brenda Frese.
“We would like to thank these three student-athletes for their hard work during their careers at Maryland,” Frese said. “We appreciate their contributions to our program.
I truly enjoyed coaching Destiny and her energy she brought every day. I had many long conversations with her over the season and we spent a lot of time together. Our staff is proud of the commitment we put into Destiny’s development and all the accomplishments she achieved this season from Big Ten Freshman of the Year to WBCA National Freshman of the Year. We appreciate Kiah’s work over the last two seasons and Jenna’s efforts this year. We wish all three of them nothing but success on and off the court as they move forward.”
Slocum, a native of Meridian, Idaho, started in 34 of 35 games for the Terrapins (32-3), and averaged 11.5 points and 6.0 assists per game. She earned All-Big Ten Second Team and All-Big Ten Freshman Team honors.
“I’m grateful for my time at Maryland and the opportunity,” Slocum said “I want to thank my teammates and coaches and all the fans for their support this season. I’ve put a lot of thought and prayer into this decision. I’ve talked with my family and have decided to continue my college career elsewhere.”
So for Frese, what does this mean for the program that has done so well to build a program where heading to the tournament each year seemed like a no brainer? She has some rebuilding to do, but Slocum, only a freshman, will be a huge loss with the departure of two other players to graduation this year. Expect her to rebuild quickly with the talent that is on the bench and emerge as a strong team within a couple years with all new faces.
“It is always difficult to see young people leave your program, but after many years in coaching and life experiences, I have a much broader perspective on life and the challenges that come along the way,” Frese said. “We’re excited about the great depth and talent on our roster. We will continue to play at the Maryland standard we’ve set for our program.”
