Jenny Allen, Staff Writer
New VCU women’s basketball head coach Chelsea Banbury joined the Rams just in time to begin recruiting for the transfer portal — which opened on April 6 and remained open until April 20.
After ending the 2025-2026 season with an unfortunate 8-23 record, Rams key fourth-year redshirt guard Mary-Anna Asare entered the portal, according to The IX Sports.
Asare is looking for a final season elsewhere after being approved for a medical redshirt.
Despite Asare’s injury last season, her prior performances proved her crucial contributions on offense and defense.
During Asare’s third year, she was named to the All-Atlantic 10 Second team and led the Rams with 16.0 points per game, scoring double digits in 25 out of 30 games played, according to VCU Athletics. Her skills went beyond scoring as she averaged 4.2 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.7 steals per game.
The day of the portal’s closing, Asare announced her official commitment to the University of Virginia where she will complete her final year of eligibility. The loss of Asare is significant to the Rams, however their prior season without her gave them the opportunity to excel on their own.
The 6-foot-7-inch redshirt third-year forward Hawa Doumbouya also announced her entrance to the portal. The loss of Doumbouya takes away the Rams’ tallest player, leaving their height advantage behind.
Finally, the Rams lost guard Ty Williams and forwards Makennah White and Tanya Tkachenko due to eligibility.
Aside from Asare and Doumbouya, no other players announced their intention to enter the portal, giving the Rams eight returning players, according to Ram Nation.
The Rams have optimism from three current incoming recruits: Alexis Riggs, Gianel Quist and Nicole Torresani, allowing Banbury the opportunity to grow with a young team.
The 6-foot forward, Riggs attends Mt. Zion Prep Academy which has given her the experience of competing at high-levels, preparing her for the collegiate level.
SPIRE Academy 6-foot-2-inch forward Quist will give the Rams the opportunity to regain their height advantage with the loss of Doumbouya.
Torresani is a 5-foot-10-inch player for the Italian International Basketball Federation giving her the chance to elevate the Rams team, according to FIBA.
She was a part of the FIBA U18 Women’s EuroBasket and FIBA U17 Women’s Basketball World Cup in 2024 and was recently a part of the FIBA U18 Women’s EuroBasket in 2025.
The Rams also gained Lexi Flemming and Macy Spencer from the portal.
Flemming is a 5-foot-4-inch guard who formerly played at Bowling Green University and High Point University where she has stacked up over 1,000 career points, according to HPU. She was named to the All-Mid Atlantic Conference Third Team in the 2024-2025 season before facing an injury in the 2025-2026 season.
Spencer, a 5-foot-8-inch guard, also attended HPU where she was named Big South Player of the Year and Big South Newcomer of the Year in the 2025-2026 season, according to HPU.
She also earned Big South Player of the Week four times in the 2025-2026 season and was named to the Big South First All-Conference Team and the Big South All-Tournament Team.
The newly committed Rams give the possibility for the team to grow and learn its strong suits under the fresh leadership of Banbury.