SEATTLE — It was such a little thing, but it seemed poignant at the time.
After scoring 18 points in a win over Arizona last month, Katelan Redmon sat next to Washington coach Tia Jackson laughing her way through a postgame press conference.
The moment seemed like the perfect little anecdote to show how happy Redmon was at a school she tried to get out of coming to last year. The coach teased her player about not reaching a preset rebounding goal in the game, saying the player owes her pushups. The player smiled and leaned into the coach.
Yet for all the smiles and for all the success on the court, Redmon, Washington’s leading scorer this season, wasn’t as happy as it looked on the surface. Without going into details, the freshman from Spokane spoke Thursday about her decision to seek a transfer from Washington.
“On the outside, everything looks good and happy, but deep down you know that there is something missing and something doesn’t quite fit,” said Redmon, who averaged 11.8 points and 4.5 rebounds this season, earning a spot on the Pac-10 All-Freshman team. “When you’re not happy, and every day you kind of dread things, you’ve got to make a change. That’s where I came to a point where I needed to make it so that I’m happy.”
Redmon, who like the rest of Washington’s freshmen class, was recruited by June Daugherty before the coach was fired last spring, tried to get out of her letter of intent when Daugherty was let go. The school denied the request, as well as that of Jess McCormack, a center-forward from New Zealand. New coach Tia Jackson essentially had to re-recruit several freshmen, and Redmon said she came to Washington wanting to make things work.
“We all know that in the beginning I was hesitant to come here in the first place, so there were always thoughts (about leaving), but I came here wanting to make it work and planning on staying for four years,” Redmon said. “That was my overall decision coming in, and after the season it just wasn’t the right place.”
Redmon said she didn’t come to Washington thinking it was a temporary stop in her college basketball career.
“It was never like that,” she said. “I planned on coming and playing my four years.”
Three of Washington’s six freshmen have left the program since November. Candice Nichols, a guard from Carson, Calif., left just before the start of the season and returned home to Southern California. She is now at Loyola Marymount in Los Angeles. McCormack left the team with four games to go in the regular season, also saying Washington wasn’t the right fit for her.
The two recent departures have brought up more questions than answers, as neither player gave details as to why Washington wasn’t a good fit.
Redmon did not go into specifics when pressed for details, but said that she and Jackson have a “pretty strong relationship.”
When asked if there was some sort conflict between player and coach, Redmon said she couldn’t reply to the question.
“I didn’t see it coming,” Tia Jackson said in a phone interview. “But if that’s what’s in the best interest for her, I want to make sure she’s going to be in a better place. If not being at Washington is that place, then so be it.”
Jackson said she tried to talk Redmon out of leaving, but eventually concluded that Redmon wasn’t going to be happy at Washington.
“I don’t think Washington is for everybody,” Jackson said. “If there was one school for everybody, we’d all be going to that institution. But I think there are different fits and styles for everyone. I wish Washington was for everybody, but it’s not. I want the fit to be perfect. You’ve got to feel good about everything about it, and if there’s one thing that’s shaking them, we need to explore it and find out what we can do to make it better for them.”
Redmon said she hasn’t yet decided where she will transfer next season. One option that seems to make sense is Gonzaga, which would allow Redmon to be closer to family. She said she struggled with homesickness this season being away from her family.
Washington State could be an option as well with Daugherty having taken over there after being fired. Transferring to a Pac-10 school would cost Redmon a year of eligibility, however. If she transfers to an out-of-conference Division I school, she will have to sit out a year, but can use that season as a redshirt year and still play three more. Transferring to a Pac-10 school would mean Redmon has just two years of eligibility after sitting out a season.
Redmon said she has formed strong bonds with her teammates, and that telling them and her coaches was difficult, but at the same time she is happy to have the decision behind her.
“It’s honestly a big relief finally getting this out,” she said. “It’s hard sitting here and thinking it, and once you finally take initiative and do it, it’s a big relief.”
Jackson now has eight returning players from this year’s team including two players who redshirted because of injuries. The Huskies have signed three freshmen, including Jackson High senior Kristi Kingma. Washington may try to add more players to bolster depth by either looking for unsigned freshmen or adding junior college transfers.
Jackson is confident her current and incoming players can fill Redmon’s shoes.
“This opens up opportunities for other players, that’s what it does,” Jackson said. “And it makes us even hungrier. Keep in mind we have three phenomenal talents coming in, and they’re very capable of scoring.”
Contact Herald Writer John Boyle at jboyle@heraldnet.com. For more on UW sports, check out the Huskies blog at heraldnet.com /huskiesblog
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