SEATTLE — The class of six is now down to three, and the latest loss is the biggest blow yet for the future of the University of Washington women’s basketball team.
Katelan Redmon, a 6-foot-1 freshman guard-forward who led the team in scoring this season at 11.8 points per game, has decided to leave the program and transfer to another school, the UW announced Wednesday. Redmon told Washington coach Tia Jackson and her teammates of her plan to leave Tuesday.
“I never thought in a million years I would be revealing what I am today,” Washington head coach Tia Jackson, who just concluded her first year in charge of the Husky program, said in a statement. “However, Katelan Redmon has opted to forgo her time here at Washington. There are several reasons for her decision and as you can imagine this program is incredibly disappointed that she has elected to leave. Katelan has been an integral part of the success of our program this past season and an absolute gem to coach. We wish her all the best as we continue onward to prepare for what still is a very bright future for Husky women’s basketball.”
Redmon, a graduate of Lewis and Clark High School in Spokane, is the third member of her recruiting class to leave the program. Guard Candice Nichols left just before the start of the season to return home to Carson, Calif., and Jess McCormack, a 6-5 forward-center from New Zealand, quit with four games left in the regular season.
McCormack and Redmon were the headliners of a nationally ranked recruiting class and were regulars in the starting lineup this season. Redmon was one of two Huskies to start all 31 games. McCormack started 14 despite struggling with injuries.
Redmon, who averaged 4.5 rebounds per game and was one of the team’s top perimeter defenders, was named last week to the Pac-10 All-Freshman Team.
Redmon and McCormack were unhappy with the firing of former coach June Daugherty, who recruited this year’s freshman class. Both players filed appeals with the school to be released from their letters of intent prior to the season, but the appeals were denied.
Redmon’s departure leaves the Huskies with eight returning players from this year’s roster, including two, Mackenzie Argens and Dominique Banks, who redshirted this year because of injuries. Washington also has three members of the high school class of 2008 signed for next season, including Jackson High School standout Kristi Kingma.
It is not yet known where Redmon will transfer. Jackson and Redmon were not immediately available for comment.
Contact Herald Writer John Boyle at jboyle@heraldnet.com. For more on University of Washington athletics, check out the Huskies blog at heraldnet.com/huskiesblog.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
