We're slowly inching towards the 2024-25 basketball season, and with a new school year getting started, it's time to check on the new faces in new places.
Several top girls basketball players make the move to NEPSAC each year. It's a big change as they adjust to a new school, new team, new role and new competition. But elite talent translates no matter the league.
Mid-high school transfers can be some of the most important pieces on successful teams. Nobles, for example, won two consecutive Class AA titles with help from a star trio — Jasmyn Cooper, Ashley Dinges and Grace Oliver — who all transferred in 2022. Loomis Chaffee captured the Class A championship last season, with 2023 transfer Alicia Mitchell emerging as a class All-Star. This year's newcomers will assuredly impact the title chase.
Below are seven names to watch as they acclimate to prep school programs.
Izzy Adams, Dexter Southfield
Class of 2026, 5-8 guard
Hometown: Walpole, Mass.
I’ll say it: Adams will be a top-five passer in NEPSAC from the moment she steps on the court, and that’s probably a conservative call. She just sees the floor with rare processing speed and is not afraid to get creative.
After averaging 22 points, 8.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists at Walpole, Adams now steps in for Providence-bound graduate Orlagh Gormley and will be the floor general for a Class AA title contender. She’ll have less pressure to score with the options around her, though she’s also a capable long-range shooter. Adams will have her work cut out defending some of the quickest NEPSAC guards, but she’s not afraid of contact and should help on the glass too.
Bela Cucuta, Tilton
Class of 2026, 5-10 guard
Hometown: Newington, Conn.
Cucuta heads north after a sensational run at Newington where she averaged 21.2 points with 71 made 3-pointers as a junior. She has extremely deep range and is a smooth pull-up scorer — a contrast to explosive, powerful Ahnay Adams, the Miami-bound point guard she’s helping replace at Tilton.
Cucuta joins a great situation on a Rams team near the top of Class AA. She’ll be one of the lead playmakers and expected to break down the opposing defense, but Cucuta will have support from a veteran team that includes Colleen Phiri, Hannah Lynch and Lindsey Lemay.
Serenity Lancaster, New Hampton
Class of 2026, 6-1 forward
Hometown: New London, Conn.
I’m buying all the New Hampton stock, and a big reason (pun sort of intended) is because Lancaster is on the squad. She’s a matchup nightmare because she’s fast for her size with a decent handle, capable of taking a rebound or steal the length of the floor for a bucket. Lancaster is primarily an interior player, but she can step out and knock down an open 3-pointer. She was unstoppable at New London last year, racking up 22 points, 13 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 3.3 blocks per game.
Corinne Lomax, Tabor
Class of 2027, 6-0 forward
Hometown: Watertown, Conn.
Tabor is loading up and should be among the Class AA frontrunners. But while Kaelyn Carroll, Ava Black and Olivia Rodrigues headline the stars, Lomax will be an important piece to a title hunt. She transferred and reclassified after averaging 15 points and 12.6 rebounds at Holy Cross (Conn.). Lomax picked up offers from Xavier and Quinnipiac this summer and fits into the Seawolves’ rotation of versatile forwards.
Bella Miele, Marianapolis
Class of 2026, 5-6 guard
Hometown: Marlboro, Mass.
Marianapolis has a super young team with several transfers who could seize opportunity. Miele sticks out early after averaging 21.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 3.9 steals as a sophomore at Marlboro. She then helped the Mass Huskies’ top 2026 team win 13 of its last 14 games and emerge as a contender in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball Champions League (EYCL). A deep-range shooter who can also drive and finish through contact, Miele is one of the more underrated new names in NEPSAC.
Grace Minihane, Northfield Mount Hermon
Class of 2025, 6-0 forward
Hometown: Colorado Springs, Colo.
Postgrad players seem a bit less common for girls than for boys, but Minihane is an important name to know. In her senior season at Colorado Springs Christian, she averaged (per MaxPreps) 25.8 points, 8.5 rebounds and 5.3 steals en route to Class 3A Player of the Year honors. Minihane dazzled in her test run at the NEPSAC Scholastic Showcase, displaying a combination of power and finesse as a driving scorer. She can give NMH’s ceiling a huge lift.
Anna Moser, Hoosac
Class of 2027, 5-8 guard
Hometown: Rutland, Vt.
This is the second time I’ve highlighted Moser this week, and spoiler alert: she’ll make our 2027 class watch list (coming soon!). In her first go-round with Hoosac at the NEPSAC Scholastic Showcase, Moser was a weapon scoring both on and off the ball, demonstrating the creative ways Hoosac could deploy her this winter. The Vermont Gatorade Player of the Year forms a dynamic backcourt duo with New Hampshire commit Carolina Williams.
Five more names to follow: Leah McKenzie (Loomis Chaffee), Grace Kearney (St. Luke’s), Kam Derba (Dexter Southfield), Zariah Ottley (Northfield Mount Hermon), Callie Cosgrove (Tabor)
