The Coastal Athletic Association Tournament championship and a win in the NCAA Tournament was heady stuff for a William & Mary women’s basketball program that had never reached such heights.
“I think I had a standing ovation in all of my classes,” Cassidy Geddes, who averaged 12 points in the CAA Tournament run in making the all-tournament team, said Thursday during CAA Media Day. “I got printed in a full page in my high school yearbook (in Newton, North Carolina) talking about what an accomplishment for me and the school it was.”
Tribe coach Erin Dickerson Davis said the buzz from a stunning first NCAA berth, as the No. 9 seed in the CAA, continues to this day.
“I was driving into work this morning, and I saw a young woman, not even an athlete, wearing one of our (CAA) championship shirts,” she said. “This brought so much pride and happiness to everyone around here.”
League coaches aren’t convinced the Tribe can spread such joy again, picking them to finish sixth in the preseason coaches poll that overwhelmingly tabs Charleston as the favorite. But the Tribe returns some key pieces, notably Geddes, a second-team All-CAA preseason pick who averaged 9.7 points a year ago and scored 26 in the upset of top seed North Carolina A&T in the conference tournament.
Dickerson Davis, Geddes and the Tribe will celebrate the CAA title at 11 a.m. on Oct. 18 by raising the championship banner in a celebration at Kaplan Arena.
“It’s a really exciting time,” Dickerson Davis said. “We get to celebrate last year one last time, with the rings and banner ceremony.
“Then we’re turning the page for this next season and trying to do some really remarkable things.”
Geddes said, “I think (the ceremony) will just inspire that feeling again. What everything felt like in that moment when we were at the top of the world winning.
“I think that will kick us into our first games.”
The Tribe opens Nov. 6 at Davidson and plays Nov. 9 at home against Barton.
William & Mary men
Expectations are higher for William & Mary’s and Hampton’s men’s basketball teams. The Tribe, picked seventh a year ago, is fourth in this year’s preseason coaches poll, while the Pirates come in at No. 5 after they were voted 14th and last (the CAA has 13 teams now) prior to the 2024-25 season.
The Tribe finished a surprising 17-15 in Brian Earl’s first season as coach and return seven in addition to adding four Division I players from the transfer portal. A key returnee is senior guard Chase Lowe, who earned CAA preseason second-team honors after averaging 8.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.1 assists.
“Our system thrives off of retention,” Lowe said at Media Day. “I think we have some leadership and good returners coming back that are very familiar with the system and know what the coaches want and expect.
“I think (being picked fourth) says the program is moving in the right direction.”
The Tribe opens at home Nov. 3 against Division II Georgian Court and plays Nov. 8 at Norfolk State.
Hampton men
The Pirates were picked fifth in the CAA preseason coaches poll after being slotted 14th a year ago. In Ivan Thomas’ first season as head coach, Hampton went 17-16 for the program’s first winning record in five years and advanced with a first-round CAA Tournament win over Northeastern.
Hampton returns All-CAA honorable mention selections in senior guard Xzavier Long, who started a team-high 30 games last season and averaged 7 points and 5.2 rebounds, and sophomore guard Daniel Johnson, an All-CAA Rookie Team selection who averaged 7.9 points.
Even so, HU isn’t trying to hinge on expectations from last year.
“Last year was last year,” Thomas said. “We’re not looking for nobody to pat us on the back and tell us how great of a job we did. We’re not built that way around here. We’re looking to get better in terms of this season and building this team and developing this chemistry, so we’re excited about it.”
The Pirates open Nov. 3 at Milwaukee and play Nov. 6 at home against Mid-Atlantic Christian.
Hampton women
Hampton’s women’s basketball team was picked 11th in the CAA preseason coaches poll Thursday.
The Pirates finished 8-23 last season in Tamisha Augustin’s first year at the helm, but return seven players, including leading scorer Aisha Dabo (8.1 points, 4.4 rebounds) and top rebounder Le’Asia Foreman (5.1 rebounds, 6.2 points).
Augustin also added seven newcomers — five transfers and two freshmen — as Hampton looks to climb the standings after being slotted near the bottom of the poll.
“A lot more depth, a lot more energy,” Augustin said. “We’re feeling really good. Everyone is healthy, so that’s always a plus, and so we’re right where we want to be going into our official practice.
“On paper, we know that we’re better (this season), but the versatility and the depth is the most important part, and we’ll continue to play hard. … I like our new additions.“
The Pirates open the season Nov. 5 at home against The Apprentice School and travel to Wake Forest on Nov. 9.
