Brielle Blair, Rachel Camp and Khadedra Croker give the Hokies some scoring punch and should alleviate the loss of four seniors following this season
After his first two recruiting classes saw him bring in six foreign players on his current 13-player roster, Virginia Tech women’s basketball coach Dennis Wolff and his staff have more of a local feel surrounding their most recent recruiting class.
Those who inked national letters of intent to join the Hokies for the 2014-15 academic season back in mid-November include a pair of players from the state of North Carolina and one from the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Four seniors depart at the end of this year, taking with them size – Tech loses three players at least 6-foot tall – and a major scorer in Monet Tellier. The three players who signed letters of intent are Brielle Blaire, Rachel Camp and Khadedra Croker, and should help to compensate for those departures.
“As a group, these are talented additions to our roster,” Wolff said at the time of the signings. “I would like to commend Coach [Bett] Shelby, Coach [Thomas] Joyce and Coach [Jermaine] Woods for all the effort they put in to the recruitment of these ladies.”
Blaire, a 6-2 forward from Salisbury, N.C., played her first three high school seasons at Salisbury High School and showed a propensity for scoring. She twice scored 600 points in a season, which led the county, and averaged 24.1 points per game as a junior. In her career at Salisbury, she averaged 14.7 points and 9.9 boards a game.
She helped lead the Hornets to a 2A state title in 2011 and was named the game’s MVP. She also earned NCPreps 2A all-state honors as a sophomore and junior. For her upcoming final high school season, Blaire will suit up for North Rowan High School.
According to ESPN HoopGurlz, Blaire, who had interest from Louisville and South Carolina, was rated a four-star recruit and is ranked No. 72 overall and No. 17 at her position. An evaluation of her per ESPN stated that she’s an “athletic perimeter performer with college-ready frame (that) stretches the defense to the arc; puts on deck, attacks and finishes in traffic, brings a scorer's mentality; tenacious on glass, completes the play; secondary ball handler in transition, half-court sets.”
Wolff’s take on Blaire is that she “is a multi-talented forward who is extremely skilled for her size. She should help offset the departure of Monet Tellier.”
Camp, a 5-11 guard from Forest City, N.C., touts a similar resume as Blaire while playing for East Rutherford High School. A prolific scorer in her own right, Camp is already well over 2,000 points for her high school career and averaged more than 31 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals per game last year for the Cavaliers.
The past two seasons, Camp’s name has been listed on the NCPreps 2A all-state team as well – just two spots below Blaire’s (listed alphabetical) – and enters her senior year with a 28.4 points-per-game average.
According to ESPN HoopGurlz, Camp, who had offers from East Carolina, Furman and Gardner Webb, was rated a three-star recruit and is ranked 59th nationally at her position. An evaluation of her per ESPN stated that she’s a “slashing perimeter performer (who) handles and attacks in transition finishes vs. contact; emerging mid range game; driver.”
Wolff’s says that Camp “is a skilled guard capable of playing on or off the ball.”
Croker, a 6-2 center/power forward from Suffolk, Va., has established herself as one of the top high school basketball players in the Hampton Roads area over the past two seasons. She led King Fork High School to a Southeastern District regular season and tournament title as a sophomore, while averaging more than 16 points, 13 rebounds and 7 blocks a game. That, along with her 11 triple-doubles, helped her secure Player of the Year honors.
Croker followed that season with another district tournament title as a junior and added first-team all-district and second-team All-Eastern Region honors while averaging more than 15 points, 13 boards and 6 blocks a contest. She has passed the 1,000-point plateau.
According to ESPN HoopGurlz, Croker, who was receiving interest from East Carolina, was rated a three-star recruit and is ranked 22nd nationally at her position. An evaluation of her per ESPN stated that she’s a “pro-frame insider with developing interior consistency; active on glass, rebounds and initiates fast break; mobile in up-tempo game; potential next level impact.”
Wolff’s take on Croker is that she is “an extremely active post player and she should immediately bolster our rebounding efforts when she arrives at Virginia Tech.”
With just 13 players on the roster and four exhausting their eligibility at the end of the year, Wolff still has the ability to bring in a couple more players during the spring signing period.
