Depth disappears as trio of Notre Dame WBB players hits the transfer portal

The potential remains for the Notre Dame women’s basketball team to return its entire starting lineup intact from its Sweet 16 squad this season, but three key reserves hit the transfer portal on Wednesday afternoon.

First senior guard Abby Prohaska, then junior forward Sam Brunelle, then junior guard Anaya Peoples announced via Twitter that they’ll be playing out their remaining college eligibility elsewhere.

All three have seen their roles diminished since their respective freshman seasons.

The 5-foot-10 Prohaska out of Liberty Township, Ohio, averaged 3.6 points and 2.5 rebounds while playing in 20 games this season for the Irish (24-9), all in a reserve role. She averaged 12.1 minutes per game.

The 6-2 Brunelle from Ruckersville, Va., averaged 6.8 points, down from 13.9 as a freshman starter, and 2.5 rebounds this season. She played in 32 of 33 games in 2022, all off the bench, while averaging 16.5 minutes — about half her freshman average.

The 5-10 Peoples from Danville, Ill., averaged 3.8 points a game after averaging 12.6 as a freshman in 2020.

Prohaska was the No. 73 player nationally per ESPNW in the 2018 class. She’s the third of the four members of that class to transfer, joining previous departees Jordan Nixon (Texas A&M) and Danielle Cosgrove (St. John’s).

Brunelle and Peoples were both elite prospects in the 2019 class. Peoples was ranked 18th overall, while Brunelle finished the cycle at No. 6 after spending some time as the nation’s top recruit.

Among Notre Dame’s starters, guards Olivia Miles and Sonia Citron are freshmen. Forward Maddy Westbeld is a sophomore and Dara Mabry is a senior and a former Virginia Tech transfer who already announced she’ll return for a fifth year.

Stanford transfer Maya Dodson, the team’s center, would also like to return and has applied to the NCAA for a waiver for a sixth year. Per the South Bend Tribune’s Anthony Anderson, Dodson filed paperwork for the WNBA Draft in the event her waiver is denied, with the deadline to file approaching.

She can withdraw from WNBA Draft consideration if her waiver is approved.

So far the Irish have just one addition confirmed for 2022-23. That’s McDonald’s All-American and two-time Ohio Miss Basketball KK Bransford from Cincinnati. The 5-10 guard signed with the Irish in November.