Five-star center prospect Kate Koval deferred her actual National Letter of Intent signing until — Tuesday — relatively late in the eight-day women’s college basketball signing window.
The same cannot be said of the future Notre Dame post’s efforts to join the Irish women’s basketball team as college-ready as possible.
The nation’s No. 5 overall prospect in the 2024 class, per ESPNw, will jump right into an aggressive national schedule on Dec. 1, when Koval starts her senior season at Long Island (N.Y.) Lutheran High on the road, in the prestigious Art Turner Classic in Chantilly, Va.
LuHi takes on Catholic High of Virginia Beach (Va.) in its opener, followed by a matchup with host Paul VI High the next day.
The Crusaders begin the season ranked No. 1 in the nation by MaxPreps. They ended last season at No. 2 in the national rankings.
On a team loaded with Division I prospects, Koval averaged 15.1 points, 11.7 rebounds and 3.4 blocked shots for the New York high school federation Class AA state champs, who won the state title game by 41 points.
The 6-foot-5 native of Ukraine was MVP of the Nike Tournament of Champions in December, and put up 38 points and 16 rebounds in the Geico Nationals semifinals last spring. She’s the reigning New York Gatorade Player of the Year and a Naismith All-American.
"I am thrilled to welcome Kate Koval to our Notre Dame family!" Irish head coach Niele Ivey said. "Kate is a force from the center position and is one of the most efficient centers in her class.
"She's skilled, versatile and extremely competitive. Kate has the ability to dominate on the block but also step out and shoot from the perimeter. Her excellent passing and very high IQ and motor will complement our style of play and identity perfectly. The impact she will make on our program will be immediate and massive."
As Koval made time Tuesday to make her Oct. 4 verbal commitment to Notre Dame official — a day before the early signing period wraps up — the Irish were hoping she’d have company.
Five-star forward Mackenly Randolph remains publicly uncommitted and unsigned. After narrowing her finalists to Michigan State, Louisville and ND, the daughter of former NBA player Zach Randolph took an official visit to Notre Dame the weekend of Oct. 14.
The 6-1 forward is a senior at Sierra Canyon High in Chatsworth, Calif., a team that finished 31-1 last season and is ranked seventh nationally in the MaxPreps preseason rankings. She’s rated as the No. 21 player overall in the latest 2024 ESPN2 individual rankings.
Notre Dame, which hosts Northwestern in its home opener Wednesday night, loses only guards Jenna Brown and Anna DeWolfe and forward Becky Obinma to expired eligibility after this season.
“This changes everything,” said Dan Olson, women’s college basketball analyst and owner/director of the website College Girls Basketball Report (girlsbasketballreport.com), said of Koval’s addition. “That’s a hell of a get for Notre Dame.”
And just what is Notre Dame getting in the 6-foot-5 center, who ESPNw rates as the nation’s No. 5 overall prospect and Olson ranks even higher, at No. 2?
“She’s as skilled a post player as I’ve seen come along in quite a while, actually,” Olson said. “Not only is she a quality player, she’s got versatility. I mean, she’ll get down and pound down low and be efficient with her back-to-the-basketball game.
“But she’ll go outside. She’s now stepping out to the 3-point line, elbow area, so you’ve got to respect her out there. And I think that’s something that’s something she’s kind of added as she’s come along the way — that face-up game.
“It may have been there all along, because she’s European, but she didn’t really show it at certain times. She plays on a loaded high school team that has a couple of really, really good guards on it. But when she gets the ball down low, she’s the most efficient finisher among any of the centers in the 2024 class. Period. She gets it done.”
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