The 2024-25 University of Tampa Women’s Basketball team harbors very high hopes. Aiming for a Sunshine State Conference title and perhaps an NCAA National title, they look to build upon a successful 31-7 season, setting the bar for expectations quite high indeed.
The University of Tampa Women’s Basketball team is ready to tip off their 2024/25 season, here is everything students, fans, and friends of the program need to know. The Spartans are led for the 23rd straight year by recent Tampa Athletics Hall of Fame inductee head coach Tom Jessee. The Spartans also welcome back assistant coaches Caitlyn Mitryk, Tommy Jones, and Elena De Alfredo who have been instrumental in creating a winning culture at UTampa. Head coach Tom Jessee and his staff have once again built a championship caliber roster with experience, size, and speed.
Recapping last year, the Spartans finished with an overall record of 31-7 (17-3, 2nd in SSC) and put together deep runs in both the Sunshine State Conference tournament and NCAA tournament. Last season saw the Spartans fall just short of their ultimate goals, losing in the championship game of the Sunshine State Conference tournament and being one game away from reaching the NCAA final four. The momentum and mentality that last year’s team ended with will be easily picked up by this year’s squad thanks to returning players and new impact recruits.
The 2024/25 roster will see the return of multiple key battle tested players in Zoe Piller, Audrey Ramsey, and Kath Van Bennekom. Zoe Piller is entering her senior year after being last year’s leading scorer, averaging 15.2 points a game on nearly 60% efficiency while also leading the team in total rebounds. Piller is 181 rebounds away from hitting the 1000 milestone mark for her career and would be just the fifth Spartan in program history to achieve it. Audrey Ramsey will be another problem from opposing defenses this season, she is coming off a year in which she averaged over 13 points a game on 40% shooting from beyond the arc. Ramsey was named the 2024 NCAA Elite 90 Award Winner, and this year has been honored with being named to the short list of this year’s NCAA Woman of the Year award. Kath Van Bennekom will round out the big three of returners for the Spartans, coming off a year in which she averaged nearly 10 points a game on elite efficiency, shooting the ball at a 50% clip.
This year’s squad welcomes seven newcomers, six freshman and one grad transfer. Sariana Rodriguez is the lone collegiate transfer coach Jessee and his staff brought in but she is poised to make an immediate impact. Hailing from Morovis, Puerto Rico, Rodriguez joins the Spartans from Florida International University where she played in 63 games over the last two seasons. She also has experience playing international basketball as a member of FIBA’s Puerto Rican National Women’s Basketball Organization. The six freshman that were brought in are Ella Daniels (Louisville, Ky), Giorgia Palmieri (Bologna, Italy), Brooklyn Butler (Fond du Lac, WI), Jade Thomspon (Tampa, Fl), Malayna Stevenson (St. Cloud, Fl), and Camryn Patterson (Orlando, Fl). The incoming freshman will have the chance to learn and grow as they start their careers but look for a few of them to work their way into the rotation in year one.
When it comes to the schedule for this year’s campaign, the Spartans have a loaded non-conference schedule. They will tip off the season in late October with a trip to Tallahassee to take on #19 Florida State University in an opportunity to take down a D1 program. The Spartans will then take a trip north of the border to play in the CCA Canadian Tip-Off Classic in Langley, British Colombia, Canada. The Spartans will play Seattle Pacific, St. Edwards, and the hosts of the tournament Simon Fraser in a three-day span. Following the Canadian Classic, the Spartans will come back to the Bob for a seven-game home stand including the home opener on November 8th against Clark Atlanta and the conference home opener December 4th against Florida Southern. Once the Spartans start their conference schedule in December, they will be on a Wednesday-Saturday game schedule until they wrap up regular season play on February 26th at home against Barry.
After falling just short of their ultimate goals last season, this year’s squad has the determination, comradery, experience, and skill to get the job done. Fans can once again expect this year’s team to make another deep run in the NCAA Tournament and attempt to reclaim the top spot in the SSC. Fans of the Spartans can follow this year’s team online at TampaSpartans.com, on social media @TampaWBB, and in person all season long at the Bob Martinez Center.
