Tracking BC's 2022 Departing Transfers
Andy Backstrom (@andybackstrom)
Publisher
Boston College women's basketball's first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2005-06 was within reach for the second time in three years. But an early exit from the ACC Tournament spoiled the Eagles' chances at The Dance. Then a second-half collapse in the WNIT Sweet Sixteen reset BC's heartbreak.
It also raised serious questions about the program's trajectory, especially after four players swiftly entered the transfer portal, three of whom were seniors with a fifth year of eligibility (thanks to the COVID-19 waiver). Those four players were guards Makayla Dickens, Marnelle Garraud, Jaelyn Batts and center Clara Ford.
Then prolific guard Cam Swartz, the team's leading scorer and the ACC's most improved player in 2021-22, entered the portal as well.
Most recently, Taylor Soule—a three-time All-ACC honoree and undeniable program leader the last few years—entered the portal.
There are currently only seven players on BC's 2022-23 roster, hinting that freshman guard Amaria Fields has also hit the portal.
Here at Eagle Action, we’ll be tracking where they end up as well as monitoring if any other BC players depart for the portal.
G Marnelle Garraud → Vanderbilt
Garraud and floor general were synonymous during her time at BC. She averaged 7.6 points and 3.7 assists per game this past season. The Lynn, Massachusetts, native started all but 12 of her 114 games with the Eagles, averaging 28.4 minutes per game in her BC career. Her best season came as a sophomore when she averaged a career-high 9.8 points, shot 38.1% from downtown and north of 40% from the field. That season, she finished fourth in the ACC in steals per game (1.9) and second in total steals (62). In 2020-21, she was named to the ACC All-Defensive Team. Garraud led BC in steals (39) and even blocked shots (seven) during the COVID-19-shortened campaign. She's headed to a Vanderbilt program that's coming off a 16-19 (4-12 SEC) campaign and hasn't had a winning season since 2015-16.
C Clara Ford → Virginia Tech
Ford is headed back to her home state of Virginia. The Vienna native is transferring to Virginia Tech, which is coming off its second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. Led by ACC Player of the Year Elizabeth Kitley, the Hokies won 13 conference games during the regular season and were a No. 5 seed in The Dance. Except, Virginia Tech fell to Florida Gulf Coast in the first round of play. Ford will give the Hokies some minutes at the five, where she was mostly a reserve for BC. The exception was 2020-21 when the 6-foot-3 center started 17 games and averaged 5.0 points, 5.6 rebounds and 17.6 minutes per game. This past season, Ford appeared in a career-high 30 games yet averaged just 6.1 minutes per game. That said, she was efficient. Ford made 26-of-44 field goal attempts, and 15 of her 39 rebounds came on the offensive end. Her reduced role in 2021-22 was because of the emergence of freshman center Maria Gakdeng.
G Cam Swartz → Georgia Tech
Like Ford, Swartz is on her way home, too. The Marietta, Georgia, native is transferring to Georgia Tech, which was a No. 9 seed in this past season's NCAA Tournament. The year before that, the Yellow Jackets made their second-ever Sweet Sixteen appearance. Swartz led BC in scoring last year and won the ACC Most Improved Player of the Year award. She averaged 16.1 points per game and put up 20 or more points in eight of the Eagles' final 10 games. Swartz shot a career-high 35.5% from deep and 83.6% from the charity stripe. She actually started her career at Colorado and played seven games for the Buffs during the 2018-19 season before transferring to BC.
F Taylor Soule → Virginia Tech
Soule is linking up with Ford in Blacksburg. It's another in-conference transfer for a former Eagle. The addition of Soule makes Virginia Tech, which returns the league's Player of the Year in Elizabeth Kitley, an ACC contender for the 2022-23 season. Soule was the ACC's Most Improved Player in 2019-20. She was an All-ACC first teamer in 2020-21. And, this past season, she was an All-ACC second teamer. As a senior at BC, she registered a career-high 16 points per game, along with 2.5 assists and 5.5 rebounds per game. Perhaps most importantly, though, Soule was a locker room leader for the Eagles the last few years.
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